Sermon: Discerning Spirits and Discerning the Body
#1535
Martin G. Collins
Given 28-Mar-20; 67 minutes
description: Because of the culture of deception fostered by Satan and his children, we must develop discernment to tell the difference between truth and falsehood. God's people discern the truth by 1.) examining the fruits and 2.) determining the sources (I Corinthians 12:10). The apostle John encouraged making distinctions between one speaking from the power of God and one speaking of a false spirit (I John 4:1-6). The apostle Paul warned the Corinthians of false apostles inspired by Satan, who has transformed himself into an angel of light (II Corinthians 11:13-15). The fulfillment of a prophecy suggests that God ordained it (Jeremiah 28:9). Conversely, the lack of fulfillment of a prophecy indicates that it did not come from the mouth of God, as the narrative of Micaiah shows (I Kings 22:28, Deuteronomy 18:20-22). If a prophet or worker of miracles leads us away from following God's law, he is a false prophet (Deuteronomy 13: 4-5). Only God's Holy Spirit enables us to distinguish godly from demonic spirits. We should practice and exercise discernment until it becomes habitual (Hebrews 5:14). As we prepare for Passover, we must be aware of the deceitfulness of our own hearts, uncovering our secret sins in deep repentance. If we fail to examine ourselves, we become disrespectful to Christ's sacrifice, drinking harsh judgment upon ourselves. We must remember that the Body of Christ includes our spiritual siblings who are also consuming the Bread of Life. If we sin against the brethren, we automatically sin against Jesus Christ.
transcript:
We live in a world of confusion. That is no surprise to anyone in this room, I am sure. Truth is determined by situation ethics. Lies are promoted and repeated until they are believed to be established truths.
The fake news media cannot be trusted because they have been exposed for blatant lying in their reporting. Their self-serving agendas and propaganda are rammed down our throats daily. Politicians cannot be trusted because they promise what they know they cannot deliver to just get into office. Mainstream religious leaders often cannot be trusted and are often exposed when their teachings do not agree with the Holy Bible because their religious traditions supersede God's inspired written Word.
So how do we discern the truth from the lies? How do we test what we hear?
Today's society promotes a tense atmosphere where all kinds of wild ideas seem normal and they are promoted as widespread. Therefore, it is vital to be able to discern between what is real and what is neurotic, between what comes from God and what originates from Satan and human nature.
When something is outside of normalcy, sometimes it is difficult to tell whether it is true or not. And one principle to observe is that we must always try to understand before we condemn or judge.
Please turn with me to I Corinthians 4, verse 5. The discerning of spirits is a gift of the Holy Spirit and enables a person to judge whether one who prophesies, performs miracles, or teaches does so by the power of the Holy Spirit or by a false spirit. The discerning of spirits refers to the spiritual power of searching into the secrets of the heart, that is, of knowing what a person's purposes, views, and beliefs are.
I Corinthians 4:5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
It also relates to the power of determining by what spirit a person speaks who pretends to be truthful or inspired, whether he is an impostor or not. It also refers to the power of seeing whether a person is sincere or not in his claim to be a Christian. Pastors and elders are usually given more discernment in this area. The apostles had this power and it became apparent from the case of Ananias and Sapphira recorded in Acts 5:1-10. Another example of discernment through the Holy Spirit is that of Paul with Elymas. The incident is recorded in Acts 13:4-12.
When Barnabas and Saul reach Paphos they met a Jewish sorcerer, a false prophet named Bar-Jesus, whose Greek name was Elymas. And he had made friends with the Governor Sergius Paulus. The governor invited Barnabas and Saul to explain the Word of God to him. And alas, Elymas interfered and urged the governor not to pay any attention to what Barnabas and Saul said because he did not want the governor to believe him.
Acts 13:9-12 Then Saul, also known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, "O full of every sort of deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord? And now, indeed, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a time." And immediately a dark mist fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand. Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had been done, being astonished at the teaching oft the Lord.
Obviously, wherever a Christian had a gift of prophecy and inspiration, and wherever people saw an opportunity to take advantage of it, there would be many pretenders of it. We certainly see that in this world of ours, in this society. Nevertheless God, through the apostle Paul, revealed that a person led by the Holy Spirit will be concerned for those things that strengthen the church. That is one sign of a true prophet.
