1 Observe the love the Father gave to us that we should be called the children of God. That is what we are! For this reason the world does not know us. This is because it did not know him.
2 Beloved, now we are children of God. It is not yet revealed what we will be. We know that when he is revealed we will be like him. We will see him just as he is.
3 Everyone who has this hope in him is purified. He is pure.
4 Everyone who practices exercises sin also commits lawlessness, because sin is lawlessness.
5 You know that he appeared to take away sins. There is no sin in him!
6 Whoever abides in him does not sin. Whoever sins has not seen him and does not know him.
7 My little children let no man deceive you! He who practices righteousness is righteous, even as he Christ is righteous.
8 He who sins is of the devil. For the devil sinned from the beginning. To this end the Son of God was made known manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
9 Whoever is born of God does not practice sin! His seed abides in him and he cannot sin because he has been born of God.
10 In this the children of God and the children of the devil are revealed. Whoever does not practice righteousness is not from God. He who does not love his brother is not from God.
11 This is the message you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another!
12 We should not be like Cain who was of the evil one, and killed his brother. Why did he murder him? It was because his works were evil, and his brother's were righteous.
13 Do not be surprised, brothers, if the world hates you.
14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. He who does not love abides in death.
15 Whoever hates his brother is a murderer! You know that no murderer has everlasting life remaining in him.
16 By this we know love, because he Jesus gave his life for us. We ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.
17 Whoever has this world's goods and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his compassion from him, how does the love of God dwell in him?
18 My Little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth.
19 By this we shall know we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before him.
20 If our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.
21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us we have confidence toward God.
22 Whatever we ask we receive from Him because we obey His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.
23 This is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another. He gave us this commandment!
24 The one who obeys God's commandments lives in God, and God lives in with Him. We know that He lives in with us by the Spirit He gave us.