Finally, our brothers and sisters, you learnt from us how you should live in order to please God. This is, of course, how you have been living. And now we beg and urge you in the name of the Lord Jesus to do even more.

A church leader must be without fault; he must have only one wife, be sober, self-controlled, and orderly; he must welcome strangers in his home; he must be able to teach;

He saved us and called us to be his own people, not because of what we have done, but because of his own purpose and grace. He gave us this grace by means of Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,

Everyone who wants to live a godly life in union with Christ Jesus will be persecuted;

As for me, the hour has come for me to be sacrificed; the time is here for me to leave this life.

But you have followed my teaching, my conduct, and my purpose in life; you have observed my faith, my patience, my love, my endurance,

which is based on the hope for eternal life. God, who does not lie, promised us this life before the beginning of time,

He gave himself for us, to rescue us from all wickedness and to make us a pure people who belong to him alone and are eager to do good.

The word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts all the way through, to where soul and spirit meet, to where joints and marrow come together. It judges the desires and thoughts of the heart.

Remember your former leaders, who spoke God's message to you. Think back on how they lived and died, and imitate their faith.