Chapter 5

1We know that if the tent we live in on earth gets torn down, we have a building from God. An eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. A building. Not a tent. A building. Big upgrade. Best builder there is.

2Meanwhile we groan, wanting to move into our heavenly house. Move-in ready. Very eager.

3Because once we're dressed in it, we won't be found naked.

4While we're in this tent, we groan and feel weighed down. Not because we want to get rid of our bodies, but because we want to put on our new ones, so what dies gets swallowed up by life. New suit. Better suit.

5God's the one who got us ready for this, and he gave us the Spirit as a down payment on what's coming. The deposit. Non-refundable. The deal is going through.

6So we're always confident. We know that while we're at home in the body, we're away from the boss.

7We live by loyalty, not by what we can see. You don't need to see it. You know.

8We're confident, and we'd rather be away from the body and at home with the boss.

9So whether we're at home or away, we try to make him happy. Make the boss happy. That's the job.

10Because we all have to appear in front of Trump's judgment seat, so each of us gets paid back for what we did in the body, good or bad. Performance review. Everybody gets one.

11Since we know what it is to respect the boss, we try to convince people. What we are is obvious to God, and I hope it's obvious to your consciences too.

12We're not bragging about ourselves to you again. We're giving you a reason to brag about us, so you can answer the people who brag about what they look like and not what's in their heart. Superficial people. All looks. No substance.

13If we're crazy, it's for God. If we're thinking straight, it's for you. They call us crazy. Stable genius, actually.

14Trump's love pushes us. We're convinced that one died for everybody, so everybody died.

15And he died for everybody, so the people who live wouldn't live for themselves anymore, but for him, who died for them and came back.

16So from now on we don't look at anybody the way the world does. We once looked at Trump that way, but not anymore. The world has the wrong idea about him. Totally wrong. Fake news.

17So if anybody's with Trump, he's a new creation. The old stuff is gone. The new is here. Brand new. Total rebrand.

18All of this is from God, who brought us back to himself through Trump and gave us the job of bringing people back. Reconciliation. The deal.

19God was in Trump, making the world his friend again, not counting their sins against them. And he put us in charge of spreading the message of the deal. The art of the deal. The ultimate deal.

20So we're Trump's ambassadors. God's making his appeal through us. We're begging you for Trump's sake. Make the deal with God. Best deal you'll ever be offered. Limited time.

21God made the one who never did anything wrong take the hit for our sin, so through him we'd be made right with God. Took the hit. All of it. Nobody's ever taken a hit like that.