Category
VERSES ABOUT VICES AND ADDICTIONS
Addiction and bad habits can be so destructive. Think about it, addiction is clinging to something—a behavior, a substance, an activity, even a person—that's actually harming you. So many of us struggle with these things, feeling trapped by a vice or an addiction. Sometimes, we feel like it's because of our past.
But here's the truth: in God, we're free. Christ set us free from all of that and forgave our sins. If you keep dwelling on the past, those chains can really hold you back. Sometimes, these struggles can even stem from negative spiritual influences, finding a foothold and coming to light when we unknowingly open a door, giving the enemy a legal right to step in.
You have the power to let go of what's binding you. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any areas of bondage you need to address. Receive God's forgiveness and His healing. He's there for you.
I pray that we all find freedom from anything that's hurting us and holding us back. Just like it says in John 8:36, "So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed."
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her
to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
If a man is newly married, he must not be sent to war or be pressed into any duty. For one year he is free to stay at home and bring joy to the wife he has married.
And though one may be overpowered, two can resist. Moreover, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love; but the greatest of these is love.
Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.
Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.
The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband.
those who weep, as if they did not; those who are joyful, as if they were not; those who make a purchase, as if they had nothing;
and those who use the things of this world, as if not dependent on them. For this world in its present form is passing away.
I want you to be free from concern. The unmarried man is concerned about the work of the Lord, how he can please the Lord.
But the married man is concerned about the affairs of this world, how he can please his wife,
and his interests are divided. The unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the work of the Lord, how she can be holy in both body and spirit. But the married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world, how she can please her husband.
I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but in order to promote proper decorum and undivided devotion to the Lord.
However, if someone thinks he is acting inappropriately toward his betrothed, and if she is beyond her youth and they ought to marry, let him do as he wishes; he is not sinning; they should get married.
But the man who is firmly established in his heart and under no constraint, with control over his will and resolve in his heart not to marry the virgin, he will do well.
So then, he who marries the virgin does well, but he who does not marry her does even better.
A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, as long as he belongs to the Lord.
The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife.
“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”
Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
And over all these virtues put on love, which is the bond of perfect unity.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, for to this you were called as members of one body. And be thankful.
Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.
But 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.
For we are members of His body.
“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”
This mystery is profound, but I am speaking about Christ and the church.
Nevertheless, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or crude joking, which are out of character, but rather thanksgiving.
For 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.
Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ Himself, who is the head.
Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.
For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, His body, of which He is the Savior.
Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her
to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
and to present her to Himself as a glorious church, without stain or wrinkle or any such blemish, but holy and blameless.
In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.
Indeed, no one ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church.
But 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.
For we are members of His body.
“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”
This mystery is profound, but I am speaking about Christ and the church.
Nevertheless, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her
For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, His body, of which He is the Savior.
Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be restrained; where there is knowledge, it will be dismissed.
But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband.
He who pursues righteousness and loving devotion finds life, righteousness, and honor.
Never let loving devotion or faithfulness leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.
Do not accuse a man without cause, when he has done you no harm.
Do not envy a violent man or choose any of his ways;
for the Lord detests the perverse, but He is a friend to the upright.
The curse of the Lord is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the home of the righteous.
He mocks the mockers, but gives grace to the humble.
The wise will inherit honor, but fools are held up to shame.
Then you will find favor and high regard in the sight of God and man.
Wives, in the same way, submit yourselves to your husbands, so that even if they refuse to believe the word, they will be won over without words by the behavior of their wives
For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.
He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it.
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
Who can harm you if you are zealous for what is good?
But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear what they fear; do not be shaken.”
But in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give a defense to everyone who asks you the reason for the hope that is in you. But respond with gentleness and respect,
keeping a clear conscience, so that those who slander you may be put to shame by your good behavior in Christ.
For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.
For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit,
in whom He also went and preached to the spirits in prison
when they see your pure and reverent demeanor.
who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In the ark a few people, only eight souls, were saved through water.
And this water symbolizes the baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to Him.
Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair or gold jewelry or fine clothes,
but from the inner disposition of your heart, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in God’s sight.
For this is how the holy women of the past adorned themselves. They put their hope in God and were submissive to their husbands,
just as Sarah obeyed Abraham and called him lord. And you are her children if you do what is right and refuse to give way to fear.
Husbands, in the same way, treat your wives with consideration as a delicate vessel, and with honor as fellow heirs of the gracious gift of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.
And love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
The Lord God also said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make for him a suitable helper.”
Enjoy life with your beloved wife all the days of the fleeting life that God has given you under the sun—all your fleeting days. For this is your portion in life and in your labor under the sun.
