The Aaron Papers  www.the-aaron-papers.net 

  First John

1 That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld, and our hands handled, concerning the Word of life ²(and the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare unto you the life, the eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us); ³that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you also, that you also may have fellowship with us: yes, and our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ: ⁴and these things we write, that our joy may be made full.

⁵And this is the message which we have heard from him and announce unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. ⁶If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not do the truth: ⁷but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

⁸If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

2 My little children, these things I write unto you that you may not sin. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: ²and he is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the whole world.

³And hereby we know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. ⁴He that said, I know him, and keeps not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; ⁵but whoso keeps his word, in him truly has the love of God been perfected. Hereby we know that we are in him: ⁶he that said he abides in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked.

⁷Beloved, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which you had from the beginning: written unto you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. ¹⁵Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. ¹⁶For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. ¹⁷And the world passes away, and the lust thereof: but he that does the will of God abides for ever.

¹⁸Little children, it is the last hour: and as you heard that antichrist comes, even now have there arisen many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last hour. ¹⁹They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they all are not of us.

²⁰And you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all the things. ²¹I have not written unto you because you know not the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. ²²Who is the liar but he that denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, even he that denies the Father and the Son. ²³Whosoever denies the Son, the same has not the Father: he that confesses the Son has the Father also. ²⁴As for you, let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If that which you heard from the beginning abide in you, you also shall abide in the Son, and in the Father. ²⁵And this is the promise which he promised us, even the life eternal. ²⁶These things have I written unto you concerning them that would lead you astray. ²⁷And as for you, the anointing which you received of him abides in you, and you need not that any one teach you; but as his anointing teaches you; concerning all things, and is true, and is no lie, and even as it taught you, you abide in him.

²⁸And now, my little children, abide in him; that, if he shall be manifested, we may have boldness, and not be ashamed before him at his coming. ²⁹If you know that he is righteous, you know that every one also that does righteousness is begotten of him.

3 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such are we. For this cause the world knows us not, because it knew him not. ²Beloved, now are we children of God, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know that, if he shall be manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is. ³And every one that has this hope set on him purifies himself, even as he is pure.

⁴Every one that does sin does also lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness. ⁵And you know that he was manifested to take away sins; and in him is no sin. ⁶Whosoever abides in him sins not: whosoever sins has not seen him, neither knows him. ⁷My little children, let no man lead you astray: he that does righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous: ⁸he that does sin is of the devil; for the devil sins from the beginning. To this end was the Son of God manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. ⁹Whosoever is begotten of God does no sin, because his seed abides in him: and he cannot sin, because he is begotten of God. ¹⁰In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever does not do righteousness is not of God, neither he that loves not his brother.

¹¹For this is the message which you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another: ¹²not as Cain was of the evil one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his works were evil, and his brother’s righteous. ¹³Marvel not, brethren, if the world hates you.

¹⁴We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He that loves not abides in death. ¹⁵Whosoever hates his brother is a murderer: and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. ¹⁶Hereby we know love, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. ¹⁷But whoso has the world’s goods, and beholds his brother in need, and shuts up his compassion from him, how does the love of God abide in him? ¹⁸My Little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth. ¹⁹Hereby shall we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our heart before him:

²⁰because if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. ²¹Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, we have boldness toward God; ²²and whatsoever we ask we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight.

²³And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, even as he gave us commandment. ²⁴And he that keeps his commandments abides in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit which he gave us.

4 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world. ²Hereby you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: ³and every spirit that confesses not Jesus is not of God: and this is the spirit of the antichrist, whereof you have heard that it comes; and now it is in the world already.

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

⁷Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loves is begotten of God, and knows God. ⁸He that loves not knows not God; for God is love. ⁹Herein was the love of God manifested in us, that God has sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through him. ¹⁰Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. ¹¹Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹²No man has beheld God at any time: if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us: ¹³hereby we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.

¹⁴And we have beheld and bear witness that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. ¹⁵Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. ¹⁶And we know and have believed the love which God has in us. God is love; and he that abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

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

5 Whosoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten of God: and whosoever loves him that begat loves him also that is begotten of him. ²Hereby we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and do his commandments. ³For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. ⁴For whatsoever is begotten of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. ⁵And who is he that overcomes the world, but he that believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

⁶This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. ⁷And it is the Spirit that bears witness, because the Spirit is the truth. ⁸For there are three who bear witness, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and the three agree in one. ⁹If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for the witness of God is this, that he has borne witness concerning his Son.

¹⁰He that believes on the Son of God has the witness in him: he that believes not God has made him a liar; because he has not believed in the witness that God has borne concerning his Son. ¹¹And the witness is this, that God gave unto us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. ¹²He that has the Son has the life; he that has not the Son of God has not the life. ¹³These things have I written unto you, that you may know that you have eternal life, even unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God.

¹⁴And this is the boldness which we have toward him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us: ¹⁵and if we know that he hears us whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions which we have asked of him. ¹⁶If any man see his brother sinning a sin not unto death, he shall ask, and God will give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: not concerning this do I say that he should make request. ¹⁷All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.

¹⁸We know that whosoever is begotten of God sins not; but he that was begotten of God keeps himself, and the evil one touches him not. ¹⁹We know that we are of God, and the whole world laid in the evil one. ²⁰And we know that the Son of God is come, and has given us an understanding, that we know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. ²¹My little children, guard yourselves from idols. The old commandment is the word which you heard. ⁸Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you; because the darkness is passing away, and the true light already shines. ⁹He that said he is in the light and hates his brother, is in the darkness even until now. ¹⁰He that loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no occasion of stumbling in him. ¹¹But he that hates his brother is in the darkness, and walks in the darkness, and knows not where he goes, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.