Read the Bible

¹ MY beloved, do not believe every prophecy, but examine the prophecies to find out if they are of God: because many false prophets have appeared in the world.² The Spirit of God is known by this: Every prophecy which declares that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is from God.³ And every prophecy which does not declare that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not from God: but it is the prophecy of the false Christ, of whose coming you have heard, and who is even now already in the world.

⁴ But you are of God, my children, and have overcome them: because he who is among you is greater than he who is in the world.⁵ They are of the world; therefore they speak of the world, and the world hears them.⁶ But we are of God: he who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

⁷ My beloved, let us love one another: for love is from God; and every one who loves is born of God, and knows God.⁸ He who does not love, does not know God; for God is love.⁹ By this was the love of God toward us made known, for God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.¹⁰ Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that God loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.¹¹ My beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.¹² No man has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us;¹³ Hereby we know that we abide in him, and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.

¹⁴ And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent his Son to be the Saviour of the world.¹⁵ Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.¹⁶ And we have believed and have known the love that God has for us. God is love; and he who dwells in love, abides in God.

¹⁷ Herein is his love made perfect in us, so that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.¹⁸ There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear: because fear is tormenting. He who fears is not made perfect in love.¹⁹ We love God because he first loved us.²⁰ If a man say, I love God, and yet hates his brother, he is a liar: for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?²¹ And this commandment we have from him, That he who loves God loves his brother also.