One of the more compelling passages of scripture is 1st John 4 which instructs the Christian to not believe every spirit, but to test them, whether they are from God. You’ll notice this verse does not say test every situation or circumstance. The word spirit was not chosen arbitrarily. The word spirit in its root form means to breath hard or a breeze. God breathed life into each of us when we were born and we became a living spirit like Adam and Eve who were the first to be anointed with God’s presence in the form of His breathe. The supreme Spirit is the Holy Spirit who rose Christ from the dead and whom Jesus said He would send to be our Counselor when He ascended to heaven.
However, not all spirits are of God. Isaiah 14:12 tells the account of how Lucifer fell from his heavenly position and in Matt. 25:41 Jesus speaks of Satan and his angels whose fate is certain. Therefore, trying the spirits is important because the influence around you is more than mortal, more than physical, more than what your eyes see and ears hear. The word try or test means to discern and examine; to approve of, with the idea of acceptability. Are you accepting spirits that aren’t from God? Are they speaking into your life with ideas and insinuations that are against God’s precepts? This is why it’s so important to know the God you serve.
For how can you perceive a lie if you don’t know the truth? This is why Jesus was constantly in prayer when He was in human form. He took nothing for granted and did not underestimate the deception of the enemy when it came to the plan His Father had for His life. How’s the charting of your divine destiny going? Are you reading the night sky correctly so you can stay on course? Do you listen to that still small voice who speaks God’s truth? Do you have enough of God’s Word in your heart to know the difference between the Holy Spirit’s voice and Satan’s? I encourage you to learn to discern the spirits.
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