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New Testament Reading - Love One Another

¹¹for the message to us from the beginning has been that we should love one another.

¹²We are not to be like Cain, who belonged to Satan and killed his brother. Why did he kill him? Because Cain had been doing wrong and he knew very well that his brother’s life was better than his. ¹³So don’t be surprised, dear friends, if the world hates you.

¹⁴If we love other Christians, it proves that we have been delivered from hell and given eternal life. But a person who doesn’t have love for others is headed for eternal death. ¹⁵Anyone who hates his Christian brother is really a murderer at heart; and you know that no one wanting to murder has eternal life within. ¹⁶We know what real love is from Christ’s example in dying for us. And so we also ought to lay down our lives for our Christian brothers.

¹⁷But if someone who is supposed to be a Christian has money enough to live well, and sees a brother in need, and won’t help him — how can God’s love be within him? ¹⁸Little children, let us stop just saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions. ¹⁹Then we will know for sure, by our actions, that we are on God’s side, and our consciences will be clear, even when we stand before the Lord. ²⁰But if we have bad consciences and feel that we have done wrong, the Lord will surely feel it even more,^a for he knows everything we do.

²¹But, dearly loved friends, if our consciences are clear, we can come to the Lord with perfect assurance and trust.