IDENTIFYING SPIRITS
Text: 1 John 4:1-6
Introduction
1. Discernment in Scripture is the skill that enables us to differentiate. It is the ability to see issues clearly. We desperately need to cultivate this spiritual skill that will enable us to know right from wrong. We must be prepared to distinguish light from darkness, truth from error, best from better, righteousness from unrighteousness, purity from defilement, and principles from pragmatics. (J. Stowell, Fan The Flame, 44).
2. We live in a world that is more than the eye can see, and things are not always as they appear.
3. They is a spiritual realm that we cannot see with our eyes, but that does not mean that it is any less real. Nor does sticking our heads in the sand and pretending it doesn't exist mean that it doesn't exist.
4. We need to realize that Satan, our enemy is out to destroy us, and we need to be prepared to do battle.
5. John talks about this in our text this morning. He tells us to...
A. Test The Spirits
B. The Spirit In You
C. Spirit Of Truth Vs. The Spirit Of Deception
6. Let's stand together as we read 1 John 4:1-6.
Proposition: We need to discern whether something is from an evil spirit or the Holy Spirit.
Transition: First John tells us to...
I. Test The Spirits (1-3).
A. You Must Test Them
1. Judaism especially associated the Spirit of God with prophecy but acknowledged the existence of false prophets, who John says are moved by other spirits. His readers would understand his point; Jewish people were familiar with the idea of other spirits besides the Spirit of God (Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary New Testament, Under: "1 John 4:1-6 Testing the Spirits").
2. John tells us in v. 1, "Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world."
A. As I have stated several times during this series, when John wrote this letter he was dealing with numerous false teachers who were making false claims about Jesus.
B. Specifically, they were saying that Jesus didnt come in a real human body. So John wanted to teach his audience how to determine who was genuine and who was false.
C. Consequently, Paul had to warn the church how to "test" the spirits.
D. Test: to try to learn the genuineness of something by examination and testing, often through actual use (Louw and Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Symantic Domains, 332.
E. In classical Greek the term was used for testing the genuineness of metals and coins.(The Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary Delta-Epsilon, Under: "1375. d???µ???").
F. The reality of demonic spirits is not questioned since there are several stories in both the Gospels and the Book of Acts regarding demonic activity.
G. As Christians, however, we need to reminded that demonic activity can actually invade the church.
H. Just because someone claims to have been inspired by the spirit, doesn’t always mean the Holy Spirit.
I. So John found it necessary to remind his readers that not every "spirit" was to be believed.
J. The word "spirit" here must mean either "utterance inspired by a spirit," or a "person inspired by a spirit."
K. In the latter case the idea is that the individual spirit of a prophet, which could be inspired by God or Satan.
L. Since this is the case, those in the church shouldn’t believe what a person says without first testing whether or not the spirit is from God (Marshall, 204).
3. It's always a good thing when someone tells you to do something if they tell you how. This exactly what John does for us. In v. 2 he says, "This is how we know if they have the Spirit of God: If a person claiming to be a prophet acknowledges that Jesus Christ came in a real body, that person has the Spirit of God."
A. Here is the answer to the problem. John presents the positive evidence for determining whether a prophet is inspired by the Holy Spirit.
B. The test involves the profession of faith made by the person who claims to be inspired by the Spirit.
C. John says that a person is truly from God when they recognize that Jesus came in a real body, that as it says in Johns Gospel, "the Word became flesh."
D. What John is saying here is not that Jesus came and took over a human body, but rather that Jesus, though we was God, actually became a human being (Marshall, 205).
E. A true teacher of God believes that Jesus of Nazareth as revealed in the Gospels is the Messiah of God, Gods only and unique incarnation of himself.
F. A true teacher must also teach that Jesus became a man with a human body.
G. God the Son is forever fully God and fully man, though in immortal, incorruptible flesh.
H. A teacher who denies Jesus full and true humanity proves that he is not from God (Barton, 1163).
4. John continues his explanation of this testing in v. 3 when he says, "But if someone claims to be a prophet and does not acknowledge the truth about Jesus, that person is not from God. Such a person has the spirit of the Antichrist, which you heard is coming into the world and indeed is already here."
A. The false prophets claimed to speak by the Spirits inspiration. In this context, refusing to acknowledge Jesus means denying Jesus true person as both God and man. Those who do that are not from God.
B. Therefore, there is only one other source: the spirit operating in the false prophets is the spirit of the Antichrist, the spirit of deception.
C. Pronouncements about false teachers, false messiahs, and the coming of the Antichrist should not have been news to Christians, for they had heard that these people were coming.
D. Jesus had warned the disciples; the apostles, in turn, had warned the believers about false teaching.
E. The spirit of the Antichrist is already here refers to the hostile attitude of those who were denying that Christ had already been present.
