It is what existed from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our own eyes, what we have beheld, what our own hands have touched, about the very message of life --

and that life has been unveiled to us, and we have seen it and now testify to it and we now announce it to you, yea, the eternal life that was with the Father and has been unveiled to us.

If we say "We have fellowship with Him," and yet live in darkness, we are lying and not practicing the truth.

But if we continue to live in the light, just as He is in the light, we have unbroken fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son continues to cleanse us from every sin.

but whoever practices obedience to His message really has a perfect love of God in his heart. By this we can be sure that we are in union with Him:

Whoever claims, "I am always in union with Him," ought to live as He lived.

Whoever continues to love his brother is always in the light, and he is no hindrance to others.

Stop loving the world, or the things that are in the world. If anyone persists in loving the world, there is no love for the Father in his heart,

because everything that is in the world, the things that our lower nature and eyes are longing for, and the proud pretensions of life, do not come from the Father, but from the world;

Let what you have heard from the beginning continue to live in your hearts; if you do, you will always remain in union with the Son and the Father.

And the very thing that He Himself has promised us is eternal life.

The anointing of the Spirit which you received still remains in your hearts, and so you have no need that anyone should teach you. But just as that anointing of His teaches you about everything, and as it is true and no falsehood, and as it has taught you to do so, you must continue to live in union with Him.

And now, dear children, I repeat, you must continue to live in union with Him, so that if He is unveiled, we may have unshaken confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame when He comes.

See what wonderful love the Father has bestowed on us in letting us be called God's children, and that is what we are! This is why the world does not know what we are, because it has never come to know Him.

No one who continues to live in union with Him practices sin. No one who practices sin has ever seen Him or come to know Him.

No one who is born of God makes a practice of sinning, because the God-given life-principle continues to live in him, and so he cannot practice sinning, because he is born of God.

This is the way to distinguish God's children from the devil's children. No one who fails to do right is God's child, and no one who fails to love his brother.

it is so because the message that you have heard from the beginning is this: We should love one another.

We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love our brothers. Whoever does not continue to love continues still in death.

Anyone who keeps on hating his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer can have eternal life remaining in him.

We know what love is from the fact that He laid down His life for us; and so we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

But if anyone has the world's means of supporting life and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how can love to God remain in him?

Dear children, let us stop loving with words or lips alone, but let us love with actions and in truth.

Dearly beloved, let us practice loving one another, because love originates with God, and everyone who practices loving is a child of God and knows God by experience.

Whoever does not love has never come to know God by experience, because God is love.

This is the way God's love for us has been shown, namely, God has sent His only Son into the world that we through Him might have life.

In this way is seen the true love, not that we loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Dearly beloved, if God has loved us so, we ought to love one another too.

No one has ever seen God; yet if we practice loving one another, God remains in union with us, and our love for Him attains perfection in our hearts,

So we know by experience and trust the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever continues to love continues in union with God and God in union with him.

Our love attains perfection through our having perfect confidence about the day of judgment, because here in this world we are living as He did.

There is no fear in love, and perfect love drives out fear, because fear pertains to punishment, and no one who is subject to fear has attained perfection in love.

We love, because He loved us first.

If anyone says, "I love God," and yet habitually hates his brother, he is a liar; for whoever does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.

This is how we can be sure that we love the children of God, by continuing to love God and to obey His commands.

For love to God means this, to practice obedience to His commands, and His commands are not burdensome,

And this testimony is that God has given us eternal life, and this life is given through union with His Son.

Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son does not have life.

I have written this to you who believe in the person of the Son of God, so that you may know that you already have eternal life.

If anyone sees his brother committing a sin that does not lead to death, he will ask and God will grant him life; yea, He will grant it to any who do not commit a sin that leads to death. There is a sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that.

And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us insight to recognize the True One; and we are in union with the True One through His Son, Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.