Study Desk

But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stay true to the Lord. I love you and long to see you, dear friends, for you are my joy and the crown I receive for my work.

And I ask you, my true partner, to help these two women, for they worked hard with me in telling others the Good News. They worked along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are written in the Book of Life.

Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.

How I praise the Lord that you are concerned about me again. I know you have always been concerned for me, but you didn't have the chance to help me.

Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have.

For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.

I don't say this because I want a gift from you. Rather, I want you to receive a reward for your kindness.

We always pray for you, and we give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God's people,

which come from your confident hope of what God has reserved for you in heaven. You have had this expectation ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News.

He has told us about the love for others that the Holy Spirit has given you.

So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding.

For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son,

for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him.

For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ,

I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church.

This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God's people.

For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.

I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at Laodicea, and for many other believers who have never met me personally.