We are not saved by our works, but the Bible is clear that obedience to Christ is a key sing of knowing Him. To say that we know Christ, but then to live a totally ungodly life is a nonsense. Change in our life is the sign that we belong to Him. It is the sign that everyone can see.
Now this does mean that we are perfect, far from it, and at the end of chapter one John made this point, but there must be change.
There is both continuity and a quantum leap between the old and new Testament. The God who is revealed in the Old Testament is the same God that is revealed in Jesus Christ. There is no difference. Equally there is no difference in the way that we should live. What is new is that on the cross Jesus defeated sin, death and the devil. So what was once impossible is now possible in Christ. There is an enormous amount of grace in the Old Testament, yet people focus on the judgement. Conversely, there is an awful lot of judgement in the New Testament, yet people focus on the grace. The grace and the judgement go together.
Loving each other is a key sign of living in the light, and hating each other is a sing of living in the darkness. The light must affect our attitude towards people, especially those closest to us.
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