2 Corinthians 5
The earthly body is temporary, but believers have a heavenly dwelling that is eternal. They long to be clothed with their heavenly habitation, and this transformation is made possible by God through the Spirit. Believers are confident in their faith and strive to please the Lord, knowing they will be judged according to their actions. They have been reconciled to God through Christ and have been given the ministry of reconciliation, serving as ambassadors for Christ, urging others to be reconciled to God.
1For we know that, when our earthly house of this habitation is dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in heaven2And for this reason also, we groan, desiring to be clothed from above with our habitation from heaven3If we are so clothed, then we will not be found to be naked4Then too, we who are in this tabernacle groan under the burden, because we do not want to be stripped, but rather to be clothed from above, so that what is mortal may be absorbed by life5Now the One who accomplishes this very thing in us is God, who has given us the pledge of the Spirit6Therefore, we are ever confident, knowing that, while we are in the body, we are on a pilgrimage in the Lord7For we walk by means of faith, and not by sight8So we are confident, and we have the good will to be on a pilgrimage in the body, so as to be present to the Lord.9And thus we struggle, whether absent or present, to please him10For it is necessary for us to be manifested before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive the proper things of the body, according to his behavior, whether it was good or evil11Therefore, having knowledge of the fear of the Lord, we appeal to men, but we are made manifest before God. Yet I hope, too, that we may be made manifest in your consciences12We are not commending ourselves again to you, but rather we are presenting you with an opportunity to glory because of us, when you deal with those who glory in face, and not in heart13For if we are excessive in mind, it is for God; but if we are sober, it is for you14For the charity of Christ urges us on, in consideration of this: that if one died for all, then all have died15And Christ died for all, so that even those who live might not now live for themselves, but for him who died for them and who rose again16And so, from now on, we know no one according to the flesh. And though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him in this way no longer17So if anyone is a new creature in Christ, what is old has passed away. Behold, all things have been made new18But all is of God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ, and who has given us the ministry of reconciliation19For certainly God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, not charging them with their sins. And he has placed in us the Word of reconciliation20Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, so that God is exhorting through us. We beseech you for Christ: be reconciled to God21For God made him who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the justice of God in him
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