1 John 3

1See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God—and we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know him.

2Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not yet been manifested what we will be. We know that when he is manifested, we will be like him, for we will see him just as he is.

3And everyone who has this hope set on him purifies himself, just as he is pure.

4Everyone who sins also practices lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.

5And you know that he appeared to take away sins, and sin is not in him.

6Whoever abides in him does not sin. Whoever sins has not seen him, nor known him.

7Little children, let no one deceive you. The one who does righteousness is righteous, just as he is righteous.

8Whoever sins belongs to the devil, because the devil sins from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the devil's works.

9Everyone born of God does not sin, because his seed remains in him, and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

10In this God's children are evident, as are the devil's children: whoever does not practice righteousness is not from God, nor anyone who does not love his brother.

11Because this is the message you heard from the beginning, that we love one another.

12Not as Cain, who was from the evil one and killed his brother. Why did he kill him? Because his works were evil, but his brother's were righteous.

13Do not be amazed, brothers, if the world hates you.

14We know that we have passed from death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love remains in death.

15Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

16In this we know love, because he laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.

17But whoever has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his compassion against him—how does God's love remain in him?

18Little children, let us not love in speech or with the tongue, but in action and truth.

19By this we will know that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before him.

20because if our heart condemns us, because God is greater than our heart and knows everything.

21Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have boldness toward God.

22And whatever we ask, we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do the things pleasing in his presence.

23And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as he gave commandment to us.

24And whoever obeys his commands stays in him, and he stays in him. This is how we know he stays in us: by the Spirit he gave us.