Scripture:
[1] 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. [2] 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, [3] 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.
Observation:
The spiritual world is real.
False prophets are in this world and as believers in Jesus Christ, we need to be vigilant.
It up to us, as true believers, to test the spirits to know whether they are of God or from the antichrist. It is one or the other. Those are the only two choices.
Application:
Our sovereign God gave Satan huge power in this world. As the great deceiver, Satan uses false prophets to confuse us and lead us astray. Following Christ as a believer does not make us immune to being confused by false prophets and false christs. In fact, we are an even bigger reward for Satan than a non-believer.
But God..
But God is sovereign and always in control. Satan only has the power that God gives him.
These seem like simple questions but can be hard in practice if we are not vigilant – Do the prophecies we hear, or the works we see, align with God’s word?
The closer we are with the Lord, the easier it is to test the spirits. As true believers, God gives us spiritual discernment. He also gives us His living Word.
The more we immerse ourselves in the Word, the more we get to know our Lord on a personal level, the easier it is to discern whether the great signs and wonders we see are from Him or the evil one.
Prayer:
Lord, thank You for choosing me and thank You for Your living Word. Lord I long to know You better. As I navigate this life, help me know You so well that I can always trust the discernment You give me through Your Spirit, to know which wonders and prophecies come from You and which are from the enemy. In Jesus’ mighty name I pray, amen.