Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit

¹⁵ “If you love me, keep my commands.^{(A) 16} And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate^(B) to help you and be with you forever— ¹⁷ the Spirit of truth.^(C) The world cannot accept him,^(D) because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be^[a] in you. ¹⁸ I will not leave you as orphans;^(E) I will come to you.^{(F) 19} Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me.^(G) Because I live, you also will live.^{(H) 20} On that day^(I) you will realize that I am in my Father,^(J) and you are in me, and I am in you.^{(K) 21} Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me.^(L) The one who loves me will be loved by my Father,^(M) and I too will love them and show myself to them.”

¹² “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.^{(A) 13} But when he, the Spirit of truth,^(B) comes, he will guide you into all the truth.^(C) He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. ¹⁵ All that belongs to the Father is mine.^(D) That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

Ask, Seek, Knock^(A)

⁷ “Ask and it will be given to you;^(B) seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds;^(C) and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

⁹ “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹ If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts^(D) to those who ask him!

¹⁸ Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory,^(A) but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him.

A Tree and Its Fruit^(A)

⁴³ “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. ⁴⁴ Each tree is recognized by its own fruit.^(B) People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. ⁴⁵ A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.^(C)

²² But the fruit^(A) of the Spirit is love,^(B) joy, peace,^(C) forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control.^(D) Against such things there is no law.^{(E) 24} Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh^(F) with its passions and desires.^{(G) 25} Since we live by the Spirit,^(H) let us keep in step with the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited,^(I) provoking and envying each other.

Final Exhortations

⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!^{(A) 5} Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.^{(B) 6} Do not be anxious about anything,^(C) but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.^{(D) 7} And the peace of God,^(E) which transcends all understanding,^(F) will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

⁸ Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. ⁹ Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice.^(G) And the God of peace^(H) will be with you.

The Armor of God

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord^(A) and in his mighty power.^{(B) 11} Put on the full armor of God,^(C) so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,^(D) but against the rulers, against the authorities,^(E) against the powers^(F) of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.^{(G) 13} Therefore put on the full armor of God,^(H) so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist,^(I) with the breastplate of righteousness in place,^{(J) 15} and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.^{(K) 16} In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith,^(L) with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.^{(M) 17} Take the helmet of salvation^(N) and the sword of the Spirit,^(O) which is the word of God.^(P)

¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit^(Q) on all occasions^(R) with all kinds of prayers and requests.^(S) With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying^(T) for all the Lord’s people. ¹⁹ Pray also for me,^(U) that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly^(V) make known the mystery^(W) of the gospel, ²⁰ for which I am an ambassador^(X) in chains.^(Y) Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.