9. It’s not something you did that you can be proud of.
10. Instead, we are God’s accomplishment, created in Christ Jesus to do good things. God planned for these good things to be the way that we live our lives.
11. So remember that once you were Gentiles by physical descent, who were called "uncircumcised" by Jews who are physically circumcised.
12. At that time you were without Christ. You were aliens rather than citizens of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of God’s promise. In this world you had no hope and no God.
13. But now, thanks to Christ Jesus, you who once were so far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.