Test the Spirits (1 John 4:1-6) from South Woods Baptist Church on Vimeo.

Maybe you don’t know whom to believe anymore. You used the think the first person across the finish line was the superior athlete. Doping now makes you wonder.

Maybe you used to think what you read in the newspaper corresponded to reality. Now, you’ve matured––or been scarred––so even the finest of sources seem to have biases coloring the lede. Everything looks like reality TV, fitting in life’s categories, but you sense there’s a script.

Or maybe you used to believe the people closest to you. But the trusted have eventually uncovered your naiveté.

A room full––maybe a nation full––of skeptics must learn to discern truth. And they must do so amidst a cacophony of voices. John tells us in our text today to test the spirits (lower–case s). Then, he gives us two ways to test them.

Note first, Test the Spirits

John addresses the congregation in verse 1, Beloved. This isn’t the first time he’s called them this; he’s teaching those he loves. And love is not averse to instruction. In fact, love warns. Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Though John calls them spirits, the end of the verse is less vague. False prophets fill the world. Those are the spirits to be tested.

A few moments ago, we read Jeremiah 29. In that context, the Israelites were in captivity in Babylon. They’re in a foreign land, surrounded by immorality. This was not the place to raise Israelite toddlers. Like you might were you in that circumstance, they wondered how long this captivity would last. Enter the prophets. One man shows up and tells them, in essence, “God told me you’ll be out of here in 2 years.” He brought good news, while using the magic words, “Thus says the Lord.” I’m sure a number of these exiled Israelites rejoiced. However, in the text we read––Jeremiah 29––another prophet (the one that book is named after) brings a message from the Lord, “it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the Lord.”

From high school break–ups to mega–cathedral pulpits, “God told me” has been summarily abused. Claiming divine inspiration for your latest whim can often be a trump card. Who dares question that?

So, false prophets inhabited Babylon in Jeremiah’s day, Ephesus hundreds of years later in John’s day, and the States were no different this past week. John says, “Do not believe every spirit.” John Stott writes, “Unbelief (believe not every spirit) can be as much a mark of spiritual maturity as belief.”

Jesus said false prophets looked like sheep. Therefore, we need to keep in mind that false prophets don’t claim to be heretics. They might be moral, intelligent, eat at Chick-fil-A, while carrying a Bible. That’s why John warns these readers. False teachers are slick.

When I was a sophomore in High School, one of my teachers had the courage to take about 80 of us to New York City. We rode on buses for the 12 plus hours from Sparta, TN. A number of teenagers from South Woods are riding to Louisville tomorrow and I’m sure are wondering who they’ll end up sitting by. Well, I was the same. This was going to be quite a haul. No one had cell phones, of course. So, my entertainment was going to be a book or the person I sat next to. Well, I ended up sitting by a guy a couple years older than me. Fortunately, he was probably the second coolest guy on the trip. Further, he was the Chris Wilbanks of White County High School. Everyone liked him.

But, also, he was a devout Mormon.

And it came up. And it wasn’t for 5 minutes. Primarily because of him, we talked for hours about our faith. Now, this was my first experience talking to a Mormon about Mormonism. I’m sure he’d been trained on this more than I had at that point. And do you think he pointed out all the differences between the views of his church and mine? Of course not. He had a bible in h[...]