Ephesians 5-6; Philippians 1-2

1Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children,

2and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.

3But among you, as is proper among the saints, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed.

4Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or crude joking, which are out of character, but rather thanksgiving.

5For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person (that is, an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.

7Therefore do not be partakers with them.

8For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light,

9for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth.

10Test and prove what pleases the Lord.

11Have no fellowship with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.

12For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.

13But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that is illuminated becomes a light itself.

14So it is said: “Wake up, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

15Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,

16redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.

18Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.

19Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your hearts to the Lord,

20always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

21Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

22Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.

23For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, His body, of which He is the Savior.

24Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her

26to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,

27and to present her to Himself as a glorious church, without stain or wrinkle or any such blemish, but holy and blameless.

28In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.

29Indeed, no one ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church.

30For we are members of His body.

31“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”

32This mystery is profound, but I am speaking about Christ and the church.

33Nevertheless, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

1Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

2“Honor your father and mother” (which is the first commandment with a promise),

3“that it may go well with you and that you may have a long life on the earth.”

4Fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath; instead, bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

5Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear and sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.

6And do this not only to please them while they are watching, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart.

7Serve with good will, as to the Lord and not to men,

8because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.

9And masters, do the same for your slaves. Give up your use of threats, because you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him.

10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

11Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes.

12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

13Therefore take up the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you will be able to stand your ground, and having done everything, to stand.

14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed,

15and with your feet fitted with the readiness of the gospel of peace.

16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

17And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18Pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition. To this end, stay alert with all perseverance in your prayers for all the saints.

19Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will boldly make known the mystery of the gospel,

20for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it fearlessly, as I should.

21Tychicus, the beloved brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know about me and what I am doing.

22I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know about us, and that he may encourage your hearts.

23Peace to the brothers and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

24Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.

1Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons:

2Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3I thank my God every time I remember you.

4In every prayer for all of you, I always pray with joy,

5because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now,

6being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

7It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart. For in my chains and in my defense and confirmation of the gospel, you are all partners in grace with me.

8God is my witness how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

9And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,

10so that you may be able to test and prove what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,

11filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

12Now I want you to know, brothers, that my circumstances have actually served to advance the gospel.

13As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.

14And most of the brothers, confident in the Lord by my chains, now dare more greatly to speak the word without fear.

15It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill.

16The latter do so in love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel.

17The former, however, preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can add to the distress of my chains.

18What then is the issue? Just this: that in every way, whether by false motives or true, Christ is preached. And in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,

19because I know that through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, my distress will turn out for my deliverance.

20I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have complete boldness so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.

21For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

22But if I go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. So what shall I choose? I do not know.

23I am torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better indeed.

24But it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.

25Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith,

26so that through my coming to you again your exultation in Christ Jesus will resound on account of me.

27Nevertheless, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending together as one for the faith of the gospel,

28without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a clear sign of their destruction but of your salvation, and it is from God.

29For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for Him,

30since you are encountering the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.

1Therefore if you have any encouragement in Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any affection and compassion,

2then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being united in spirit and purpose.

3Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves.

4Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

5Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus:

6Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

7but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness.

8And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross.

9Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names,

10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

12Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.

13For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good purpose.

14Do everything without complaining or arguing,

15so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine as lights in the world

16as you hold forth the word of life, in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.

17But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.

18So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

19Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I learn how you are doing.

20I have nobody else like him who will genuinely care for your needs.

21For all the others look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.

22But you know Timothy’s proven worth, that as a child with his father he has served with me to advance the gospel.

23So I hope to send him as soon as I see what happens with me.

24And I trust in the Lord that I myself will come soon.

25But I thought it necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my needs.

26For he has been longing for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill.

27He was sick indeed, nearly unto death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow.

28Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may rejoice, and I may be less anxious.

29Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him,

30because he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for your deficit of service to me.