The Goal of Life

1 Finally, my brethren, arejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you.

2 Beware of the adogs, beware of the bevil workers, beware of the 1false circumcision;

3 for awe are the true 1circumcision, who bworship in the Spirit of God and cglory in dChrist Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh,

4 although aI myself might have confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more:

5 acircumcised the eighth day, of the bnation of Israel, of the ctribe of Benjamin, a bHebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, da Pharisee;

6 as to zeal, aa persecutor of the church; as to the brighteousness which is in the Law, found cblameless.

7 But awhatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

8 More than that, I count all things to be loss 1in view of the surpassing value of 2aknowing bChrist Jesus my Lord, 1for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,

9 and may be found in Him, not having aa righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, bthe righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith,

10 that I may aknow Him and bthe power of His resurrection and 1cthe fellowship of His sufferings, being dconformed to His death;

11 1in order that I may aattain to the resurrection from the dead.

12 Not that I have already aobtained it or have already bbecome perfect, but I press on 1so that I may clay hold of that 2for which also I dwas laid hold of by eChrist Jesus.

13 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: aforgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead,

14 I apress on toward the goal for the prize of the bupward call of God in cChrist Jesus.