1 ¶ Amados, no creáis a todo espíritu, sino probad los espíritus si son de Dios. Porque muchos falsos profetas son salidos en el mundo.

Dear Christian friends, do not believe every spirit. But test the spirits to see if they are from God for there are many false preachers in the world.

2 E n esto conoced el Espíritu de Dios: todo espíritu que confiesa que Jesucristo, es venido en carne es de Dios;

You can tell if the spirit is from God in this way: Every spirit that says Jesus Christ has come in a human body is from God.

3 y todo espíritu que no confiesa que Jesucristo, es venido en carne, no es de Dios; y éste es el espíritu del anticristo del cual vosotros habéis oído que ha de venir, y que ahora ya está en el mundo.

And every spirit that does not say Jesus has come in a human body is not from God. It is the teaching of the false-christ. You have heard that this teaching is coming. It is already here in the world.

4 ¶ Hijitos, vosotros sois de Dios, y los habéis vencido; porque el que en vosotros está, es mayor que el que está en el mundo.

My children, you are a part of God’s family. You have stood against these false preachers and had power over them. You had power over them because the One Who lives in you is stronger than the one who is in the world.

5 E llos son del mundo, por eso hablan del mundo, y el mundo los oye.

Those false teachers are a part of the world. They speak about the things of the world. The world listens to them.

6 N osotros somos de Dios, el que conoce a Dios, nos oye; el que no es de Dios, no nos oye. Por esto conocemos el espíritu de verdad y el espíritu de error.

We are a part of God’s family. The person who knows God will listen to us. The person who is not a part of God’s family will not listen to us. In this way, we can tell what is the spirit of truth and what is the spirit of false teaching. Loving God Makes Us Love Our Christian Brothers

7 ¶ Carísimos, amémonos unos a otros; porque la caridad es de Dios. Cualquiera que ama, es nacido de Dios, y conoce a Dios.

Dear friends, let us love each other, because love comes from God. Those who love are God’s children and they know God.

8 E l que no ama, no conoce a Dios; porque Dios es caridad.

Those who do not love do not know God because God is love.

9 E n esto se mostró la caridad de Dios en nosotros, en que Dios envió su Hijo unigénito al mundo, para que vivamos por él.

God has shown His love to us by sending His only Son into the world. God did this so we might have life through Christ.

10 E n esto consiste la caridad, no porque nosotros hayamos amado a Dios, sino porque él nos amó a nosotros, y ha enviado a su Hijo para ser la reconciliación por nuestros pecados.

This is love! It is not that we loved God but that He loved us. For God sent His Son to pay for our sins with His own blood.

11 A mados, si Dios así nos ha amado, debemos también nosotros amarnos unos a otros.

Dear friends, if God loved us that much, then we should love each other.

12 N inguno vio jamás a Dios. Si nos amamos unos a otros, Dios permanece en nosotros, y su caridad es completada en nosotros;

No person has ever seen God at any time. If we love each other, God lives in us. His love is made perfect in us.

13 e n esto conocemos que permanecemos en él, y él en nosotros, en que nos ha dado de su Espíritu.

He has given us His Spirit. This is how we live by His help and He lives in us. Love Gives Us More Faith in Christ

14 ¶ Y nosotros hemos visto, y testificamos que el Padre ha enviado a su Hijo para ser Salvador del mundo.

We have seen and are able to say that the Father sent His Son to save the world from the punishment of sin.

15 C ualquiera que confesare que Jesús es el Hijo de Dios, Dios permanece en él, y él en Dios.

The person who tells of Him in front of men and says that Jesus is the Son of God, God is living in that one and that one is living by the help of God.

16 Y nosotros hemos conocido y creído la caridad que Dios tiene en nosotros. Dios es caridad; y el que permanece en caridad, permanece en Dios, y Dios en él.

We have come to know and believe the love God has for us. God is love. If you live in love, you live by the help of God and God lives in you. The Love of God Has Power Over Fear and Hate

17 ¶ En esto es hecha perfecta la caridad con nosotros, para que tengamos confianza en el día del juicio, que cual él es, tales somos nosotros en este mundo.

Love is made perfect in us when we are not ashamed as we stand before Him on the day He judges. For we know that our life in this world is His life lived in us.

18 E n la caridad no hay temor; mas la perfecta caridad echa fuera el temor; porque el temor tiene pena; de donde el que teme, no está completo en caridad.

There is no fear in love. Perfect love puts fear out of our hearts. People have fear when they are afraid of being punished. The man who is afraid does not have perfect love.

19 N osotros le amamos a él, porque él primero nos amó.

We love Him because He loved us first.

20 S i alguno dice: Yo amo a Dios, y aborrece a su Hermano, es mentiroso. Porque el que no ama a su Hermano al cual ha visto, ¿cómo puede amar a Dios a quien no ha visto?

If a person says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar. If a person does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God Whom he has not seen?

21 Y nosotros tenemos este mandamiento de él: Que el que ama a Dios, ame también a su Hermano.

We have these words from Him. If you love God, love your brother also.