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1 John 5
EasyEnglish Bible
1 John 5
EasyEnglish Bible
Believe in Jesus Christ
5 Everyone who believes that Jesus is God's Messiah has become a child of God. And if we love God, our Father, we will love his other children too. 2 How do we know that we love God's children? We know it when we love God and we do what he tells us to do. 3 Because, if we really love God, we will obey his commands. And those commands are not difficult for us to obey. 4 Because we have become God's children, we can live in a good way. We can refuse to live like people who belong to this world. We are able to win against the wrong ways of this world because we trust Jesus Christ. 5 It is only people who believe that Jesus is the Son of God who can do that. Only they can win against the wrong ways of this world.
6 Jesus Christ is the man that God sent into the world. John baptized Jesus in water. When Jesus died, his blood poured out. God showed that Jesus is his Son with the water and with the blood. It was not only with the water of Jesus' baptism. It was also with the blood of his death. God's Holy Spirit also shows us that Jesus is God's Son. The Holy Spirit always says what is true. 7 So there are three things that show us clearly that Jesus came from God. 8 Those things are the Holy Spirit, the water of Jesus' baptism and the blood of his death on the cross. These all show us the same thing, that Jesus came from God.[a]
9 We believe people who tell us about things that they know. So we can believe even more what God says. He has told us what is true about his Son. So we should believe his message.
10 Anyone who believes in Jesus, the Son of God, will know that what God says is true. But anyone who does not believe God is saying that God tells lies. He does not believe the message that God has told us clearly about his Son. 11 This is what God has told us: God has given us life with him that never ends. We receive this life when we believe in his Son, Jesus. 12 So whoever belongs to the Son has this true life. But anyone who does not belong to the Son of God does not have this true life.
Christians have true life with God
13 I have written these things to you who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. I want you to know that you have true life with God for ever. 14 Also, we can trust God to help us when we turn to him. We know that he will hear us. When we ask for anything that he wants us to have, he listens to us. 15 Since we know that, we also know that God will give to us the things that we ask for. It is like we have already received those things from him.
16 If you see that another Christian is doing something bad, this is what you should do. If it is a sin that does not cause death, pray that God will help him. Then God will help that person to live for ever with him. That is for a sin which does not cause death. But there is a sin that causes death. If another Christian does that, I am not saying that you should pray for God to help that person. 17 Any wrong thing that a person does is sin. But not all sins cause death.[b]
18 Nobody who has become a child of God continues to do wrong things. Instead, the Son of God keeps him safe.[c] Satan cannot do anything against a child of God. 19 We know that we belong to God. We know that Satan rules all the people who belong to this world. 20 We also know that the Son of God has come into the world. He has helped us to understand what is true. As a result, we know the only true God. We live together with this true God, because we belong to his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the true God. He is the one who gives us life with God for ever.
21 My little children, be careful to keep away from idols.[d]
Footnotes
- 5:8 When John baptized Jesus, God spoke from heaven. He said, ‘This is my Son.’ See Matthew 17:5; Mark 9:7; Luke 9:35. When Jesus died on the cross, he did that as a sacrifice to save us from our sins. His blood was the blood of a sacrifice offered to God.
- 5:17 ‘A sin that causes death’ is when someone does a bad thing that takes him completely away from life with God. A sin like that causes a person to die in their spirit, so that they can no longer live with God for ever.
- 5:18 Or: ‘God keeps his children safe.’
- 5:21 John is writing this letter to help Christians to know God better. He wants them to be sure that they have true life with God. If we trust in Jesus as the Son of God, we become God's children. God will hear us when we pray to him. He will give us the good things that he chooses for us. God will keep us safe from the power of Satan. He will help us to do what is good, so that we do not continue to do wrong things.
1 John 5
New International Version
1 John 5
New International Version
Faith in the Incarnate Son of God
5 Everyone who believes(A) that Jesus is the Christ(B) is born of God,(C) and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.(D) 2 This is how we know(E) that we love the children of God:(F) by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands.(G) And his commands are not burdensome,(H) 4 for everyone born of God(I) overcomes(J) the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.(K)
6 This is the one who came by water and blood(L)—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.(M) 7 For there are three(N) that testify: 8 the[a] Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. 9 We accept human testimony,(O) but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God,(P) which he has given about his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony.(Q) Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar,(R) because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. 11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life,(S) and this life is in his Son.(T) 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.(U)
Concluding Affirmations
13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God(V) so that you may know that you have eternal life.(W) 14 This is the confidence(X) we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.(Y) 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know(Z) that we have what we asked of him.(AA)
16 If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life.(AB) I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death.(AC) I am not saying that you should pray about that.(AD) 17 All wrongdoing is sin,(AE) and there is sin that does not lead to death.(AF)
18 We know that anyone born of God(AG) does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one(AH) cannot harm them.(AI) 19 We know that we are children of God,(AJ) and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.(AK) 20 We know also that the Son of God has come(AL) and has given us understanding,(AM) so that we may know him who is true.(AN) And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.(AO)
Footnotes
- 1 John 5:8 Late manuscripts of the Vulgate testify in heaven: the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. 8 And there are three that testify on earth: the (not found in any Greek manuscript before the fourteenth century)
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