1 John 4

Devotionals, Articles, and Bible Study Resources on 1 John 4

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1Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.
2By this you will know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,
3and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and which is already in the world at this time.
4You, little children, are from God and have overcome them, because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.
5They are of the world. That is why they speak from the world’s perspective, and the world listens to them.
6We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. That is how we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of deception.
7Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
8Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
9This is how God’s love was revealed among us: God sent His one and only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.
10And love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
11Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
12No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God remains in us, and His love is perfected in us.
13By this we know that we remain in Him, and He in us: He has given us of His Spirit.
14And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world.
15If anyone confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.
16And we have come to know and believe the love that God has for us. God is love; whoever abides in love abides in God, and God in him.
17In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him.
18There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. The one who fears has not been perfected in love.
19We love because He first loved us.
20If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.
21And we have this commandment from Him: Whoever loves God must love his brother as well.
— 1 John 4

Related Resources from Heartlight

Illustration of 1 John 4:1-3 MESSAGE

Illustration of 1 John 4:1-3 MESSAGE -- My dear friends, don't believe everything you hear. Carefully weigh and examine what people tell you. Not everyone who talks about God comes from God. There are a lot of lying preachers loose in the world. Here's how you test for the genuine Spirit of God. Everyone who confesses openly his faith in Jesus Christ — the Son of God, who came as an actual flesh-and-blood person — comes from God and belongs to God. And everyone who refuses to confess faith in Jesus has nothing in common with God. This is the spirit of antichrist that you heard was coming. Well, here it is, sooner than we thought!

Illustration of 1 John 4:20-21

Illustration of 1 John 4:20-21 -- If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother."

Illustration of 1 John 4:11-12

Illustration of 1 John 4:11-12 -- Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

Illustration of 1 John 4:18-19 AMP

Illustration of 1 John 4:18-19 AMP -- There is no fear in love [dread does not exist]. But perfect (complete, full-grown) love drives out fear, because fear involves [the expectation of divine] punishment, so the one who is afraid [of God’s judgment] is not perfected in love [has not grown into a sufficient understanding of God’s love]. We love, because He first loved us.

Illustration of 1 John 4:9-10

Illustration of 1 John 4:9-10 -- God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love — not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

Illustration of 1 John 4:2-3 MESSAGE

Illustration of 1 John 4:2-3 MESSAGE -- Here's how you test for the genuine Spirit of God. Everyone who confesses openly his faith in Jesus Christ — the Son of God, who came as an actual flesh-and-blood person — comes from God and belongs to God. And everyone who refuses to confess faith in Jesus has nothing in common with God. This is the spirit of antichrist that you heard was coming. Well, here it is, sooner than we thought!

Illustration of 1 John 4:12

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:12 -- No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

Illustration of 1 John 4:15

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:15 -- If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.

Illustration of 1 John 4:21

Illustration of 1 John 4:21 -- And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.

Illustration of 1 John 4:21

Illustration of 1 John 4:21 -- And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.

Illustration of 1 John 4:21

Illustration of 1 John 4:21 -- And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.

Illustration of 1 John 4:16

Illustration of 1 John 4:16 -- And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.

Illustration of 1 John 4:20

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:20 -- If anyone says, I love God, yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.

Illustration of 1 John 4:21

Scripture Image of 1 John 4:21 -- Whoever loves God must also love his brother.

Illustration of 1 John 4:17

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:17 -- In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him.

Illustration of 1 John 4:7

Illustration of 1 John 4:7 -- Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

Illustration of 1 John 4:11

Illustration of 1 John 4:11 -- Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

Illustration of 1 John 4:19

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:19 -- We love because he first loved us.

Illustration of 1 John 4:16

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:16 -- And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.

Illustration of 1 John 4:8

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:8 -- Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Illustration of 1 John 4:12

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:12 -- No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us.

Illustration of 1 John 4:15

Illustration of 1 John 4:15 -- If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.

Illustration of 1 John 4:20

Illustration of 1 John 4:20 -- If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.

Illustration of 1 John 4:17

Illustration of 1 John 4:17 -- In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him.

Illustration of 1 John 4:21

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:21 -- Whoever loves God must also love his brother.

Illustration of 1 John 4:11

Inspirational e-card of 1 John 4:11 -- Love one Another.

Illustration of 1 John 4:7

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:7 -- Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

Illustration of 1 John 4:12

Illustration of 1 John 4:12 -- No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

Illustration of 1 John 4:10

Image of 1 John 4:10 - In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and gave His Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Illustration of 1 John 4:18

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:18 -- There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Illustration of 1 John 4:1 NLT

Illustration of 1 John 4:1 NLT -- Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world.

Illustration of 1 John 4:4

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:4 -- You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

Illustration of 1 John 4:13

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:13 -- We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.

Illustration of 1 John 4:18

Illustration of 1 John 4:18 -- There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Illustration of 1 John 4:18

Illustration of 1 John 4:18 -- There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Illustration of 1 John 4:18

Illustration of 1 John 4:18 -- There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Illustration of 1 John 4:18

Illustration of 1 John 4:18 -- There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Illustration of 1 John 4:9

Inspirational illustration of 1 John 4:9 -- This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

Illustration of 1 John 4:9

Illustration of 1 John 4:9 -- This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

Illustration of 1 John 4:9

Illustration of 1 John 4:9 -- This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

Illustration of 1 John 4:10

Illustration of 1 John 4:10 -- This is love: not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Illustration of 1 John 4:10

Illustration of 1 John 4:10 -- This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Illustration of 1 John 4:10

Illustration of 1 John 4:10 -- This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Illustration of 1 John 4:6 MESSAGE

Illustration of 1 John 4:6 MESSAGE -- But we come from God and belong to God. Anyone who knows God understands us and listens. The person who has nothing to do with God will, of course, not listen to us. This is another test for telling the Spirit of Truth from the spirit of deception.

Illustration of 1 John 4:16

Illustration of 1 John 4:16 -- We know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.

Illustration of 1 John 4:13

Illustration of 1 John 4:13 -- We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.

Illustration of 1 John 4:19

Illustration of 1 John 4:19 -- We love because [God] first loved us.

Illustration of 1 John 4:19

Illustration of 1 John 4:19 -- We love because he first loved us.

Illustration of 1 John 4:19

Illustration of 1 John 4:19 -- We love because he first loved us.

Illustration of 1 John 4:8

Illustration of 1 John 4:8 -- Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Illustration of 1 John 4:4

Illustration of 1 John 4:4 -- You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

Illustration of 1 Corinthians 12:3 NASU & 1 John 4:3 GWT

Illustration of 1 Corinthians 12:3 NASU & 1 John 4:3 GWT -- No one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit. But every person who doesn't declare that Jesus Christ has come as a human has a spirit that isn't from God.

Cross References for 1 John 4

Cross References Provided by Open Bible

The Berean Standard Bible

The Berean Standard Bible (BSB) is a modern, clear, and faithful translation based on the best available Greek and Hebrew manuscripts. Ideal for reading, study, and sharing, it entered the public domain in 2023. For more information, visit berean.bible.