These people aren’t connected anymore to the head, who is Christ. God makes the whole body grow as it’s guided by the head and held together by its tendons and ligaments.
My goal is that they will all be encouraged in their hearts and joined together in love. Then their understanding will be rich and complete, and they will know the mystery of God, which is Christ.
We also thank God constantly for the way you received his word when you heard it from us. You didn’t accept it as a human word, but for what it is, the word of God. And that word is truly at work in you who believe.
We should always thank God for you, brothers and sisters. That’s only right, because your faith is growing more and more and your love for one another is increasing.
Whenever we pray to our God and Father, we remember the work that your faith produces, the service that’s the result of your love, and the strength to continue that comes from your hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.
If a person believes in Christ Jesus, it doesn’t matter whether they’re circumcised or not. The only thing that matters is faith expressing itself through love.
Now I’d like to talk about food that has been sacrificed to statues of gods. We know that “We all have knowledge.” But knowledge makes people proud, while love builds them up.