Turn over with me please ten chapters, to I Corinthians 14, verse 12.
I Corinthians 14:12 Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel [that is, seek to be able to speak truth in a clear and intelligible manner].
I Corinthians 14:26 How is it then, brethren, whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue [ meaning, a language], has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.
So spiritual gifts including discernment, must be desired for the purpose of benefiting the church, not for our own gain.
Now, the discerning of spirits has been very important to the church down through the ages because it has prevented the deception of false ministers against true members of the church of God.
Back two chapters to chapter 12 of I Corinthians.
I Corinthians 12:1-3 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant: You know that you were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you were led. Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.
Paul is saying there that no one can say in genuine faith that Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit. And therefore all who genuinely profess faith in Christ have the Holy Spirit within them. And no one should be excluded because everyone in God's church has valuable gifts for the benefit of the church.
I Corinthians 12:4-11 There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. [notice the word same through here] And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues [or languages], to another the interpretation of tongues [or languages]. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributed to each one individually as He wills.
So all spiritual gifts are by and through the Holy Spirit originating from God and passing them on to us in that way.
Now, the phrase "discerning of spirits" in verse 10 is translated from a Greek phrase meaning "judicial estimation [that almost sounds technical] through judgment or separation." Specifically, the Greek word diakriseis, translated discerning here, means a distinguishing or discriminating between things that are under consideration. And the one who possesses the gift of discerning of spirits is able to make a distinction between the one who speaks by the Spirit of God and the one who is moved by a false spirit.
By the gift of discerning of spirits, Paul indicates a distinct ability beyond that which the apostle John in I John 4 calls on Christians in general to exercise. Turn with me there to I John 4. This discerning of spirits is the discriminating between the function of God's Spirit and the deception of the evil spirit or the unaided human spirit, claiming to express the principles of God's Spirit. In other words, the discerning of spirits is judgment between truth and error.
I John 4:1-6 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses [or is convicted] that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than He who is in the world. They of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; and he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
We do not know precisely what was happening to the churches to which John was writing. We know that at least there was a schism in which those who profess to have a greater knowledge in spiritual matters withdrew from the original Christian assembly. But did they go out professing to have received a higher or pure revelation of truth than had the others? We do not know for sure. But if they left, it is not hard to imagine that they would have pretended to be more in tune with the power of the Holy Spirit. They thought they knew better than anyone else.
In addition to this, it may also have been the case that what they said and did, and perhaps also what others said and did, was accompanied by the appearance of the performing of "miracles" or more likely, trickery. At least we know that such phenomena took place in other churches and by other individuals at the time.
Now, what were the Christians to do in such circumstances? Did the appearance of supernatural phenomena automatically authenticate the ones performing them? Some must have thought so because when John begins the fourth chapter of his letter by saying, "Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are of God," he implies indirectly that some were at least tending to accept whatever teaching claim to be given under such supposed inspiration.
In these verses, God through John deals with this problem and therefore also with our own. His reply has three parts.
First, there is the command to test those who claim to be inspired. Second, there is a standard to be used in testing them. And third, there is an application of these ideas to the problem of distinguishing between truth or true and merely professing Christians.
In this last section, John deals once more with the radical distinction between the church and the world and shows the relation of each to the doctrine of Jesus Christ and the apostles. The contrasts in this section are therefore between the Holy Spirit and false spirits, belief and unbelief, and in a summary way in verse 6, between truth and error.
I John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
John begins with the statement that there are false prophets, or teachers, as well as true prophets, and with a command for Christians to distinguish between them. At the same time, he indicates what is the important point in distinguishing them. It is not whether supernatural phenomena are present, because Satan can also appear to do miracles. It is a question of the source of the prophet's inspiration. Is it of God? In that case, the prophet is a true prophet. If it is not of God, then he is not to be believed or followed however great his wisdom or however amazing his activity.
