7. My dear friends, this command I am writing to you is not new; it is the old command, the one you have had from the very beginning. The old command is the message you have already heard.
8. However, the command I am now writing to you is new, because its truth is seen in Christ and also in you. For the darkness is passing away, and the real light is already shining.
9. Those who say that they are in the light, yet hate their brothers and sisters, are in the darkness to this very hour.
10. Those who love their brothers and sisters live in the light, and so there is nothing in them that will cause someone else to sin.
11. But those who hate their brothers and sisters are in the darkness; they walk in it and do not know where they are going, because the darkness has made them blind.
12. I am writing to you, my children, because your sins are forgiven for the sake of Christ.
13. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who has existed from the beginning. I am writing to you, young people, because you have defeated the Evil One.
14. I am writing to you, my children, because you know the Father. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who has existed from the beginning. I am writing to you, young people, because you are strong; the word of God lives in you, and you have defeated the Evil One.