A Study Through the Letters of JohnНамуна

Day 6: Exercising Discernment

(Read 1 John 4:1-6)

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

Reflection on the passage:

So much input is literally at our fingertips: data, images, memes, songs, opinions, how-to-videos, advertisements, etc. No matter how strongly or cleverly communicated, we can’t simply accept what we hear and see as truth. Perhaps more than ever, lies are intentionally and destructively being propagated. In this passage, John urges us to “test the spirits”, because truth comes from the Holy Spirit and lies from the “spirit of falsehood”.

John is dealing with some specific gnostic heresies at the time of the early church, including those denying that Jesus is truly the incarnate Son of God, fully God and fully human. In this period of early Christianity, it was of utmost importance that the true gospel be protected from distortions and deceptions, so that the good news of Jesus could be passed on to future generations. John saw clearly that this was not simply a matter of friendly disagreements. Whether they realized it or not, those teaching false doctrines were under the influence of the “spirit of the antichrist” – the work of the devil to go against the truth of Christ and the spread of the gospel.

So how do we discern the truth from lies in spiritual teaching that we hear? John gives us two important tests. One is to recognize whether the prophet or messenger acknowledges Jesus Christ as God, who came to us in the flesh. If a person is under the influence of the evil one, they will not want to surrender themselves to the truth of Christ and that will become evident to us. We may also notice that what they say is more palatable to the world than the truth would be, because they are expressing a worldly viewpoint. Another way to discern is more internal, because we belong to God and His Spirit is in us, we can recognize His voice. If we quiet our hearts and minds and truly listen to the Spirit who is joined with our spirit, we will be able to discern.

Discernment is a muscle that needs to be exercised. It is best exercised as the Body of Christ, as we listen to the Spirit together, grounded in His Word, may we grow as a people who rightly, humbly, and carefully discern the truth in a world filled with lies.

Focus verse for prayerful reflection:

“You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4)

1. Are there areas of your life where you feel overwhelmed or even overcome by the perspectives or ways of the world?

2. What encouragement might you personally take from this verse?

For further reading:

Read John 10:25-29 about how Jesus’ sheep know His voice.