John was an apostle of Jesus, had seen Him, heard Him, felt His touch. Here in the first of his letters to believers, he warns them to be discerning of who they trusted and listened to. There were those who said they were believers and leaders of the faith, but were neither.
John gave a litmus test for the followers of Jesus to use to determine if someone was filled by the Spirit of God or the spirit of the antichrist:
- if they acknowledge that Jesus came in a real body, they’re filled with God’s Holy Spirit.
- if they don’t acknowledge the truth about Jesus coming in a real body, dying on the cross, and rising from the grave, they are not from God and have the spirit of the antichrist.
Whew! That would be disconcerting; wouldn’t it? When you meet someone, you have to check them out like this? It would feel quite awkward! I mean, do you meet someone and immediately say, “Did Jesus come in flesh?” just to know if you should entertain them and their thoughts?
Then having to be sure to filter out the teachings of these agents of the antichrist to hear only the Truth of Jesus? It would be tiring at best, scary at worst.
John told the believers not to worry about that, that the Spirit of God in them had already defeated the ancient enemy of their souls, giving them victory over the false teachers and so-called prophets.
Our world is no different. There are people who claim to speak for God who seem to have it all together, but when tested, really have no connection to Him whatsoever. We could get all upset and fearful, knowing that these people are all around us—scared they are teaching others wrongly, scared what they’ll do to us, just scared—but John said no.
Upon our salvation, the Spirit of the Living God entered into us to guide, comfort, correct, and chastise. He lives in us to help us see those false teachers and preachers so as to step aside from their teachings and help others avoid them, but we are to never cower in fear of them. Never.
When we meet someone or when a certain preacher/pastor is recommended to us, we should check them out. Not just if they speak well, or if they know the lingo, but to actually use John’s litmus test: Did Jesus walk the earth in a real body? Did He die on the cross of Calvary? Did He rise again on the third day?
If the person doesn’t acknowledge those, walk away. Have nothing to do with that one. That one is of the antichrist…Satan.
I didn’t say that, Believer, God did through John, the apostle Jesus loved. We’re to be careful. We’re to share the gospel. We’re to glorify God alone. We’re not to be afraid of this enemy living among us, because the Spirit of God in us is WAY bigger, better, and mightier than any other spirit ever.
Today is a good day to consider those you allow to speak into your life. Do they acknowledge Jesus correctly? Are you sure? You need to be sure so that the things poured into you are right and holy and from God, not the one who wants to destroy you.
Coffee, Bible, Journal.
Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube Channel.
