Testing the Spirits

1Beloved, believe not every spirit; but prove the spirits, whether they are from God: for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ came in the flesh, is from God: 3and whatever spirit confesses not that Jesus Christ came in the flesh, is not from God: and this is the spirit of antichrist, of which you have heard that it comes, and is now already in the world. 4You are of God, little children, and have overcome them; because he that is in you, is greater than he that is in the world. 5They are of the world: therefore, they speak of the world, and the world hears them. 6We are of God: he that knows God, hears us: he that is not of God, does not hear us: by this we know the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

Love Comes from God

7Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God: and every one that loves, has been begotten of God, and knows God. 8He that loves not, does not know God; for God is love. 9In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God sent his only-begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. 10In this is love; not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins. 11Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwells in us, and his love is perfected in us. 13By this we know that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14And we have seen, and we do testify, that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.

15Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwells in him, and he in God. 16And we have known and believed the love which God has for us. God is love; and he that dwells in love, dwells in God, and God in him. 17By this is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because, as he is, so are we in this world. 18There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear has torment: he that fears is not made perfect in love. 19We love him, because he first loved us. 20If any man say, I love God, and yet hate his brother, he is a liar: for he that loves not his brother, whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? 21And this commandment we have from him: That he that loves God, must love his brother also.