1 John 1

The Prologue to the Letter

1 This is what we proclaim to you:t what was from the beginning,t what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and our hands have touched (concerning the word of life –2 and the life was revealed, and we have seen and testify and announcet to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us).t3 What we have seen and heard we announcet to you too, so thatt you may have fellowshipt with us (and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ).

4 Thust we are writing these things so thatt ours joy may be complete.ts

1 John 2

God Is Light, So We Must Walk in the Light

5 Nowt this is the gospelt messaget we have heard from himt and announce to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.ts6 If we say we have fellowship with him and yet keep on walkingts in the darkness, we are lying and not practicingt the truth.7 But if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus his Son cleansest us from all sin.ts8 If we say we do not bear the guilt of sin,t we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.9 But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous,t forgivingt us our sins and cleansingt us from all unrighteousness.10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us.1 (My little children,s I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.ts) But if anyone does sin, we have an advocatet with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous One,t

2 and he himself is the atoning sacrificets for our sins, and not only for our sins but also for the whole world.t

Keeping God’s Commandments

3 Nowts by this we know that we have come to know God:t if we keep his commandments.4 The one who says “I have come to know God”t and yet does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in such a person.5 But whoever obeys hist word, truly in this persont the love of God has been perfected. By this we know that we are in him.

6 The one who says he residests in Godt ought himself to walkt just as Jesust walked.
7 Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning.s The old commandment is the word that you have alreadyt heard.8 On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you which is true in himt and in you, becauset the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.s9 The one who says he is in the light but still hatest his fellow Christiant is still in the darkness.10 The one who loves his fellow Christiant resides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.t

11 But the one who hates his fellow Christians is in the darkness, walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.s

Words of Reassurance

12 I am writing to you,s little children, thatt your sins have been forgiven because of hist name.13 I am writing to you, fathers, thatt you have known him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young people, thatt you have conquered the evil one.s

14 I have written to you, children, thatt you have known the Father.s I have written to you, fathers, thatt you have known him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young people, thatt you are strong, and the word of God resides in you, and you have conquered the evil one.
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him,16 because all that is in the world (the desire of the flesh and the desire of the eyes and the arrogance produced by material possessions)ts is not from the Father, but is from the world.

17 And the world is passing away with all its desires, but the person who does the will of God remainst forever.

Warning About False Teachers

18 Children, it is the last hour, and just as you heard that the antichrist is coming, so now many antichristss have appeared. We know from this that it is the last hour.

19 They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us, because if they had belonged to us, they would have remainedt with us. Butt they went out from ust to demonstratet that all of them do not belong to us.s
20 Nevertheless you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know.ss21 I have not written to you thatt you do not know the truth, but thatt you do know it, and thatt no lie is of the truth.22 Who is the liar but the person who denies that Jesus is the Christt? This one is the antichrist: the person who denies the Father and the Son.

23 Everyone who denies the Son does not have the Father either. The person who confesses the Son has the Father also.s
24 As for you, what you have heard from the beginning must remaint in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains in you, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.25 Now thist is the promise that het himself made tot us: eternal life.s

26 These things I have written to you about those who are trying to deceive you.s

27 Now as for you, the anointings that you received from hims residest in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you. But as hiss anointing teaches you about all things, it is true and is not a lie. Just ast itt has taught you, you residet in him.

Children of God

28 And now, little children, remaint in him,s so that whent he appears we may have confidence and not shrink away from him in shame when he comes back.ts

29 If you know that he is righteous, you also knowt that everyone who practices righteousness has been fatheredt by him.

1 John 3

1 (See what sort of love the Father has given to us: thatt we should be called God’s children – and indeedt we are!st For this reasont the world does not know us: because it did not know him.s2 Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will bets has not yet been revealed. West know thatt whenevert itt is revealeds we will be like him, becauset we will see him just as he is.s

3 And everyone who has this hope focusedt on him purifiess himself, just as Jesust is pure).s
4 Everyone who practices sins also practices lawlessness;s indeed,t sin is lawlessness.5 And you know that Jesusts was revealed to take awayt sins, and in him there is no sin.6 Everyone who residest in him does not sin;ts everyone who sins has neither seen him nor known him.7 Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices righteousnesss is righteous, just as Jesust is righteous.8 The one who practices sin is of the devil,s because the devil has been sinningt from the beginning. For this purposet the Son of God was revealed: to destroyt the works of the devil.9 Everyone who has been fatheredt by God does not practice sin,ts becauset God’st seedt resides in him, and thust he is not able to sin, because he has been fathered by God.

10 By thist the children of God and the children of the devil are revealed: Everyone who does not practice righteousness – the one who does not love his fellow Christiants – is not of God.

God Is Love, So We Must Love One Another

11 Fort this is the gospelt messaget that you have heard from the beginning: that we should love one another,s

12 not like Cains who was of the evil one and brutallyt murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his deeds were evil, but his brother’s were righteous.
13 Therefore do not be surprised, brothers and sisters,t if the world hates you.s14 We know thatt we have crossed overts from death to lifes becauset we love our fellow Christians.ts The one who does not love remains in death.s15 Everyone who hates his fellow Christiant is a murderer,s and you know that no murderer has eternal life residingt in him.16 We have come to know love by this:t that Jesust laid downs his life for us; thus we ought to lay down our lives for our fellow Christians.

17 But whoever has the world’s possessionsts and sees his fellow Christiant in need and shuts off his compassion against him, how can the love of Godts resides in such a person?s
18 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue but in deed and truth.s19 And by thists we will know that we are of the truth and will convincet our consciencet in his presence,t20 thatt if our conscience condemnst us, thatt God is greater than our conscience and knows all things.21 Dear friends, if our conscience does not condemn us, we have confidence in the presence of God,22 andt whatever we ask we receive from him, becauset we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing to him.23 Nowt this is his commandment:ts that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he gaves us the commandment.

24 And the person who keeps his commandments residests in God,t and Godt in him. Now by thist we know that Godt resides in us: by the Spirit he has given us.