1 JOHN
The Word of Life
1
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which
we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our
hands have touched--this we proclaim concerning the Word of
life. 2The life appeared; we have
seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the
eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to
us. 3We proclaim to you what
we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship
with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his
Son, Jesus Christ. 4We write this
to make our joy complete.
Walking in the Light
5This is the message
we have heard from him and must declare to you: God is
light; in him there is no darkness at all.
6If we claim to have fellowship
with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by
the truth. 7But if we walk in the
light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one
another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from
all sin.
8If we claim
to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is
not in us. 9If we confess
our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our
sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
10If we claim we have not
sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no
place in our lives.
2
My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not
sin. But if anybody does sin, we have
one who speaks to the Father in our defense--Jesus Christ,
the Righteous One. 2He is
the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours
but also for the sins of the whole world.
3We know that
we have come to know him if we obey his commands.
4The man who says, "I know
him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the
truth is not in him. 5But
if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete
in him. This is how we know we are in him:
6Whoever claims to live
in him must walk as Jesus did.
9Anyone who
claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in
the darkness. 10Whoever
loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing
in him to make him stumble. 11But
whoever hates his brother is in
the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not
know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded
him.
12I write to you, dear
children,
because your sins have been forgiven on
account of his name.
13I write to you,
fathers,
because you have known him who is from the
beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because you have overcome the evil one.
I write to you, dear children,
because you have known the Father.
14I write to you,
fathers,
because you have known him who is from the
beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because you are strong,
and the work of God lives in you,
and you have overcome the evil one.
Do Not Love the World
15Do not love
the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the
world, the love of the Father is not in him.
16For everything in the world--the
cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the
boasting of what he has and does--comes not from the Father
but from the world. 17The
world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the
will of God lives forever.