English Standard Version

New Living Translation

A Living Sacrifice

I appeal to you therefore, brothers,a by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.b

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A Living Sacrifice to God

And so, dear brothers and sisters,a I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice — the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.b

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Do not be conformed to this world,c but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.d

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Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

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Gifts of Grace

For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.

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Because of the privilege and authorityc God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.d

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For as in one body we have many members,e and the members do not all have the same function,

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Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function,

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so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

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so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.

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Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith;

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In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you.

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if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching;

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If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well.

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the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads,f with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.

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If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

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Marks of the True Christian

Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.

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Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.

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Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.

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Love each other with genuine affection,e and take delight in honoring each other.

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Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit,g serve the Lord.

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Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.f

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Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.

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Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.

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Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

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When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.

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Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.

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Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them.

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Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.

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Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep.

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Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly.h Never be wise in your own sight.

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Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

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Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all.

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Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable.

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If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

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Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.

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Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave iti to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”

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Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say,
“I will take revenge;
I will pay them back,”g
says the LORD.

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To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.”

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Instead,
“If your enemies are hungry, feed them.
If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap
burning coals of shame on their heads.”h

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Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

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Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

Parallel

English Standard Version

New Living Translation

Romans 12

Romans 12