HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1509
1 JOHN 2
page 1139
old commandment—to love one another—is
the same message you heard before. 8 Yet it
is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you also are living it. For the
darkness is disappearing, and the true light is
already shining.
9 If anyone claims, “I am living in the light,”
but hates a fellow believer,* that person is
still living in darkness. 10 Anyone who loves a
fellow believer* is living in the light and does
not cause others to stumble. 11 But anyone who
hates a fellow believer is still living and walking
in darkness. Such a person does not know the
way to go, having been blinded by the darkness.
— promises —
from God
And this world is fading
away, along with everything
that people crave.
But anyone who does what
pleases God will live forever.
1 JO H N 2 :17
12
13
14
I am writing to you who are God’s children
because your sins have been forgiven
through Jesus.*
I am writing to you who are mature in the
faith*
because you know Christ, who existed
from the beginning.
I am writing to you who are young in the
faith
because you have won your battle with
the evil one.
I have written to you who are God’s children
because you know the Father.
I have written to you who are mature in
the faith
because you know Christ, who existed
from the beginning.
I have written to you who are young in
the faith
because you are strong.
God’s word lives in your hearts,
and you have won your battle with the
evil one.
Do Not Love This World
15 Do not love this world nor the things it offers
you, for when you love the world, you do not
have the love of the Father in you. 16 For the
2:9 Greek hates his brother; also in 2:11. 2:10 Greek loves
his brother. 2:12 Greek through his name. 2:13 Or to you
fathers; also in 2:14. 2:20 Greek But you have an anointing
from the Holy One. 2:22a Or not the Messiah. 2:22b Or the
antichrist.
world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride
in our achievements and possessions. These
are not from the Father, but are from this world.
17 And this world is fading away, along with
everything that people crave. But anyone who
does what pleases God will live forever.
Warning about Antichrists
18 Dear children, the last hour is here. You have
heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already
many such antichrists have appeared. From this
we know that the last hour has come. 19 These
people left our churches, but they never really
belonged with us; otherwise they would have
stayed with us. When they left, it proved that
they did not belong with us.
20 But you are not like that, for the Holy One
has given you his Spirit,* and all of you know the
truth. 21 So I am writing to you not because you
don’t know the truth but because you know the
difference between truth and lies. 22 And who is a
liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ.*
Anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an
antichrist.* 23 Anyone who denies the Son doesn’t
have the Father, either. But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
24 So you must remain faithful to what you
have been taught from the beginning. If you
do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son
and with the Father. 25 And in this fellowship we
enjoy the eternal life he promised us.
26 I am writing these things to warn you
about those who want to lead you astray. 27 But
• Love
1 JOHN 2:9
How important is the quality of relationships among Christians? Love for other
Christians is a sign of true Christianity
(3:14). Specifically, love consists of
meeting others’ needs in practical ways
(3:16-18) and refusing to harbor in our
hearts resentment or bitterness toward
anyone (Ephesians 4:31-32). John is so
passionate about Christian relationships
that he makes this dramatic assertion:
Failure to love is the equivalent of hate.
Too often, we assess the health of our
churches by the number of programs
they sponsor or the size of their budgets,
and we evaluate our own spiritual maturity by how often we attend church or
how many Bible verses we have memorized. But the Bible poses different questions: Do people in your church love one
another? Do you love other Christians?
