[1] My loved ones, do not put your faith in every spirit, but put them to
the test, to see if they are from God: because a great number of false
prophets have gone out into the world. [2] By this you may have knowledge
of the Spirit of God: every spirit which says that Jesus Christ has come in
the flesh is of God: [3] And every spirit which does not say this is not
from God: this is the spirit of Antichrist, of which you have had word; and
it is in the world even now. [4] You are of God, my little children, and
you have overcome them because he who is in you is greater than he who is
in the world. [5] They are of the world, so their talk is the world's talk,
and the world gives ear to them. [6] We are of God: he who has the
knowledge of God gives ear to us; he who is not of God does not give ear to
us. By this we may see which is the true spirit, and which is the spirit of
error. [7] My loved ones, let us have love for one another: because love is
of God, and everyone who has love is a child of God and has knowledge of
God. [8] He who has no love has no knowledge of God, because God is love.
[9] And the love of God was made clear to us when he sent his only Son into
the world so that we might have life through him. [10] And this is love,
not that we had love for God, but that he had love for us, and sent his Son
to be an offering for our sins. [11] My loved ones, if God had such love
for us, it is right for us to have love for one another. [12] No man has
ever seen God: if we have love for one another, God is in us and his love
is made complete in us: [13] And his Spirit which he has given us is the
witness that we are in him and he is in us. [14] And we have seen and give
witness that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. [15]
Everyone who says openly that Jesus is the Son of God, has God in him and
is in God. [16] And we have seen and had faith in the love which God has
for us. God is love, and everyone who has love is in God, and God is in
him. [17] In this way love is made complete in us, so that we may be
without fear on the day of judging, because as he is, so are we in this
world. [18] There is no fear in love: true love has no room for fear,
because where fear is, there is pain; and he who is not free from fear is
not complete in love. [19] We have the power of loving, because he first
had love for us. [20] If a man says, I have love for God, and has hate for
his brother, his words are false: for how is the man who has no love for
his brother whom he has seen, able to have love for God whom he has not
seen? [21] And this is the word which we have from him, that he who has
love for God is to have the same love for his brother.
