Letters to the Churches

It all accords with my earnest expectation and hope that I will have nothing to be ashamed of; but rather, now, as always, the Messiah will be honored by my body, whether it is alive or dead.

For to me, life is the Messiah, and death is gain.

But if by living on in the body I can do fruitful work, then I don’t know which to choose.

I am caught in a dilemma: my desire is to go off and be with the Messiah — that is better by far —

but because of you, the greater need is to stay on in the body.

Yes, I am convinced of this; so I know I will stay on with you in order to help you progress in the faith and have joy in it.

Then, through my being with you again, you will have even greater reason for boasting about the Messiah Yeshua.

Only conduct your lives in a way worthy of the Good News of the Messiah; so that whether I come and see you or I hear about you from a distance, you stand firm, united in spirit, fighting with one accord for the faith of the Good News,

not frightened by anything the opposition does. This will be for them an indication that they are headed for destruction and you for deliverance. And this is from God;

because for the Messiah’s sake it has been granted to you not only to trust in him but also to suffer on his behalf,

to fight the same battles you once saw me fight and now hear that I am still fighting.

Therefore, if you have any encouragement for me from your being in union with the Messiah, any comfort flowing from love, any fellowship with me in the Spirit, or any compassion and sympathy,

then complete my joy by having a common purpose and a common love, by being one in heart and mind.

Do nothing out of rivalry or vanity; but, in humility, regard each other as better than yourselves —

look out for each other’s interests and not just for your own.

Let your attitude toward one another be governed by your being in union with the Messiah Yeshua:

Though he was in the form of God, he did not regard equality with God something to be possessed by force.

On the contrary, he emptied himself, in that he took the form of a slave by becoming like human beings are. And when he appeared as a human being,

he humbled himself still more by becoming obedient even to death — death on a stake as a criminal!

Therefore God raised him to the highest place and gave him the name above every name;

that in honor of the name given Yeshua, every knee will bow — in heaven, on earth and under the earth —

and every tongue will acknowledge that Yeshua the Messiah is Adonai — to the glory of God the Father.

So, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed when I was with you, it is even more important that you obey now when I am away from you: keep working out your deliverance with fear and trembling,

for God is the one working among you both the willing and the working for what pleases him.

Do everything without kvetching or arguing,