1 John 3:11-24
More Instructions About Loving and Hating One Another
From the beginning we have heard that we should love one another. Don’t be like Cain. He belonged to the evil one. He murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because the things Cain had done were wrong. But the things his brother had done were right. My brothers and sisters, don’t be surprised if the world hates you. We know that we have left our old dead way of life. And we have entered into new life. We know this because we love one another. Anyone who doesn’t love still lives in their old condition. Anyone who hates their brother or sister is a murderer. And you know that no murderer has eternal life.
We know what love is because Jesus Christ gave his life for us. So we should give our lives for our brothers and sisters. Suppose someone sees a brother or sister in need and is able to help them. And suppose that person doesn’t take pity on these needy people. Then how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, don’t just talk about love. Put your love into action. Then it will truly be love.
Here’s how we know that we hold to the truth. And here’s how we put our hearts at rest, knowing that God is watching. If our hearts judge us, we know that God is greater than our hearts. And he knows everything. Dear friends, if our hearts do not judge us, we can be bold with God. And he will give us anything we ask. That’s because we obey his commands. We do what pleases him. God has commanded us to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ. He has also commanded us to love one another. The one who obeys God’s commands remains joined to him. And he remains joined to them. Here is how we know that God lives in us. We know it because of the Holy Spirit he gave us.
1 John 4:1-6
Jesus Came as a Human Being
Dear friends, do not believe every spirit. Test the spirits to see if they belong to God. Many false prophets have gone out into the world. Here is how you can recognize the Spirit of God. Every spirit agreeing that Jesus Christ came in a human body belongs to God. But every spirit that doesn’t agree with this does not belong to God. You have heard that the spirit of the great enemy of Christ is coming. Even now it is already in the world.
Dear children, you belong to God. You have not accepted the teachings of the false prophets. That’s because the one who is in you is powerful. He is more powerful than the one who is in the world. False prophets belong to the world. So they speak from the world’s point of view. And the world listens to them. We belong to God. And those who know God listen to us. But those who don’t belong to God don’t listen to us. That’s how we can tell the difference between the Spirit of truth and the spirit of lies.
