1 John
Chapter 1
1 That which was in the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and our hands have touched The Word of Life. 2 For the life manifested and we have seen it and testify and do declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and did manifest unto us. 3 Who, we have seen and heard, we declare to you, so that you may also have fellowship with us and fellowship with the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ 4 We write these things to you, so that your Joy may be complete. 5* Now, this is the message we received from Him and declare to you, that God is light and within Him there is no spiritual darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, yet, walk in darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth. 7 But, if we walk in the light, He himself is in the light and we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus Christ, His son, cleanses us continually, from sin. 8 If we say, “we have no sin” we only deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9* If we renounce our sins, He is faithful and righteous to permit us forgiveness from our sins and refine us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we portray Him as a liar and His word is not in us.
Chapter 2
1 My little children, I write these things to you, so that you do not sin, but if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ who is righteous: 2* He himself, is the ceremony for our sins and not only for ourselves, but for the sins of the entire world. 3 By this we can be certain that we are known by Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, I know Him, but does not keep His commandments, is a liar and the truth is not in Him. 5 But, whoever holds His word within themselves holds the love of God perfected: by this we know that we are within Him. 6 He who says he lives in Him, should himself also live, as He lived. 7 Beloved, I do not write a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning: the old commandment is the word that you have heard. 8 On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you, a thing which is true in Him and also in us: because the darkness is passing away and the true light has dawned. 9 He who claims he is of the light, but hates his Brother, is in darkness even now. 10* But, he who loves his Brother, abides in the light, then there is no dwelling place for evil within him. 11 But, he who hates his Brother, remains in darkness and lives in darkness and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. 12 I write to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you and to those who have been named by Him 13* I write to you, fathers, because you have known He who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, dear children, because you have known the Father. 14 I have written to you, fathers, because you have known He who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong and the word of God dwells within you and you have overcome the evil one. 15 Do not love the world, nor the things that are in the world, If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.16 Because all that is of the world, the lust of the flesh, the desires of the eyes and the pride of life, are not of the Father, but are of the world. 17 The world is passing away and the lusts of it, but he who does the will of God, lives forever. 18 Little children, it is the final hour and as you have heard the antichrist will come, even now many antichrists have risen, by this we know that it is the final hour. 19* Though they departed from us, they were not of us: for if they had been of us, they would have abided in God, instead they departed, making it evident they were unwilling to belong to God 20* But, you have an anointing from the Holy One who knows all things 21 I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it and there is no lie within the truth. 22 And who is a liar, but he who denies that Jesus is "The Christ?" That person is an antichrist, who denies the Father and the Son. 23 Anyone who denies the Son, does not have the Father: but the person who acknowledges the Son, also has the Father. 24 Therefore, Let He who dwells within you, that which you have heard from the beginning: if that which you have heard from the beginning is to remain within you, you also must remain within the Son and within the Father. 25 This is the promise which He has promised us, eternal life. 26 I have written these things to you, concerning those who would deceive you. 27 But, the anointing you have received by Him, lives within you and you do not need anyone to teach you: because His anointing teaches you about all things and is the truth, not a lie and just as it has taught you, you must remain in Him. 28 Now, dear children, abide in Him, so that when He appears, we may be confident and not ashamed before Him at His coming. 29 If you know that God is righteous, know also that everyone who practices righteousness, is born of God.
Chapter 3
1 Behold, what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called the children of God: Because of this, the world does not know us, because it does not know Him. 2 My Beloved, now we are the children of God, though it is not yet apparent, what we will be, but we know that when He manifests, we will be like Him: for we will see Him as He is. 3* And everyone who has this hope in Him, consecrates themself into holiness, just as He is holy. 4 Everyone who sins, also transgresses the law, because sin is the transgression of the law. 5 You know that He manifested so that He might take away sins. Because, in Him there is no sin. 6 Whoever abides in Him, does not sin: everyone who sins, has neither seen Him or known Him. 7 Dear children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness, is righteous, just as He is righteous. 8 Those who commit sin are of the devil, because the devil sinned from the beginning: for this purpose the Son of God manifested, so that He might destroy the deeds of the devil. 9* Whoever is born of God, does not practice sin, because His children remain within Him and they will not sin, because they are born of God. 10 By this the children of God are made known, as well as, the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness, is not of God, nor anyone who does not love their brother or sister. 11 This is the command that we heard from the beginning, that we are to love one another. 12 Not like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother and for what purpose did he murder him? because his own works were evil, but those of his brother were righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brothers, if the world hates you 14* We know that we have passed from death into life, because we love those among our fellowship: he who does not love his Brother, abides in thanatos1
1 "Thanatos" definition: a desire for ones own death or destruction.
