The body of Christ
They will be my people, and I will be their God, faithful to bring about justice. ~ Zechariah 8:8b (CEV)
Christ is the head of the body, which is the church. He is the beginning. He is the first to be raised from the dead. ~ Colossians 1:18a (NIRV)
Thank you, Lord, for including us in the body of Christ -- your new people constituted through the resurrection. As a member of your body I intend to live according to the new resurrection life -- even now before the resurrection has happened. I want to be a part of your new order -- a new way of doing things as defined by your justice. I do not always live consistently with this desire but it is still my intention. I'm counting on you to renew my life even further so that when people look at me they start to see Jesus. Amen.
TRANSLATIONS
ABP = Authorized Boydston Paraphrase — my own freestyle biblical adaptation — somewhere between paraphrase, commentary, and sermon
CEB = Common English Bible (©2011, the Common English Bible)
CEV = Contemporary English Version (©1995, American Bible Society)
MSG = The Message (©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson)
NIRV = New International Reader's Version (©1996, 1998, Biblica)
NIV = New International Version (©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011, Biblica)
NLT = New Living Translation (©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, Tyndale House Foundation)
