12
Why don't these agitators, obsessive as they are about circumcision, go all the way and castrate themselves!
13
It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don't use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that's how freedom grows.
14
For everything we know about God's Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That's an act of true freedom.
15
If you bite and ravage each other, watch out - in no time at all you will be annihilating each other, and where will your precious freedom be then?
16
My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God's Spirit. Then you won't feed the compulsions of selfishness.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.