1 John 5

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¹Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. ✦ ²By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. ✦ ³For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. ✦ ⁴For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. ✦ ⁵Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? ✦ ⁶This is He who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth. ✦ ⁷For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. ✦ ⁸And there are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one. ✦ ⁹If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son. ✦ ¹⁰He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. ✦ ¹¹And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. ✦ ¹²He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. ✦ ¹³These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God. ✦ ¹⁴Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. ✦ ¹⁵And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him. ✦ ¹⁶If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death. I do not say that he should pray about that. ✦ ¹⁷All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death. ✦ ¹⁸We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. ✦ ¹⁹We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. ✦ ²⁰And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. ✦ ²¹Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen. ✦

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Where this chapter connects

1 Jn 5 ·26 1 Jn 2 ·19 1 Jn 4 ·14 1 Jn 3 ·13 John 14 ·12 John 15 ·12 John 1 ·12 John 3 ·11

Christ at the center

Jesus is the Word of life made manifest, the propitiation for our sins, the Son in whom is eternal life — 'that you may know that you have eternal life.'

How 1 John 5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

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★ Start hereAudioThrough the WordThrough the Word · ~10 min/chapter · Free · evangelical
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SermonChuck Smith — C2000 SeriesChuck Smith · Free · evangelical
Free verse-by-verse audio through the entire Bible from the founder of Calvary Chapel.

Commentaries & study tools

VideoBibleProject — 1 John videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
VideoWatch teaching on 1 John 5YouTube · Lay · Free
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CommentaryEnduring Word — 1 John 5David Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical
Readable, verse-by-verse exposition of the whole chapter.
CommentaryMatthew Henry on 1 JohnMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
ReferenceBlue Letter Bible — 1 John 5Blue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free
Interlinear, lexicon, and study tools across the chapter.

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