Bible Passage: 1 JOHN 4:1-6
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test every spirit, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. - 1 John 4:1.”
If in Apostle John’s time, the problem of false teaching and false teachers were in existence, we can now imagine how troubling it is for the church today. The apostle’s call for genuine believers to _*”test every spirit” (v.1) remains very relevant today as it was then. If you must test every spirit, you must know what is the correct spirit yourself. These days, we observe disturbing increase in tolerance for error and unbiblical teachings. Christians are commanded to test all professed christian teachers, writers, preachers, prophets and any individual who lays claim to the Holy Spirit being behind his/her work. We must never assume that a ministry or spiritual experience is from God just because the person says so. We should not just accept a teaching or doctrine on the basis of success, miracles or apparent anointing (c/f Matt. 7:22; 2 Thess. 2:8-10).
The content of every teaching and the spirit behind it must be tested against sound biblical exegesis. Another way of testing the spirit is by looking at the livestyle of the person if it aligns with the word of God. To test is “to make a critical examination of something to determine genuineness…”
A critical part of the false teaching was that Jesus Christ did not come in the flesh which was driven by the spirit of antichrist (v.2-3). They ” taught that Jesus couldn’t have been divine in the flesh. Especially, a divine being, by definition, couldn’t carry the sins of all mankind in his body on the cross”. This is the basic issue of the doctrine of incarnation that we celebrate at Christmas: Jesus Christ is God in the flesh — throughout his human life, from the manger to the cross. In our own day, the discerning question may be different, to help us distinguish a modern-day heresy from true Christianity, but the principle is the same: Test the spirits!
Brethren, we have overcome evil in the world by the power of the indwelling spirit of God in our lives (v.4). Believers must continually depend on the Holy Spirit to overcome the spirit of error, sin, temptation and persecution. Whatever is contrary to Christ, is antichrist. Arm yourself with the truth, that he that is in you is greater than he that is in the world. How do you “test the spirits'”? One of the best ways is by listening and asking questions?
ACTION:
Are you sure you are not a victim of deception? Focus on Christ.
PRAYER:
O Lord, help me pay the price of following Jesus, that I will never be a victim to deception, in Jesus name.
