1 Cor 15:58(NLT)
58 So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.
1 Cor 15:58(TPT)
58 So now, beloved ones,[as] stand firm and secure. Live your lives with an unshakable confidence. We know that we prosper and excel in every season by serving the Lord,[at] because we are assured that our union with the Lord makes our labor productive with fruit that endures.[au]
————-Confidence from His presence —————-
Eph 2:4-10(NKJV)
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
2 Cor 5:21(NKJV)
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
King’s Presence
Kingdom Principles
Kingdom Results
2 Cor 5:5-21(NLT)
5 God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.
6 So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. 7 For we live by believing and not by seeing. 8 Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him. 10 For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.
We Are God’s Ambassadors
11 Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others. God knows we are sincere, and I hope you know this, too. 12 Are we commending ourselves to you again? No, we are giving you a reason to be proud of us,[b] so you can answer those who brag about having a spectacular ministry rather than having a sincere heart. 13 If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit. 14 Either way, Christ’s love controls us.[c] Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.[d] 15 He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.
16 So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! 17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
18 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. 20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” 21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin,[e] so that we could be made right with God through Christ.
2 Cor 5:5-21(TPT)
5 And this is no empty hope, for God himself is the one who has prepared us for this wonderful destiny. And to confirm this promise, he has given us the Holy Spirit, like an engagement ring, as a guarantee.[b]
6 That’s why we’re always full of courage. Even while we’re at home in the body, we’re homesick to be with the Master—
7 for we live by faith, not by what we see with our eyes.
8 We live with a joyful confidence, yet at the same time we take delight in the thought of leaving our bodies behind to be at home with the Lord.
9 So whether we live or die[c] we make it our life’s passion[d] to live our lives pleasing to him.[e]
10 For one day we will all be openly revealed before Christ on his throne[f] so that each of us will be duly recompensed for our actions done in life,[g] whether good or worthless.
The Message of Reconciliation
11 Since we are those who stand in holy awe of the Lord,[h] we make it our passion to persuade others to turn to him. We know that our lives are transparent before the God who knows us fully, and I hope that we are also well known to your consciences.
12 Again, we are not taking an opportunity to brag, but giving you information that will enable you to be proud of us, and to answer those who esteem outward appearances while overlooking what is in the heart.
13 If we are out of our minds in a blissful, divine ecstasy,[i] it is for God, but if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit.
14 For it is Christ’s love that fuels our passion and motivates us,[j] because we are absolutely convinced that he has given his life for all of us. This means all died with him,
15 so that those who live[k] should no longer live self-absorbed lives but lives that are poured out for him—the one who died for us and now lives again.
16 So then, from now on, we have a new perspective that refuses to evaluate people merely by their outward appearances. For that’s how we once viewed the Anointed One, but no longer do we see him with limited human insight.[l]
17 Now, if anyone is enfolded into Christ, he has become an entirely new creation. All that is related to the old order has vanished.[m] Behold, everything is fresh and new.[n]
18 And God has made all things new,[o] and reconciled[p] us to himself, and given us the ministry of reconciling others to God.
19 In other words, it was through the Anointed One that God was shepherding the world,[q] not even keeping records of their transgressions, and he has entrusted to us the ministry of opening the door of reconciliation to God.[r]
20 We are ambassadors[s] of the Anointed One who carry the message of Christ to the world, as though God were tenderly pleading[t] with them directly through our lips. So we tenderly plead with you on Christ’s behalf, “Turn back to God and be reconciled to him.”
21 For God made[u] the only one who did not know sin to become sin for us,[v] so that we who did not know righteousness might become the righteousness of God through our union with him.[w]