When John says that many false prophets have gone out into the world, he is not necessarily thinking of his day alone but projecting forward as to what the church will face. Turn back over to II Corinthians this time to chapter 11, verse 13. And he would know that there have always been false prophets and that God's people have always had the task of distinguishing between those who are of God and those who speak either of themselves or by the influence of Satan. Paul makes this point to the Christian believers.
II Corinthians 11:13-15 For such a false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.
The Old Testament contains a wonderful example in the case of Micaiah and the prophets of King Ahab recorded in I Kings 22. So please turn there with me. King Ahab of Israel had been trying to persuade King Jehoshaphat of Judah to join him in battle against Syria in order to annex a piece of real estate known as Ramoth Gilead. But Jehoshaphat was skeptical and he wanted to ask whether the venture was blessed by the Lord by inquiring of a prophet. When he expressed this desire, he had responded by calling together 400 of the court prophets who all then testified.
I Kings 2:6 Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said to them, "Shall I go against Ramoth Gilead to fight, or shall I refrain?" And so they said, "Go up, for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king."
So at this point, Ahab was pleased but Jehoshaphat was dissatisfied because he sensed that these men were merely paid mouthpieces kept by Ahab for propaganda purposes.
I Kings 22:7 And Jehoshaphat said, "Is there not still a prophet of the Lord here, that we may inquire of Him?"
So, Ahab admitted that there was a man named Micaiah, but he said that he hated him because he never prophesized anything good about him, that is, Ahab, and Ahab did not want to hear from Micaiah. Nevertheless, at Jehoshaphat's insistence, this unpopular prophet was called. And at first, the prophet ridiculed the kings saying word for word exactly what the false prophets had prophesized. But everyone understood what he was doing.
I Kings 22:16-17 So the king [Ahab] said to him, "How many times shall I make you swear that you tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?" [At this point Micaiah replied as God had instructed him] Then he said, "I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains as sheep that have no shepherd. And the Lord said, 'These have no master. Let each return to his house in peace.'"
This was clearly a prophecy of the death of Ahab and it was obviously very unpopular, especially with that king so Micaiah was imprisoned. But notice what he called out as he was being taken to prison in verse 28.
I Kings 22:28 But Micaiah said, "If you ever return in peace, the Lord has not spoken by me." And he said, "Take heed, all you people!"
So he challenged all the people to take note of his prophecy by waiting to see if it came true. This is God's true prophet saying, "If you don't believe me, just wait and see if it comes true. If it doesn't I'm a false prophet; if it does, I'm a true prophet of God."
Here is precisely the problem with which John was dealing with in God's church. It is the question of who is right. And there is one test—a very important test—by which true and false prophets or ministers may be distinguished: fulfillment. One word, fulfillment.
Turn with me to Jeremiah 28, verse 7. Whose prophecies come true? Will Ahab be killed or will he not? Will Israel be scattered or will she return victorious? In this case, Micaiah was vindicated. Here is the test Jeremiah gives.
Jeremiah 28:7-9 "Nevertheless hear now this word that I speak in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people: The prophets who have been before me and before you of old prophesied against many countries and great kingdoms—of war and disaster and pestilence. As for the prophet who prophesies of peace, when the word of the prophet comes to pass, the prophet will be known as one whom the Lord has truly sent."
That is a foundational principle in distinguishing and discerning between true and false prophets. Jeremiah's point is that peace and security is the rarer of the messages described here. Peace requires repentance, which has not occurred.
Now turn over to Deuteronomy 18, verse 15. So a prophet who, on the contrary, predicts peace must show he is right. Only when his predictions come true can we know that he is really from the Lord. A true prophet specifies things that he says will happen, and he also fixes the time of the event, and the things do happen in and in that time. Or to present it from the negative side, it is also the test given to people, to the people in Deuteronomy.
Deuteronomy 18:15-22 "The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet [referring to the Messiah who is chief of a prophetic order] like me [like Moses] from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear [the emphasis is on hearing, not seeing here], according to all you desired of the Lord your God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, 'Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, nor let me see this great fire anymore, lest I die.' And the Lord said to me, 'What they have spoken is good. I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among the brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of Him. But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.' And if you say in your heart, 'How shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?'—when a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him [or you shall not believe him]."
