Whoever remains in him doesn't sin. Whoever sins hasn't seen him, neither knows him.
"The perfect tense here is not intended to categorize a person as either saved or unsaved, since even believers sin (1 John 1:8). Instead, the statement is intended to stigmatize all sin as the product, not only of not abiding, but also of ignorance and blindness toward God." [Note: Hodges, The Epistles . . ., p. 136.] 