Jesus left his apostles to be the fathers of his church because they spoke his words which were the will of God for his children and Paul said he exampled Christ. John shares Jesus’ love for his church in his letter to them in 1 John.
In 1John 2, John shares what makes someone God’s children.

1 John 2: 1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

John reminds us of Jesus’ love for us by being an atoning once and for all sacrifice for all our past, present and future sins. And he did this not just for Believers but for the whole world. This is God’s grace given to everyone.
Jesus has become the defense attorney for all who want to be with his Father by advocating for us before his Father as our sacrifice so we can receive his forgiveness and allow all who love God to be with Him as his children by loving his Son.

1 John 2: 3 We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. 4 The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.

John teaches that we must know Jesus and walk like him if we want God’s love to be found in us. He said no one can say they know Jesus if they do not know his commandments and obeys them. Those who do what is against his teachings and commandment, Jesus sees as a liar because his truth is not in them.
The faith of our salvation is knowing and obeying Jesus’ teachings and commandments that he spoke and gave through his apostles. That is why we must always be repenting to know how to walk like Jesus. We cannot walk any way we want to in this world and still think we will be saved.
Is it easy to walk like Jesus? No. It depends if you are willing to give up everything in this world by denying yourself, picking up your cross and follow Jesus because you want to be with God more than anything in this world.
I have heard it said that once saved always saved. That once you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior you will always be saved even if you walk away from him. That is not true in what Peter said in:

2 Peter 3: 17 Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

You can fall from your eternal security when you chose to follow lawless men and do not continue to be faithful to love Jesus as your Lord.

1John 2: 7 Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard. 8 Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining. 9 Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. 10 Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. 11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.

John said there cannot hate anyone in the family of God. We can hate evil but never hate a person. You can be angry or disappointed like Jesus was with the Pharisees and at time with his own disciples, but he never hated.
Hate is to despise and want the worst for someone. Jesus said to love your enemies. If there is any hate for a someone, John said the light of God’s forgiveness does not live in you and Jesus said if you do not forgive his Father will not forgive you.

1 John 2: 18 Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. 20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.

John said as children of God we must always keep in mind we are in last days before God kingdom comes and because of this we must be aware that there will be many who will come out of churches that will teach what is anti to Jesus’ teaching and commandments. So, it becomes vital for the church to remain steadfast in the Holy Spirit’s teaching of God’s truth and not man’s teaching. God truth is his armor that you must put on to fight the schemes of the devil and help you identify the lawless one when he comes.

1 John 2: 21 I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. 22 Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist--he denies the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 24 See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. 25 And this is what he promised us--even eternal life. 26 I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray.

John said if you know God’s truth you will know when someone is lying about Jesus. Jesus proclaimed himself as the Messiah sent by God, that he is the Son of God, meaning he is God. That he and the Father are one and that his name is the name of God, “I Am”. The Pharisees knew this and killed Jesus for proclaiming he was equal to God.
We must always hold on to this truth about Jesus and always remain in the name of the Father, Son and Spirit to receive his promise of eternal life and not be misled and follow a lie.

1 John 2:27 As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit--just as it has taught you, remain in him.

This anointing is the Holy Spirit and John said “if” the Holy Spirit remains in you meaning that the Holy Spirit can leave you if you reject Jesus as your Lord. To know that the Holy Spirit is in you is realizing that He is teaching you God’s truth and not what is counterfeit by recalling to you the teaching of Jesus and his apostles as a devoted disciple of God’s word and obeying it.

1 John 2: 28 And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. 29 If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.

We are born of Christ when we live in his righteousness by doing what is right to him. Then you can have the confidence and not be ashamed when Jesus comes to take you home when he returns or if your body falls asleep in him and your spirit appears in his presence.

Be children of God who walks like his Son. Be safe in Jesus,
Ps. Glenn