This principle can be applied to the media, politicians, scientists, religious leaders; it can be applied to anyone in the world who is telling us anything. And that is why we have to be very careful and be very discerning in what we hear in the news, what we read on the Internet, because all have been proven to be liars. So we must research, do our due diligence to find out what is true and what is not, and not to panic over anything the world says because God is a God of peace. And if our confidence is in God, then we will have peace rather than that anxiety.
Now, there is a certain anxiety of any changes and we are certainly having changes in society, but we should not be overly worrying about this whole thing, certainly not frantic. The world is panicking. We are in God's church. Why would we panic?
But suppose that the prophecy of a false prophet does by chance come true. It is conceivable. I am sure it has happened. We see mediums and palm readers and things like that. They seem to have things that come true because they are so general that they are bound to come true at some point.
Or suppose that the prophecy is of such a general nature or involves such vague material that it is just not realistic to be tested in this way. What then? In that case, Moses was inspired to write that the prophet is to be tested by whether he leads the people to serve false gods or not, such as the medical profession, political parties, or non-biblical religious traditions.
Let us go back five chapters to Deuteronomy 13. Now, I am in no way saying we should not follow the recommendations or the laws that are in place. We should abide with them as long as they coincide or do not go against God's principles and His law.
Deuteronomy 13:1-5 "If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, 'Let us go after other gods'—which you have not known—'and let us serve them,' you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. [This is so important!] You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him. But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has spoken in order to turn you away from the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of bondage, to entice you from the way in which the Lord your God commanded you to walk. So you shall put away the evil from your midst."
Now let us go back to I John 4. As I said, I am not saying we should not follow the edicts and the laws and the recommendations for how to be quarantined and that type of thing. We should follow them, abide by them.
Suppose there are prophets among you or those who dream or have visions about the future and they promise you signs and miracles, and the predicted signs and miracles occur. If they promote different gods or try to entice you to worship them, do not listen to them. God allows this to test you, to see if you truly love and reverence Him with all your heart and soul.
So we have to be careful how much time we spend listening to others, especially people in the world over and over and over again, because it will have a negative influence on us. We have to also go to several different sources, many different sources, in fact, to see if we can discern what is the truth and what is not.
One source is going to be one-sided. It does not matter whether it is Fox News or CNN. All the media are one-sided. They just are very clever at polishing it to look like it is a contrary opinion.
I John 4:2-3 (again) By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.
John has already indicated that behind every prophet stands a spirit—either the Spirit of God or the the demonic spirit of antichrist. And he has spoken of the need to test the spirits by their origin. But how are they to be tested? We have just seen some of the answer in Deuteronomy. How can a Christian know whether the spirit is of God or of antichrist?
Here, John applies the test given in Deuteronomy 13 though in terms appropriate to the Gnostic challenge of John's time. "What do they say about Christ?" is John's question. Do they acknowledge that Jesus is the Christ come in the flesh or do they deny this? If they deny Christ, then they are not of God no matter how impressive their activity or their words might be.
Now, John's test has both a positive and a negative expression as is also the case with the similar test used by Paul, which we read earlier in I Corinthians 2:3, which says, "Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit."
Although we are not often confronted today by those who claim to be prophets, our difficulty is rather of knowing whether a religious leader or teacher speaks the truth. Can we test those who speak on this level? Can truth be distinguished from error here? As a result, we find John dealing with the matter on the human level.
I John 4:4-6 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; e who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
So the outline of these verses is found in the emphasized pronouns that begin verses 4, 5, and 6. Except for verse 4 this is preserved even in most of the English versions. Verse 4 begins with "you." It is a reference to those who are of God, that is, to Christians. And John says two things of these people.
First, he says that they have overcome the false teachers. He is not referring to a physical contest by these words, nor even to a struggle in the area of morality. It is rather an intellectual battle in which the Christians have been victorious. The false teachers had been seeking to deceive these believers, but they had not succeeded and merely by testing them and refusing to be taken in by their lies Christians are conquerors in this area.
