1 John 3:1-10 - Living As Children Of God

¹ See what marvellous love the Father has bestowed upon us--that we should be called God's children: and that is what we are. For this reason the world does not recognize us--because it has not known Him. ² Dear friends, we are now God's children, but what we are to be in the future has not yet been fully revealed. We know that if Christ reappears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is. ³ And every man who has this hope fixed on Him, purifies himself so as to be as pure as He is.

⁴ Every one who is guilty of sin is also guilty of violating Law; for sin is the violation of Law. ⁵ And you know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin. ⁶ No one who continues in union with Him lives in sin: no one who lives in sin has seen Him or knows Him.

⁷ Dear children, let no one lead you astray. The man who acts righteously is righteous, just as He is righteous. ⁸ He who is habitually guilty of sin is a child of the Devil, because the Devil has been a sinner from the very beginning. The Son of God appeared for the purpose of undoing the work of the Devil. ⁹ No one who is a child of God is habitually guilty of sin. A God-given germ of life remains in him, and he cannot habitually sin--because he is a child of God. ¹⁰ By this we can distinguish God's children and the Devil's children: no one who fails to act righteously is a child of God, nor he who does not love his brother man.