Psalm 117  "Praise The Lord, all nations; Laud Him, all peoples!"   Everyone of us in this world must recognize and proclaim the worthiness of God.  To "laud" is to address loudly, commend, glory, triumph, praise Him.  Why?  "For His lovingkindness is great towards us, and the truth of The Lord is everlasting."   Loving-kindness - favor, mercy, goodness, towards everyone of us.  He gives rain to the wicked and the righteous.  He provides every living thing with food to eat, air to breath, grace to believe. He waits patiently for us to turn to Him.  He does not treat us as our sins deserve.  He has provided the Way of salvation, His own Son, Jesus Christ.  He loves us.  He does not want any to perish, but for all of us to repent and be His people. Great are You Lord and highly to be praised, and Your greatness is unsearchable!  ( Psalm 145).  
His love and kindness are great, but the other reason for praise is earth and heart shattering - "the truth of The Lord is everlasting".   We are told that heaven and earth will pass away, but the Word of God will be forever, for Truth is eternal. The Lord God is infinite, eternal, transcendent, faithful and true.  It is Who He is.  We can not escape His Word, His Truth.  We think we can make up our own minds about right and wrong, about what is important and what is not, what we want our lives to look like or focus on.  But the Truth is not subject to our thoughts or feelings.  His Truth is everlasting!  "Praise The Lord!"

I John 4
V1-6  John gives us a means of testing "the spirits".  There are false prophets and false spirits, the spirit of the antichrist lives in this world.  We need to know this.  John helps us discern.
1. Don't believe everyone,  test the spirits.
2. If they do not confess that Jesus was fully man and fully God,  then don't believe them.
3. If they do not acknowledge, assent, give thanks, or proclaim Jesus Christ, beware!
4. Know that the Spirit of God has overcome the spirit of the world.  "Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world"
5.  The world listens to the spirit of the antichrist.  They speak the same language.
6. We who know God, listen to the Word of God.  Those who don't know God don't listen to His Word.
God has given us His Spirit. It is God's Spirit that enables us and proves to us that God abides is us and that we abide in Him.
3:24 "And the one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And we know by this that He abides is us, by the Spirit whom He has given us."
4:13 "By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit."
This abiding is only possible because of the Holy Spirit.  The evidence of it is, first of all our proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. (v1-6). And then the presence of His Love in us. (v7-21).
1. Love is from God. (v7)
2. Those who know God and are born of God - love.
3. If we don't love, then we don't know God. (v8)
4. God manifested,  revealed His love by sending Jesus into the world so that we might live.  (v9)
5. God loved us first.(10)
6. Since He loves us, we "ought" to love one another. "  (v11)
7. Loving one another is God's way of showing His presence in us - He is abiding and perfecting His love. (v12)
So, these two things - believing and confessing Jesus, the Son of God, the Saviour of the world, the propitiation for our sins; and Love, abiding love, love for one another, love produced by God and perfected in us by His Spirit.  These 2 things are the supreme tests that we are His.

O I need Thee, every hour I need Thee!  Fill me with Your Love O Lord! You are Love.  You are the only source of Love. Help me to grasp this everlasting Truth, to drink it in, to know it and live it. Spirit of God, come, abide in me. I am Yours O Lord!