Second, John indicates why the Christians have been victorious. It is not that they were stronger in themselves because they probably were not. The Gnostics were the ones who were the intellectual, secular giants. They were the academics of the day and they can always talk circles around us. They do not always make sense, but they sure are clever in their deception. Rather it is that God is in the Christians and that He who is in the Christians is stronger than he who is in the world. And this last phrase recalls the statement of Elisha to his young servant when the servant was terrified at the armies of Syria who surrounded them
II Kings 6:16-17 So he [Elisha] answered, "Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them. And Elisha prayed and said, "Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see." And then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elijah.
In this case, the reference was to the angels of the Lord who had surrounded Elisha and his servant. We have angels surrounding us in all cases, in all circumstances, because we are of God, we are members of God's church, members of His Family.
In John 4:5 begins with "They." This refers to the false teachers who John says are of the world, because what they say is of the world and what we are hearing about what is going on in this crisis is coming from the world, from people who are of the world. So we must discern carefully what is being said, whether it is true or false.
And I am not saying one way or another, just that some people lack discernment. We all need to have it, especially as these days and these crises get more intrusive into our lives.
It is the world's philosophy, even though it may be dressed in Christian language and be presented by those who claim to be Christian teachers.
I John 4:6 begins with "We." This we is not the same as the "you who are from God" in verse 4. In verse 4 the you is all Christians, In verse 6, "we" must refer not to all Christians, but to the apostles as the direct counterpart to these false teachers in verse 4. And yes, the principle in verse 6 does apply to everyone. But in this specific case, John is talking about the minister's, the apostle specifically.
In other words, this "we" is the same as the "we" that begins John's letter, those verses insist strongly upon the apostolic teaching and testimony that is his subject there.
What does this mean? It simply means that those who are of God and those who are of the world may be distinguished by the response or lack of response to the apostle's teaching. "We are of God. He who knows God hears us. He who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error."
So if this were a mere individual talking, the claim would be presumptuous, but it is not. This is one of the apostles citing the collective testimony of all the apostles and making that testimony the measure of truth and sound doctrine. This is advice from a father, so to speak, of the Christian doctrine, Christ being the primary one and the apostles.
So it is Christ and the apostles teaching the doctrine of Jesus Christ and the apostles, the only true doctrine of the church, illuminates it and the incarnation of God's Christ defines and gives it a focal point to that doctrine. It is for us to determine whether we believe that doctrine and, if we do, to respond to it.
There are not three ways according to the apostle John, there are not four or five or more. There are only two ways, the way of truth and the way of error (he does not allow for gray areas), the way of truth, the way of error, the way of Christ and the way of anti-Christ. We are called to serve Christ and those who are truly of God will do so.
Our greater portion of the discerning of spirits seems to have been given to those who are mature spiritual teachers in God's church. And it was especially important when John wrote this because there were so many false teachers trying to receive gain from this seemingly new popular religion of Christianity. We see the same greed and deception in mainstream Christianity today. And yes, there are churches trying to make money off of what is going on today just as there is in every other aspect of our society.
Now, please turn to Hebrews 5, verse 12. The idea of maturity regarding discernment is linked with perfection, although certainly not identified with it, except in the case of Christ. Maturity is seen in Hebrews 5 as the desirable development from spiritual childhood. The experienced Christian knows he needs strong spiritual food to attain to this kind of maturity.
Hebrews 5:12-14 For though by this time, you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
The Greek word for "discern" in verse 14 is diakrisis. It means a distinguishing, a clear discrimination, discerning, judging. Literally, it means "towards a discerning." This indicates that there is a process of learning and experience prior to discernment. Discernment is the ability to recognize good and evil. In other words, recognizing good and evil is the end product of discernment. That is the recognizing of it.
Now, what about the actual process of discernment? How do we get to the point of recognizing good from evil? How do we gain that ability? Well, the mature are defined as those who have their faculties trained by practice. There is a reference to habit in the Greek here. So in fact, the words "by reason" in verse 14 could be translated "by habit," which would bring out perhaps more clearly the building up of experience through a continued process. In the past, the Greek term translated "by reason" occurs only here in the New Testament.
Please turn to I Corinthians 13, verse 11. Spiritual maturity comes neither from isolated events nor from a great spiritual burst. It comes from steady application of spiritual discipline. Paul talks of seeing poorly now in contrast to seeing perfectly in the life to come.
