And may God, the source of patience and encouragement, enable you to have the same point of view among yourselves by following the example of Christ Jesus,

Certainly not! We have died to sin---how then can we go on living in it?

God was also at work in Judah and united the people in their determination to obey his will by following the commands of the king and his officials.

I will give them a single purpose in life: to honor me for all time, for their own good and the good of their descendants.

The group of believers was one in mind and heart. None of them said that any of their belongings were their own, but they all shared with one another everything they had.

By the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ I appeal to all of you, my friends, to agree in what you say, so that there will be no divisions among you. Be completely united, with only one thought and one purpose.

Now, the important thing is that your way of life should be as the gospel of Christ requires, so that, whether or not I am able to go and see you, I will hear that you are standing firm with one common purpose and that with only one desire you are fighting together for the faith of the gospel.

I urge you, then, to make me completely happy by having the same thoughts, sharing the same love, and being one in soul and mind.

Don't do anything from selfish ambition or from a cheap desire to boast, but be humble toward one another, always considering others better than yourselves.

However that may be, let us go forward according to the same rules we have followed until now.

Euodia and Syntyche, please, I beg you, try to agree as sisters in the Lord.

To conclude: you must all have the same attitude and the same feelings; love one another, and be kind and humble with one another.

LORD, I have given up my pride and turned away from my arrogance. I am not concerned with great matters or with subjects too difficult for me.

Instead, I am content and at peace. As a child lies quietly in its mother's arms, so my heart is quiet within me.

Are you looking for special treatment for yourself ? Don't do it. I am bringing disaster on all people, but you will at least escape with your life, wherever you go. I, the LORD, have spoken."

At that time the disciples came to Jesus, asking, "Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?"

and said, "I assure you that unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of heaven.

"What do you want?" Jesus asked her. She answered, "Promise me that these two sons of mine will sit at your right and your left when you are King."

"You will indeed drink from my cup," Jesus told them, "but I do not have the right to choose who will sit at my right and my left. These places belong to those for whom my Father has prepared them."

So Jesus called them all together and said, "You know that the rulers of the heathen have power over them, and the leaders have complete authority.

and if one of you wants to be first, you must be the slave of the others---

"I will give you all this power and all this wealth," the Devil told him. "It has all been handed over to me, and I can give it to anyone I choose.

Jesus answered, "The scripture says, 'Worship the Lord your God and serve only him!' "

For the scripture says, 'God will order his angels to take good care of you.'

An argument broke out among the disciples as to which one of them should be thought of as the greatest.

But this is not the way it is with you; rather, the greatest one among you must be like the youngest, and the leader must be like the servant.

Do not try to rule over those who have been put in your care, but be examples to the flock.

I wrote a short letter to the church; but Diotrephes, who likes to be their leader, will not pay any attention to what I say.

It was allowed to fight against God's people and to defeat them, and it was given authority over every tribe, nation, language, and race.

All people living on earth will worship it, except those whose names were written before the creation of the world in the book of the living which belongs to the Lamb that was killed.

When any of my servants complained against me, I would listen and treat them fairly.

The same God who created me created my servants also.

How strong God is! He despises no one; there is nothing he doesn't understand.

If you make fun of poor people, you insult the God who made them. You will be punished if you take pleasure in someone's misfortune.

Even the relatives of a poor person have no use for him; no wonder he has no friends. No matter how hard he tries, he cannot win any.

When you give to the poor, it is like lending to the LORD, and the LORD will pay you back.

It is a disgrace to be greedy; poor people are better off than liars.

"This is why I tell you: do not be worried about the food and drink you need in order to stay alive, or about clothes for your body. After all, isn't life worth more than food? And isn't the body worth more than clothes?

Look at the birds: they do not plant seeds, gather a harvest and put it in barns; yet your Father in heaven takes care of them! Aren't you worth much more than birds?

the blind can see, the lame can walk, those who suffer from dreaded skin diseases are made clean, the deaf hear, the dead are brought back to life, and the Good News is preached to the poor.

You will always have poor people with you, but you will not always have me.

Jesus looked at his disciples and said, "Happy are you poor; the Kingdom of God is yours!

When you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind;

And I am not saying this because I feel neglected, for I have learned to be satisfied with what I have.

I have the strength to face all conditions by the power that Christ gives me.

Well, religion does make us very rich, if we are satisfied with what we have.

So then, if we have food and clothes, that should be enough for us.

Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, "I will never leave you; I will never abandon you."

Listen, my dear friends! God chose the poor people of this world to be rich in faith and to possess the kingdom which he promised to those who love him.

But you dishonor the poor! Who are the ones who oppress you and drag you before the judges? The rich!

There is a secret truth, my friends, which I want you to know, for it will keep you from thinking how wise you are. It is that the stubbornness of the people of Israel is not permanent, but will last only until the complete number of Gentiles comes to God.

Never let yourself think that you are wiser than you are; simply obey the LORD and refuse to do wrong.

The most stupid fool is better off than those who think they are wise when they are not.

You are doomed! You think you are wise, so very clever.

You should not fool yourself. If any of you think that you are wise by this world's standards, you should become a fool, in order to be really wise.

For Christ's sake we are fools; but you are wise in union with Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! We are despised, but you are honored!

Shame on you! Surely there is at least one wise person in your fellowship who can settle a dispute between fellow Christians.

Those who think they know something really don't know as they ought to know.

Are there any of you who are wise and understanding? You are to prove it by your good life, by your good deeds performed with humility and wisdom.

Such wisdom does not come down from heaven; it belongs to the world, it is unspiritual and demonic.

But the wisdom from above is pure first of all; it is also peaceful, gentle, and friendly; it is full of compassion and produces a harvest of good deeds; it is free from prejudice and hypocrisy.