2 Corinthians 5 : Easy-to-Read Version
5 We know that [our body]--the tent we live in here on earth--will be destroyed. But when that happens, God will have a home for us to live in. It will not be a home made by men. It will be a home in heaven that will continue forever. 2But now we are tired of this body. We want God to give us our heavenly home. 3It will clothe us and we will not be naked. 4While we live in this tent (body), we have burdens and we complain. I don't mean that we want to remove this tent (body). But we want to be clothed [with our heavenly home]. Then this body that dies will be fully covered with life. 5This is what God made us for. And he has given us the Spirit* to be a guarantee--a proof [that he will give us this new life]. 6So we always have courage (confidence). We know that while we live in this body, we are away from the Lord. 7We live by what we believe, not by what we can see. 8So I say that we have confidence. And we really want to be away from this body and be at home with the Lord. 9Our only goal is to please God. We want to please him when we are living here [in our body] or there [with the Lord]. 10We must all stand before Christ to be judged. Each person will get what he should. Each person will be paid for the things he did--good or bad--when he lived in the earthly body.
Helping People Become God's Friends
11We know what it means to fear the Lord. So we try to help people accept the truth. God knows what we really are. And I hope that in your hearts you know us too. 12We are not trying to prove ourselves to you again. But we are telling you about ourselves. We are giving you reasons to be proud of us. Then you will have an answer for those people who are proud about things that can be seen. Those people don't care about what is in a person's heart. 13If we are crazy, then it is for God. If we have our right mind, then it is for you. 14The love of Christ controls us. Why? Because we know that One (Christ) has died for all people. So all have died. 15Christ died for all people so that the people who live would not continue to live for themselves. He died for them and was raised from death so that those people would live for him. 16From this time on we don't think of any person like the world thinks of people. It is true that in the past we thought of Christ like the world thinks. But we don't think that way now. 17If any person is in Christ, then that person is made new. The old things have gone; everything is made new! 18All this is from God. Through Christ, God made peace between us and himself. And God gave us the work of bringing people into peace with him. 19I mean that God was in Christ, making peace between the world and himself. In Christ, God did not hold people guilty for their sins. And he gave us this message of peace [to tell people]. 20So we have been sent to speak for Christ. It is like God is calling to people through us. We speak for Christ when we beg you to be at peace with God. 21Christ had no sin. But God made him become sin. God did this for us, so that in Christ we could become right with God.
Spirit, Holy Spirit Also called the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, and the Comforter. Joined with God and Christ, he does God's work among people in the world.