Daily Mass Readings for January 05, 2024: Gospel — Jo 1, 43-51

1 ¹ For this is the gospel message that you have heard from the beginning: that we should love one another, 1 ² not like Cain who was of the evil one and brutally murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his deeds were evil, but his brother’s were righteous. 1 ³ Therefore do not be surprised, brothers and sisters, if the world hates you. 1 ⁴ We know that we have crossed over from death to life because we love our fellow Christians. The one who does not love remains in death. 1 ⁵ Everyone who hates his fellow Christian is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. 1 ⁶ We have come to know love by this: that Jesus laid down his life for us; thus we ought to lay down our lives for our fellow Christians. 1 ⁷ But whoever has the world’s possessions and sees his fellow Christian in need and shuts off his compassion against him, how can the love of God reside in such a person? 1 ⁸ Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue but in deed and truth. 1 ⁹ And by this we will know that we are of the truth and will convince our conscience in his presence, 2 ⁰ that if our conscience condemns us, that God is greater than our conscience and knows all things. 2 ¹ Dear friends, if our conscience does not condemn us, we have confidence in the presence of God,