I Corinthians 13:11-12 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.
Of all people, the Christian has insight into spiritual things because his mind is trained in understanding because he has God's Holy Spirit. The power to distinguish between good and evil has been sought ever since the time of Adam and Eve. But the faculty to do so does not come easily, even for those with some knowledge of Christ.
This gift and ability of spiritual discernment immediately shows the difference between the mature and the immature. Spiritual discernment is the gift given by God through the Spirit that enables us to rightly judge between good and evil. But that gift that comes from God has to be exercised and it has to be experienced and then that discernment, that gift of discernment or all these other gifts, will increase enabling us to use them more.
It is the comparing of things in life to God's standard of righteousness to see if it matches or contradicts His requirements so that we can rightly apply the knowledge we acquire during our lifetime in a wise and righteous way.
Turn over to Philippians 1, verse 9. Paul says the Christian needs abounding love while applying knowledge and discernment. That is right. We need a bounding love while applying knowledge and discernment.
Philippians 1:9-11 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
In verse 9, the word translated "knowledge" is a special Greek word, epignosis, which refers to advanced spiritual knowledge. Knowledge here is applied only to spiritual things—to the knowledge of God, spiritual knowledge, and doctrinal knowledge. It is a knowledge that comes to us through a study of God's Word. We must be filled with God's love and this must be a love according to knowledge.
In verse 9, the King James version uses the word "judgment" rather than discernment. In the Greek it is the word aesthesis (you see the word thesis in there), from the root word for perception, that is figuratively, discernment.
Now, the love that is behind good works must also be discerning. And this word has reference to the understanding given by means of the Holy Spirit. The Word of God is a discerning of the thoughts and intents of the heart, and by means of God's Spirit enables us to discern how love should operate.
Finally, the love with which Christians should be filled must be discriminating. So Paul says that we are to discern what is best.
The word translated "discern" in classical Greek refers to testing something or someone. It is the technical word for testing money to determine whether it is genuine or counterfeit. But it also occurs in a political context for the testing of a candidate for office. It is used by Paul in Romans 12:2 when he says Christians are to be renewed by the Holy Spirit so they may test and approve what God's will is, His good, pleasing, and perfect will.
Please turn over to John 2 verse 23. And we know we must be motivated and guided by love. Without love we are only clanging cymbals. But this was never intended to be a wishy-washy, undefined, sentimental love. It is the love of Christ. Therefore, it must be a love governed by biblical principles and exercised with this discernment.
For example, a parent may falsely believe he is showing love to his child by never spanking him when in truth, he is not being discerning and showing love because he is condemning his child's future to one of undisciplined misery and grief. Look at King David and Absalom. Jesus is our spiritual example of everything and He is a discerning of hearts.
John 2:23-25 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did. But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and he had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man [man here, of course, refers to mankind].
What did He know was in every human being? What does God see when He examines the heart of man? Well, we must recognize first that only God can see into our hearts. Consequently, the picture He paints will certainly be different from what we might expect to find there. We should not be surprised at our own inability to see into a person's true nature because this is demonstrated for us almost daily. We do not have any idea what someone is thinking. We think we know, but we just do not do. People cannot see into the minds of other people. Only God can do that—and He searches our hearts.
Romans 8:27 Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
Turn over to Acts 15, verse 7. God knows our heart and He knows what is in the heart and mind of everyone.
Acts 15:7-9 And when there had been much dispute, Peter rose up and said to them: "Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God chose among us. that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts in faith.
God discerns the heart. Consequently, we should not be surprised if His view of the hearts and minds of people differs from our own.
When Jesus began performing miraculous works, the signs attracted the attention of the crowd and brought many to a stage of belief parallel to but not equal to that of the disciples. They humanly reasoned that since Jesus possessed such power, He must have the favor of God. Jesus was not satisfied with a superficial faith, even though it may have been genuine in a shallow human sense. He was leery of those who professed belief only based on His miracles. Trying times like we have today certainly test us in these areas.