F. John does not seem to have been saying that the final Antichrist had come. As Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 2:7-8, the man of lawlessness has not yet been revealed, but his spirit is at work (Barton, 1163).
B. Test Everything That Is Said
1. Illustration: George Barna wrote The State of the Church in 2002. Barna conducted a survey of self-pronounced Christians and here’s what he found about their knowledge of the Bible. These are Christians.
48% could not name the four Gospels.
52% cannot identify more than two or three of Jesus disciples.
60% of American Christians cant name even five of the 10 Commandments.
61% of American Christians think the Sermon on the Mount was preached by Billy Graham.
71% of American Christians think "God helps those who help themselves" is a Bible verse.
George Barna said, "Americans revere the Bible but, by and large they don’t know what it says. And because they don’t know it, they have become a nation of biblical illiterates."
Just as the people in this Barna poll are woefully biblical illiterate, Christians are far too ignorant of the Word of God. No wonder 21st century Christians are failing to finish their marathon race. No wonder Christians by the thousands are falling prey to the false teachers of our day. They are being feed junk food and don’t feed themselves on the Word of God. They are desperately in need of a solid diet of good food, Scripture. We need to get into "spiritual shape"!
2. The best way to protect ourselves against false teaching and the deception of Satan is to know the Word!
A. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NLT2)
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.
17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.
B. The two greatest lies of the devil that is being eaten by the church today is that we don't need to pray and we don't need to read the Bible.
C. Because we don't pray God can't speak to us, and because we don't know the Word we are susceptible to every lie, heresy and false teaching making the rounds.
D. The best way to know whether a teaching is true of false is to be in your Bible everyday.
E. Another way to know if some teaching is true or not is to be in church. You can't be taught if you're not here.
F. We have more access to Scripture today than every before, but there is more Biblical illiteracy than every before in our nation.
G. If you want to know the truth, read the truth.
H. If you want to know the truth, study the truth.
I. If you want to know the truth, learn the truth.
Transition: Next, John talks about...
II. The Spirit In You (4).
A. Spirit Who Lives In You
1. John now gives us some good news...some really good news! We have an advantage, and it's a big advantage.
2. He tells us in v. 4, "But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world."
A. In contrast to those who are against God, John reassured his readers that they belong to God.
B. Though these believers may have been feeling weak and confused, they had remained true to the faith and so had already won their fight with these false prophets.
C. They had not been won over to the false point of view, nor had they abandoned the church.
D. Christians don't have to overpower false teachers to conquer them; rather, they can overcome false teachers and their teachings by recognizing them and then refusing to follow them.
E. These believers had already done this; they had not succumbed to the false teachers.
F. They had done this by the power of Gods Spirit within them, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world (referring to the Devil who inspires false prophets in their work of deception).
G. Some Christians want to do this spiritual battle as individuals. They take the word you as "the Spirit who lives in me." But the pronoun is plural, thus referring to the community of believers.
H. Believers do have personal assurance of the Holy Spirits presence within. But they must not attempt to do battle against Satan alone.
I. They need others for prayer, resources, advice, guidance, protection, healing, and more (Barton, 1163).
B. If God Is For Us
1. Illustration: As a young man, Oswald Chambers, who wrote the materials that became My Utmost For His Highest, battled a persistent sense of barrenness in his Christian life.
He finally wrote: I was getting desperate.
I knew no one who had what I wanted; in fact I did not know what I did want. But I knew that if what I had was all the Christianity there was, the thing was a fraud.
At a little meeting in Dunoon, a well-known lady was asked to take the after meeting.
She did not speak, but set us to prayer, and then sang, "Touch me again, Lord." I felt nothing, but I knew emphatically my time had come. I rose to my feet. Then and there I claimed the gift of the Holy Spirit in dogged committal on Luke 11:13.
I had no vision of heaven or of angels; I had nothing.
I was as dry and empty as ever, no power or realization of God, no witness of the Holy Spirit. Then I was asked to speak to a meeting and forty souls came out to the front! I came to realize that God intended me, having asked, to simply take it by faith, and that power would be there. I might see it only by the backward look, but I was to reckon on the fact that God would be with me.
From that point on, Oswald Chambers ministered with extraordinary power. His words and writings touched people around the world, especially when he taught, as he frequently did, from his favorite verse, Luke 11:13.
And when Oswald died at an early age in Egypt during World War I, an old Australian soldier whom he had led to Christ had a Bible carved in stone for his grave.
Its pages were tuned to Luke 11:13.
2. The Holy Spirit is greater than the devil's spirit, and the Holy Spirit lives in you!
A. Luke 11:13 (NLT2)
13 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.
B. It doesn't matter what the devil throws at you, because the Holy Spirit in you is greater.
C. It doesn't matter what the world throws at you, because the Holy Spirit in you is greater.
D. It doesn't matter what life throws at you, because the Holy Spirit in you is greater.
E. Because you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.
F. The Holy Spirit will not abandon you.
G. The Holy Spirit will not fail you.
H. The Holy Spirit will always fight for you.
I. The Holy Spirit will always help us in our weakness!
Transition: Thirdly, John talks about...
