1 John 4:1-6 Test Every Spirit

Only two chapters are left in our study of 1 John. John wrote this letter to give believers the God-ordained evidences of salvation in response to professed believers who left the churches and now claimed they had the “true” Jesus and salvation. We have noted several times that this book circles around three tests we are to examine. Doctrine, obedience, and love. All of chapter three showed us that a lifestyle of keeping God’s commands and loving the brothers and sisters are evidence of a heart transformed by the Spirit. Likewise, John told us that a lifestyle that has no concern with God’s commands and the body of Christ should not be assured of any salvation before God. (1 John 3:9-10; 14). He ended chapter 3 by reminding us that God has given us His Spirit, who transforms our hearts when we are born again. Now he turns back to the first test—right doctrine—and warns that many other spirits compete for our allegiance. John commands his readers not to believe every spirit but to test them to see whether they are from God. By “spirits” in v. 1, John is speaking of what is behind the teaching of false prophets and any truth claims or ideas that do not come from God. John also gives us the criteria with which we are to test every teaching and shows that our confidence is not in our knowledge or discernment, but in the one within us who is more powerful than the one who is in the world (4:4). Ultimately, it is God’s word given through his apostles (the “we” of verses 5-6) by which we are to test all things. Today, that word is in our hands and on our lips as we study the scriptures. I. Our Command: Test Every Spirit (1) II. Our Criteria: Confessing The True Jesus (2-3) III. Our Confidence: Power Of God’s Spirit (4) IV. Our Confirmation: Who’s Voice Has Authority (5-6)