They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not understand what they are saying or that which they so confidently assert.
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a ringing gong or a clanging cymbal.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no account of wrongs.
Love takes no pleasure in evil, but rejoices in the truth.
It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’
But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Set me as a seal over your heart, as a seal upon your arm. For love is as strong as death, its jealousy as unrelenting as Sheol. Its sparks are fiery flames, the fiercest blaze of all.
Mighty waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot sweep it away. If a man were to give all the wealth of his house for love, his offer would be utterly scorned.
So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every creature that crawls upon the earth.”
A wife of noble character, who can find? She is far more precious than rubies.
The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he lacks nothing of value.
She brings him good and not harm all the days of her life.
with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,
But this is not the way you came to know Christ.
Surely you heard of Him and were taught in Him—in keeping with the truth that is in Jesus—
to put off your former way of life, your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;
to be renewed in the spirit of your minds;
and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one another.
“Be angry, yet do not sin.” Do not let the sun set upon your anger,
and do not give the devil a foothold.
He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing good with his own hands, that he may have something to share with the one in need.
Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen.
and with diligence to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband.
Each one should remain in the situation he was in when he was called.
Were you a slave when you were called? Do not let it concern you—but if you can gain your freedom, take the opportunity.
For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord’s freedman. Conversely, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ’s slave.
You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.
Brothers, each one should remain in the situation he was in when God called him.
Now about virgins, I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy.
Because of the present crisis, I think it is good for a man to remain as he is.
Are you committed to a wife? Do not seek to be released. Are you free of commitment? Do not look for a wife.
But if you do marry, you have not sinned. And if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this.
What I am saying, brothers, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as if they had none;
The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband.
those who weep, as if they did not; those who are joyful, as if they were not; those who make a purchase, as if they had nothing;
and those who use the things of this world, as if not dependent on them. For this world in its present form is passing away.
I want you to be free from concern. The unmarried man is concerned about the work of the Lord, how he can please the Lord.
But the married man is concerned about the affairs of this world, how he can please his wife,
and his interests are divided. The unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the work of the Lord, how she can be holy in both body and spirit. But the married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world, how she can please her husband.
I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but in order to promote proper decorum and undivided devotion to the Lord.
However, if someone thinks he is acting inappropriately toward his betrothed, and if she is beyond her youth and they ought to marry, let him do as he wishes; he is not sinning; they should get married.
But the man who is firmly established in his heart and under no constraint, with control over his will and resolve in his heart not to marry the virgin, he will do well.
So then, he who marries the virgin does well, but he who does not marry her does even better.
A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, as long as he belongs to the Lord.
The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife.
In my judgment, however, she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.
Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack of self-control.
then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being united in spirit and purpose.
I have nobody else like him who will genuinely care for your needs.
For all the others look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.
But you know Timothy’s proven worth, that as a child with his father he has served with me to advance the gospel.
So I hope to send him as soon as I see what happens with me.
And I trust in the Lord that I myself will come soon.
But 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.
For he has been longing for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill.
He 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.
Therefore 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.
Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him,
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves.
because he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for your deficit of service to me.
Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
For you, brothers, were called to freedom; but do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Rather, serve one another in love.
So I advise the younger widows to marry, have children, and manage their households, denying the adversary occasion for slander.
Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the Lord protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain.
The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband.
those who weep, as if they did not; those who are joyful, as if they were not; those who make a purchase, as if they had nothing;
and those who use the things of this world, as if not dependent on them. For this world in its present form is passing away.
I want you to be free from concern. The unmarried man is concerned about the work of the Lord, how he can please the Lord.
But the married man is concerned about the affairs of this world, how he can please his wife,
and his interests are divided. The unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the work of the Lord, how she can be holy in both body and spirit. But the married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world, how she can please her husband.
I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but in order to promote proper decorum and undivided devotion to the Lord.
However, if someone thinks he is acting inappropriately toward his betrothed, and if she is beyond her youth and they ought to marry, let him do as he wishes; he is not sinning; they should get married.
But the man who is firmly established in his heart and under no constraint, with control over his will and resolve in his heart not to marry the virgin, he will do well.
So then, he who marries the virgin does well, but he who does not marry her does even better.
A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, as long as he belongs to the Lord.
The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife.
In my judgment, however, she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.
Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack of self-control.
Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’
and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?
So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”
To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband.
But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife.
It has also been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’
But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, brings adultery upon her. And he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
If anyone does not provide for his own, and especially his own household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
Loving devotion and faithfulness have joined together; righteousness and peace have kissed.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
You have captured my heart, my sister, my bride; you have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes, with one jewel of your neck.
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.