III. Spirit Of Truth VS. Spirit Of Deception (5-6).
A. The Spirit Of Truth
1. Once again John goes back to talking about the world. Now in case you've forgotten or weren't here for our discussion of this topic, when John is talking about the "world" here he is talking about the evil world system that is under Satan's control.
2. In v. 5 he says, "Those people belong to this world, so they speak from the worlds viewpoint, and the world listens to them."
A. These people are the false prophets who belong to this world and not to God.
B. The false teachers, being a part of the world system, speak from the worlds viewpoint and so find acceptance by the world that listens to them.
C. False teachers are popular with the world because, like the false prophets of the Old Testament, they tell people what they want to hear.
D. John warned that Christians who faithfully teach Gods word will not win popularity contests in the world.
E. People don’t want to hear their sins denounced; they dont want to listen to demands that they change their behavior.
F. A false teacher will be well received by non-Christians (Barton, 1163).
G. They-that is, these false teachers who are servants of Antichrist are not indwelt by the Spirit of God, but they live and teach the worlds false philosophies.
H. That is why they are so acceptable to the world. Its also why the world listens to what they have to say.
I. These people are energized by the worlds praise and endorsements of their beliefs.
J. They belong together for they all serve the spirit of Antichrist that pervades the world order.
3. Contrary to what the world says, John tells us in v. 6, "But we belong to God, and those who know God listen to us. If they do not belong to God, they do not listen to us. That is how we know if someone has the Spirit of truth or the spirit of deception."
A. The we primarily refers to the apostles, who were the first true teachers of Christ, followed by many others who taught the truth of the gospel.
B. The world gladly accepts and listens to false teachers, but the apostles found another audience those who know God or were open to knowing God.
C. The world, or those who do not belong to God, rejected the apostles message.
D. This provides another way to determine who has the Spirit of truth or the spirit of deception.
E. According to the Gospel of John, the Spirit of truth is the Holy Spirit, who proceeds from God and teaches the truth about Christ.
F. All who are in-dwelt by the Spirit of truth and anointed by the Spirit can know the truth; God did not reserve that truth for only a special few.
G. The spirit of deception comes from Satan, the "father of lies", and leads people into error.
H. Believers can distinguish between these "spirits" by the character and message of the one speaking (Barton, 1163-1164).
B. Voice Of The Spirit
1. Illustration: In the inspiring book, This I Believe: Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women, Susan Cosio writes, "I believe in a daily walk just to listen." A chaplain at a medical center, a writer, and a mother of three, Susan Cosio says:
I believe I have to remove myself from the voices that barrage me in order to find my true compass. This includes a daily walk just to listen. The guiding light of my life is the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit. In our hectic, noisy world, I have to slow down or withdraw in order to hear it. Prayer, I have discovered, is less about what I say and more about what I hear
Discerning Gods voice is not so hard when I make time to listen closely. Sometimes I hear it as a sudden insight when I step back from a situation. Other times, its a deep sense of my priorities, or a conviction about something I should do or say. I often take a walk with a pencil and notepad in my pocket, and return with notes for a speech or a piece of writing. Later, someone tells me she was moved by the words Id scribbled on that paper, and I know my prompting came from God.
My pursuit of spiritual truth is not about religion as much as it is about relationship
I believe in a daily walk to listen because that is when I am close to God, that is when I find my way. And I am most at peace when I tune out the voices of the world long enough to hear the still, small voice of God directing me. "Be still," Psalm 46 reminds me, "and know that I am God."
2. One of the greatest ways to distinguish truth from a lie is by listening to the Holy Spirit.
3.
4. John 16:13 (NLT2)
13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future.
A. We can distinguish truth from a lie by reading and studying Scripture, but we can also distinguish truth from a lie by listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit.
B. Sometimes he speaks in a still small voice.
C. Sometimes he speaks by leading us to particular Bible verses.
D. Sometimes he speaks to us through something someone says to us.
E. Sometimes he speaks to us through circumstances.
F. But he always leads us in the right direction, and he never contradicts the Word.
Conclusion
1. John talks about this in our text this morning. He tells us to...
A. Test The Spirits
B. The Spirit In You
C. Spirit Of Truth Vs. The Spirit Of Deception
2. THREE THINGS TO REMEMBER...
A. THE BEST WAY TO PROTECT OURSELVES AGAINST FALSE TEACHING IS TO KNOW THE WORD.
B. THE DEVIL IS A POWERFUL BEING, BUT NEVER FORGET THAT HE IS NO MATCH FOR THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
C. WE DISCERN TRUTH FROM A LIE BY LISTENING TO THE VOICE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
