Children of God Love One Another

3 See ^[a](A)how great a love the Father has given us, that we would be called ^(B)children of God; and in fact we are. For this reason the world does not know us: because ^(C)it did not know Him. ^2 (D)Beloved, now we are ^(E)children of God, and ^(F)it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He ^(G)appears, we will be ^(H)like Him, because we will ^(I)see Him just as He is. ³ And everyone who has this ^(J)hope set on Him ^(K)purifies himself, just as He is pure.

⁴ Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and ^(L)sin is lawlessness. ⁵ You know that He ^(M)appeared in order to ^(N)take away sins; and ^(O)in Him there is no sin. ⁶ No one who remains in Him ^(P)sins continually; no one who sins continually has seen Him or ^[b](Q)knows Him. ^7 (R)Little children, make sure no one ^(S)deceives you; ^(T)the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; ⁸ the one who practices sin is ^(U)of the devil; for the devil ^[c]has been sinning from the beginning. ^(V)The Son of God ^(W)appeared for this purpose, ^(X)to destroy the works of the devil. ⁹ No one who has been ^(Y)born of God practices sin, because His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin continually, because he has been born of God. ¹⁰ By this the ^(Z)children of God and the ^(AA)children of the devil are obvious: ^[d]anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who ^(AB)does not love his ^(AC)brother and sister.

^11 (AD)For this is the message ^(AE)which you have heard from the beginning, ^(AF)that we are to love one another; ¹² not as ^(AG)Cain, who was of ^(AH)the evil one and murdered his brother. And for what reason did he murder him? Because ^(AI)his own deeds were evil, but his brother’s were righteous.

¹³ Do not be surprised, brothers and sisters, if ^(AJ)the world hates you. ¹⁴ We know that we have ^(AK)passed out of death into life, ^(AL)because we love the brothers and sisters. The one who does not love remains in death. ¹⁵ Everyone who ^(AM)hates his brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that ^(AN)no murderer has eternal life remaining in him. ¹⁶ We know love by this, that ^(AO)He laid down His life for us; and ^(AP)we ought to lay down our lives for the ^(AQ)brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ But ^(AR)whoever has worldly goods and sees his brother or sister in need, and ^(AS)closes his ^[e]heart ^[f]against him, ^(AT)how does the love of God remain in him? ^18 (AU)Little children, let’s not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and ^(AV)truth. ¹⁹ We will know by this that we are ^(AW)of the truth, and will set our heart at ease before Him, ²⁰ that if our heart condemns us, that God is greater than our heart, and He knows all things. ^21 (AX)Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have ^(AY)confidence ^[g]before God; ²² and ^(AZ)whatever we ask, we receive from Him, because we ^(BA)keep His commandments and do ^(BB)the things that are pleasing in His sight.

²³ This is His commandment, that we ^[h](BC)believe in ^(BD)the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as ^(BE)He ^[i]commanded us. ²⁴ The one who ^(BF)keeps His commandments ^(BG)remains in Him, and He in him. ^(BH)We know by this that ^(BI)He remains in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

Testing the Spirits

4 ^(A)Beloved, do not believe every ^(B)spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because ^(C)many false prophets have gone out into the world. ² By this you know the Spirit of God: ^(D)every spirit that ^(E)confesses that ^(F)Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; ³ and every spirit that ^(G)does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the ^(H)antichrist, which you have heard is coming, and ^(I)now it is already in the world. ⁴ You are from God, ^(J)little children, and ^(K)have overcome them; because ^(L)greater is He who is in you than ^(M)he who is in the world. ^5 (N)They are from the world, therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them. ^6 (O)We are from God. ^(P)The one who knows God listens to us; ^(Q)the one who is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know ^(R)the spirit of truth and ^(S)the spirit of error.

God Is Love

^7 (T)Beloved, let’s ^(U)love one another; for love is from God, and ^(V)everyone who loves has been ^(W)born of God and ^(X)knows God. ⁸ The one who does not love does not know God, because ^(Y)God is love. ⁹ By this the love of God was revealed ^[a](Z)in us, that ^(AA)God has sent His only Son into the world so that we may live through Him. ¹⁰ In this is love, ^(AB)not that we loved God, but that ^(AC)He loved us and sent His Son to be ^(AD)the ^[b]propitiation for our sins. ^11 (AE)Beloved, if God so loved us, ^(AF)we also ought to love one another. ^12 (AG)No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God remains in us, and His ^(AH)love is perfected in us. ^13 (AI)By this we know that we remain in Him and He in us, because He has given to us of His Spirit. ¹⁴ We have seen and ^(AJ)testify that the Father has ^(AK)sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.

^15 (AL)Whoever confesses that ^(AM)Jesus is the Son of God, God ^(AN)remains in him, and he in God. ^16 (AO)We have come to know and have believed the love which God has ^[c](AP)for us. ^(AQ)God is love, and the one who ^(AR)remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him. ¹⁷ By this, ^(AS)love is perfected with us, so that we may have ^(AT)confidence in ^(AU)the day of judgment; because ^(AV)as He is, we also are in this world. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love, but ^(AW)perfect love drives out fear, because fear ^[d]involves punishment, and the one who fears is not ^(AX)perfected in love. ^19 (AY)We love, because He first loved us. ^20 (AZ)If someone says, “I love God,” and yet he ^(BA)hates his brother or sister, he is a ^(BB)liar; for ^(BC)the one who does not love his brother and sister whom he has seen, ^(BD)cannot love God, whom he has not seen. ²¹ And ^(BE)this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God ^(BF)must also love his brother and sister.