₁₆This is how we know what love is: Christ gave his life for us. We too, then, ought to give our lives for our brothers and sisters! ₁₇Rich people who see a brother or sister in need, yet close their hearts against them, cannot claim that they love God. ₁₈My children, our love should not be just words and talk; it must be true love, which shows itself in action.

₁₉This, then, is how we will know that we belong to the truth; this is how we will be confident in God's presence. ₂₀If our conscience condemns us, we know that God is greater than our conscience and that he knows everything. ₂₁And so, my dear friends, if our conscience does not condemn us, we have courage in God's presence. ₂₂We receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. ₂₃What he commands is that we believe in his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as Christ commanded us. ₂₄Those who obey God's commands live in union with God and God lives in union with them. And because of the Spirit that God has given us we know that God lives in union with us.