1 John
3 See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God’s, and are such! This is why the world does not know us because it did not know him.
2 Dear friends, we are children of God’s now, and it is not yet made apparent what we shall be. We know that if he makes his appearance we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is; 3 and everyone who has this hope rested on him purifies himself as he is pure. 4 Everyone who commits sin is committing immorality too; and sin is immorality. 5 And you know that he made his appearance to take sins away, and there is no sin in him. 6 Anyone who dwells in him does not sin; anyone who sins has not seen him nor known him. 7 Children, let nobody delude you. He who does right is righteous as He is righteous; 8* he who commits sin comes of the Devil, because the Devil has been sinning from the first. It was for this the Son of God made his appearance, that he might break up the Devil’s work. 9* Anyone who is born out of God does not commit sin, because seed of his dwells in him and he cannot sin because he is born out of God. 10 It is by this that God’s children and the Devil’s children are evident: anyone who does not do right does not come of God, nor the one who does not love his brother, 11 because this is the message you heard from the first, that we are to love each other— 12 not as Cain came of the Evil One and cut his brother’s throat; and cut his brother’s throat on what account? because his doings were wicked, but his brother’s right.
13 Do not wonder, brothers, that the world should hate you; 14 we know that we have passed from death to life because we love the brothers. He who does not love dwells in death. 15 Anyone who hates his brother is a killer, and you know that any man-killer does not have eternal life dwelling in him. 16 We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us; and we are in duty bound to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17* But one who has earthly resources and sees his brother to be in need and shuts his sympathies against him—how is the love of God dwelling in him? 18 Children, let us not love with words nor with the tongue, but in action and in truth. 19 By this we shall know that we belong to the truth; and we shall persuade our heart before him 20 that if our heart finds against us, God is greater than our heart and knows everything.
21* Dear friends, if our heart does not find against us we have confidence to come to God, 22 and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we are keeping his commandments and doing what is pleasing before him. 23 And this is his commandment, that we should believe the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love each other as he gave us a commandment. 24 And he who keeps his commandments dwells in him, and he in him; and by this we know that he is dwelling in us, from the Spirit that he gave us.