The Spirit of Truth and Error

1 John 3:24 - 4:6

 

3:24 "Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has give us."

 

The gist of the verse above has come up several time throughout the book of 1 John. But as chapter 3 ends and chapter 4 begins, this verse serves as a wonderful bridge between the two. Following the commandments of God surely assures the spirit within us that we are saved, but just as importantly, it serves to warn us against ungodly spirits.

 

When the believer abides in Christ by keeping his commandments and Christ abides in the believer, the believer stands unswayed by the lies of the world.

 

Now, because we have assurance of our faith and are abiding in Christ and He in us, we are ready for 1 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."

 

This verse is so extremely applicable to us today, as the world is full of ungodly spirits. This is not referring to spirits as in ghosts or demons, but as the spirit of teaching. John is warning against false teaching, some of which will look nothing like Christianity, but some of which will be awfully close but woefully different.

 

Examples:

 

Mormonism. This claims to be Christianity, and in some ways is close. But this cult is based on a revelation that is not found in Scripture. There will be men and women who prophecy and see visions, but all of these prophecies and visions must be solely based on Scripture truth. Mormonism is clearly not.

 

Prosperity Gospel. They claim the same Gospel story, but with a twist. God's hope is that we all be successful and happy. The storyline may look the same, but the plot is completely different.

 

Take the movie Jaws. True Gospel says that movie is about killing a massive shark. Joel Osteen says that movie is about having a really nice boat ride.

 

 

V.2-3

 

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."

 

This verse does not mean that as long as you believe Jesus literally came to earth, you are good to go. This verse was likely aimed at one or two specific cults who stated that Jesus was either A. Not a physical being or B. Physical, but the "Christ" part of him was a separate spirit.

 

The key to this topic lies in the words of vs. 4-6.

 

V.4 "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."

 

It makes me think of when I was a little kid. When I was with Dad, no one could touch me( like my ever tickling brothers). If I had a question, Dad knew the answer. If Dad was driving the car, I was safe.

 

This is how we are supposed to feel with God — like children. We ought have no fear of the world, and we should not be easily swayed by it. Because we are His children, we know the truth. You know what is right and wrong in your home, because Mom and Dad taught you. They daily teach you. Believers ought to know what is of God and what is not of God, because He has taught them, and teaches them daily as they are in His Word.

 

This is why a daily relationship with Christ is mandatory for the safety of your soul. Even one walk into the woods without Dad would have left me vulnerable to the bears and wolves. I may have been lucky, and the wolves and bears been elsewhere that day. But when you are dealing with the devil, he knows when you have wandered alone, and he will not fail to strike.

 

V.5 "They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them."

 

John has already addressed this idea several times in this book. Those who speak lies may speak persuasively and passionately, because they speak what they believe. They have either been deceived into thinking what they speak is A. True or B. Beneficial to them.

 

They will not be swayed by Scripture to show their error, but they will use Scripture incorrectly to prove their beliefs. This is because they belong to the world. A Vikings fan may argue to the death that the Green Bay Packers are the worst football team, even though the record shows otherwise. This is because he is loyal to his team no matter what the statistics may show. Such is the case for the worldly man. Do not listen to him.

 

V.6 "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."

 

The man of God will not be swayed by the enticement of worldly messages, by doctrines which lift him up high, instead of lifting up Christ.

 

John the Baptizer said, "He must increase, and I must decrease." There is an inevitable lowering of self when one raises Christ. The true believer protects his heart from the message that claims Christ's desire for us to be praised by men. He has no such desire.

 

Note here the absolute necessity of communing with believers on a regular basis. This does NOT mean "going to church." This means having close friends who are true believers of Christ, walking with Him and talking with Him. The man who does not have a relationship with such believers is doomed to follow the next best thing, his unbelieving friends, or possibly worse, culture he finds on television.

 

It does not matter if you clash with the individuals in your church body, or in every church body. You must develop close relationships with them. How could you not? How could you not have everything in common with such men and women, whose main goal in life is following hard after Christ? When you have heaven-bound eyes, when you set your affections on things above, and when you truly seek to stay on the straight and narrow, avoiding the convincing worldly spirits of today, then FIND BELIEVERS. Throw away your prideful spirit that says you cannot be friends with them and TRY.

 

You would not walk across a desert without drinking provided water. Do not try to live for Christ on your own when there is so much provision so close by.