15 Whoever hates his brother, is a murderer and you know that no murderer has eternal life dwelling in him. 16 Through Jesus we have known the love of God, because He laid His life down for us, we His kingdom, should also lay down our lives for the Brotherhood. 17 But, whoever has the goods of this world and sees his brother in need and shuts off his compassion for him, how then, can the love of God live in him? 18* My beloved children, let us not love only in speech or tongue, but also in deeds and in truth. 19 By this we know that we are of the truth and are to quiet the desires of our hearts before Him. 20* For If the desires of our hearts condemn us, God's tabernacle within us is more important than the desires of this earth and He knows all things 21 My Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, then, we truly have conviction towards God. 22 Then whatever we ask, we receive through our God, since we keep His commandments and practice the ways pleasing in His sight 23 Now, this is His commandment, that we are to believe in the Name of His Son, Jesus Christ and love one another, as He commanded. 24 He who keeps his commandments lives in Him, and He in him, by this we know that He dwells within us, by the Spirit that He has given us.
Chapter 4
1 My Beloved, do not believe every spirit, Therefore, be certain to test the spirits, whether they are of God: because a great number of false prophets have traveled out into the world. 2* By this we can recognize the spirit of God: everyone who is from God acknowledges Jesus Christ within body and is of God 3 Also, every spirit that does not declare that Jesus is of the Lord is not of God and they are of the spirit of the antichrist which you have heard is coming and is here in the world already. 4 You are of God, dear children and have overcome them: because greater is He who is in you then he who is in the world. 5 They are of the world: therefore, they speak of the world and the world hears them. 6 We are of God: those who know God, hear us, but those who are not of God cannot hear us, by this we can discern between the spirit of truth and the spirit of lies. 7 My beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God and everyone who loves, is born of God and knows God. 8 Those who do not love, do not know God: for God is love. 9 By this, the love of God for us manifested, because God sent His only begotten Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, not that mankind loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son, to be the ceremony for our sins. 11 My beloved, if God so loved us, we should also, love one another. 12* No man has seen God at any time. If we love the one God, He dwells within us and His love within us is perfect. 13 By this we know that we live in Him and He in us, because He has given us His Spirit. 14 We have seen and do testify, that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. 15* Anyone who acknowledges Jesus is the Son of God, within themself, God dwells within them and they within God. 16 And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love and he who lives in love, lives in God and God within them. 17 Through this, the perfect love of God is fulfilled, so that among us there may be boldness, letting pass the judgment that would have remained in foolishness, among us and among the world 18* Fear is not love, instead perfect love shields out fear: because fear involves torment: but fearfulness is not within love perfected 19 We give divine love, because God first loved us 20 If anyone says, “I love God” yet hates his brother, he is a liar, because he who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, then God, whom he has not seen, how can they love? 21 And this commandment we have from Him, that he who loves God, also loves his brother.
Chapter 5
1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is, "The Christ" has been born of God; everyone who loves the Father, also loves those born of Him 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and practice His commandments. 3 Because, this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments and that His commandments do not bring us discontentment 4 Because everyone who has been born of God, overcomes the world and this is the victory that overcomes the world, through faith. 5 Who is he that overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? 6 This is he who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not only by water, but in the water and in the blood and it is the Spirit that bears testimony, because the Spirit is truth. 7* In heaven, there are Three who Judge 8* Her, Holy Spirit, the Son and the Father and these Three are One 9 If we receive the testimony of mankind, the testimony of God is greater, because it is the testimony of God, which He has testified through His Son. 10 Those who believe in the Son of God, have the witness within themself: he who does not believe God, has made Him out as liar, because he does not believe the testimony that God gave through His Son. 11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us, eternal life, and this life is within His Son. 12 He who has the Son, has life and he who does not have the Son of God, does not have life. 13 These things I have written to you so that, you may know that you have eternal life and so that you have faith in the name of the Son of God 14 This is the level of confidence we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He will hear us. 15 And if we know that He hears, whatever we ask, we know He has the requests which we have desired of Him 16* If anyone perceives his brother committing a sin that is not severe enough to be cast out, they should pray for them, so that God may give them freedom from their sins and not death. There are sins that must be put to death; I am not saying that we should pray for those. 17 All unrighteousness is sin, but there are sins which may not lead to death. 18* We know that everyone who is born of God, does not sin: but he that is born of God, upholds himself and the evil one cannot lay hold of him. 19* We know that we are of God but the whole world is set on wickedness. 20 We know that the Son of God has come and has given us wisdom, so that we may know He who is truth and we remain in He who is truth, within His Son Jesus Christ. This is the truth of God and everlasting life. 21 Dear children, guard yourselves from Idols. Amen.