Jesus discerns human nature and knows that human belief changes. This principle of spiritual discernment is basic to Christ dealing with all unconverted human beings. And when we look into the human heart apart from the magnification of the heart provided by the Word of God, all we see is the milk of human kindness. As someone who is an unbeliever, they cannot see past that. They just cannot see past the milk of the human mind, so to speak, with perhaps a few small smudges of sin. But God has the human heart in clear focus, with the result that He is never fooled by human goodness.
What then does God see when He examines the human heart? I am talking about mostly the world but even still some of what we have in our hearts. The answer is shocking to those who are not immersed in Scripture. The Bible tells us that, according to God, the heart is filled with insanity and evil. Now here are three scriptures to back this up.
Genesis 6:5-6 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.
So the human heart is unrepentant, calloused, proud, blind. Spiritual blindness is an inability to recognize the truth, especially while in a guilty condition. Therefore, it describes idolaters whose worship is illogical as well as wrong. And it describes people who simply do not want to know. They turn a blind eye. So the human heart is deceitful and violent and devious.
Jeremiah 17:9-10 The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.
Proverbs 24:2 For their heart devises violence, and their lips talk of troublemaking.
So you get the point from just these few scriptures. The human heart is far from God. It is a grim picture, but it is only as we begin to see the heart as God sees it, that we can begin to appreciate the greatness of God's love. And this is what we must do to effectively discern, evaluate, and judge our own lives to see in what way we fall short of God's love and what we must do to make a clear distinction between the conviction for the spiritual body or is it a preference for the world? What is in our hearts? Is a conviction for the spiritual body? Or is it a preference for the world? As we humbly realize our weakness, we move closer to developing a worthy manner.
In I Corinthians 11, verses 27 through 31 Paul provides the essential first step to avoid appearing at Passover in an unworthy manner: "Let a man examine himself." "And if we would judge ourselves."
I Corinthians 11:27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
A broader application of this principle encourages us to examine our own lives and to repent and ask forgiveness for any sin we have committed We should ask God to show us our secret sins and try to overcome them. Sometimes they can be overwhelming and so we should pick the worst and work on it until we have conquered it. And this must be done before partaking Passover sacrifices. When we eat and drink of the sacrifices, we become connected with and are in fellowship with Christ. Everyone who shares and partakes of that bread becomes one spiritual body. Eating the Passover bread is symbolically sharing the body of Christ.
Since God's church, which is made up of many members, is one body, sharing in the one bread, in that sense, we are the body of Christ with Him. So the church is, in an indirect way, also the bread. In other words, we share in the symbolism of the body and that the spiritual body of believers who are in Christ are in and part of Christ's body, which is represented by the bread of Passover.
I Corinthians 11:28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat the bread and drink of the cup.
So whoever partakes of the Passover must examine himself to see whether he has properly understood the unselfish, atoning nature of Jesus' death for others and how that should be initiated in our own life. And we become unified with what we share. So when we share in the bread and the wine symbols, we become one with Christ.
I Corinthians 11:29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner, eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
Anyone who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner does not recognize the spiritual reality of what is represented and is happening at the Passover service. Therefore he is acting in a way that dishonors Christ. We could even say he is disrespecting Jesus Christ Himself.
Now, the original Greek in verse 29 does not have the word "Lord." It literally reads, "not discerning the body." So that is why in the ESV, I Corinthians 11:29 just says, "For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself."
Discerning in verse 29 is translated from the Greek word diakrino. Here it is specifically diakrinoon, meaning a thorough distinguishing, discriminating, or separating between things that are under consideration by seeing or by thought. Sometimes it suggests to evaluate or judge between two or more things. Discerning in verse 29 has the same root as the phrase "discerning of spirits" in I Corinthians 12:10.
The apostle Paul wants us to understand that if we do not discern or make a correct distinction with regards to the spiritual body, we will observe the Passover in an unworthy manner. An unworthy manner means to treat that sacrifice in a disrespectful, indifferent, and half-hearted way. "Eats and drinks judgment to himself" is a serious warning that God will discipline those who dishonor Jesus and therefore, it should not be taken lightly.
It is also important to make a distinction between taking the annual Passover bread and wine and making sure it is not taken on every weekly Sabbath of the year as do some of the Protestant churches and the Catholic church do. Taking the bread and wine at every worship service would disobey God's command, adulterate its true meaning, and make it common and taken for granted.
