1 John 3:11-21

11 The message you heard from the very beginning is this: we must love one another. ¹

12 We must not be like Cain; he belonged to the Evil One and murdered his own brother Abel. Why did Cain murder him? Because the things he himself did were wrong, and the things his brother did were right. ²

13 So do not be surprised, my friends, if the people of the world hate you.

14 We know that we have left death and come over into life; we know it because we love others. Those who do not love are still under the power of death. ³

15 Those who hate others are murderers, and you know that murderers do not have eternal life in them.

16 This is how we know what love is: Christ gave his life for us. We too, then, ought to give our lives for others!

17 If we are rich and see others in need, yet close our hearts against them, how can we claim that we love God?

18 My children, our love should not be just words and talk; it must be true love, which shows itself in action.

19 This, then, is how we will know that we belong to the truth; this is how we will be confident in God's presence.

20 If our conscience condemns us, we know that God is greater than our conscience and that he knows everything.

21 And so, my dear friends, if our conscience does not condemn us, we have courage in God's presence.

Cross References

• 1. 3.11John 13.34.
• 2. 3.12Genesis 4.8.
• 3. 3.14John 5.24.