4
All who indulge in a sinful life are dangerously lawless, for sin is a major disruption of God's order.
5
Surely you know that Christ showed up in order to get rid of sin. There is no sin in him, and sin is not part of his program.
6
No one who lives deeply in Christ makes a practice of sin. None of those who do practice sin have taken a good look at Christ. They've got him all backwards.
7
So, my dear children, don't let anyone divert you from the truth. It's the person who acts right who is right, just as we see it lived out in our righteous Messiah.
8
Those who make a practice of sin are straight from the Devil, the pioneer in the practice of sin. The Son of God entered the scene to abolish the Devil's ways.
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People conceived and brought into life by God don't make a practice of sin. How could they? God's seed is deep within them, making them who they are. It's not in the nature of the God-begotten to practice and parade sin.
10
Here's how you tell the difference between God's children and the Devil's children: The one who won't practice righteous ways isn't from God, nor is the one who won't love brother or sister. A simple test.
11
For this is the original message we heard: We should love each other.
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We must not be like Cain, who joined the Evil One and then killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because he was deep in the practice of evil, while the acts of his brother were righteous.
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So don't be surprised, friends, when the world hates you. This has been going on a long time.
14
The way we know we've been transferred from death to life is that we love our brothers and sisters. Anyone who doesn't love is as good as dead.