So the body refers not only to the literal body of Christ which is tortured and beaten for sins we have committed, but also the body of believers, of which we are a part, consisting of our heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and we who are in faith.
The bread and wine symbolically bind us together in one fellowship. And what we partake of is what we become: the body of Christ. We are to remember that Jesus Christ saw value in us, in our brethren, and even in the people that God has not yet called to pay the price for our all our sins.
I Corinthians 11:30 For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.
So the discipline of the Lord has consequences in physical life as well. But that is not the point of this verse. Its emphasis is speaking spiritually. Many are spiritually weak, mentally deficient, and have closed their minds to discernment because of neglecting their personal relationship with God in prayer and Bible study and fasting.
I Corinthians 11:31 For if we who would judge [translated discern in the ESV and examine in the NET] ourselves, we would not be judged.
The first word "judged" here and the second word "judged" are from the same root word again, diakrino, which means to separate thoroughly; figuratively, to discriminate by implication, to decide. So in this light, verse 31 would read, "For if we would discern and examine ourselves, we would not be separate."
The implication is that we must be convicted of God's way of life, not just prefer to live it when it is convenient and easy. We are either in this life with Christ or we will be separated like chaff from the wheat. So we must do an evaluation of the health of our spiritual condition. And then there must be an admission of our sins and a sincere effort to overcome. And when we rightly discern our sins and make a sincere effort to turn from them and seek forgiveness, then as a general principle, we will not experience God's disciplinary judgment because we receive His promise of forgiveness.
So we discern the body by distinguishing it in our own hearts and minds from what is not part of the body, which would be the rest of humanity. It also means to separate from the world and be loyal to the body as a whole rather than making disunifying accusations against other members of the body.
Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
We are all one in the body of Christ. So we must ask ourselves, have I sinned against any of my brothers or sisters in Christ? The present crisis has caused some to self-righteously ridicule others in the church, the body of Christ. and in the process have mimicked the world. Paul writes,
I Corinthians 8:12 But when you thus sin against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ.
Please turn over to Hebrews 10, verse 29. At Passover, we take three looks. We look within and confess our sins. We look back and remember that Jesus died for us. And we look ahead and eagerly anticipate His return. But the principle is clear, if we do not judge and discern our own sins, God will have to judge and separate us.
Hebrews 10:29-31 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sacrificed a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord. And again, "The Lord will judge His people." It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
So in the matter of a short summary, discernment is given by God through His Holy Spirit. It is received through God's Word and through the insight of a renewed mind. Discerning believers seek to grow in their understanding and knowledge of God's truth and their love for all the members of the Family of God.
And now for our final scripture please turn to Proverbs 2. The search for understanding and wisdom and discernment should be far more diligent than the search for precious metals and other material things we may desire. To attain wisdom requires constant seeking and searching. Then, meditating on what we find to gain an understanding.
When God granted wisdom to Solomon, He gave him the ability to see how to apply knowledge. Wisdom is the right use of true knowledge.
Proverbs 2:1-9 My son, if you receive my words, and treasure my commands within you, so that you incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding; yes, if you cry out for discernment, and lift up your voice for understanding, if you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures; then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding; He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly; He guards the paths of justice, and preserves the way of His saints. Then you will understand righteousness and justice, equity and every good path.
Obviously, wisdom and discernment are something that are to be sought after. Effort must be expended for one to become wise. To have discernment, you must get wisdom and to be wise, you must have discernment. Getting wisdom involves humility and honesty and perseverance. It requires hearing with the ear and applying with the heart and diligently searching along the way.
And when we consider the cost of our calling, we must look at Paul's warning about discerning the Body of Christ. We have the responsibility to maintain our faithfulness to the body of believers Christ has called and we must protect the unity of the Spirit. Whatever we do to the 'least' in Christ's body, we do to Christ.
So what we do and say can have a positive or negative effect on others at different stages of spiritual maturity. The things that we know to be lawful may not be appropriate or uplifting. Therefore, we must set our own interests aside for the good of everyone else. And we must practice the same values as our heavenly father and our Savior and King, Jesus Christ.
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