“Test the Spirits”
“…But test the spirits to see whether they are from God…” 1 John 4:1 (NIV)
Especially during this weekend we are bombarded with portrayals of evil spirits, ghosts, the masks and images of the devil, weird noises, and the spirit of a world of darkness, which produces fear in many hearts. Even little voices meet us at the door and call out, “trick or treat!” I loved getting all the apples, candy and “treats. It was “fun” to scare people! It seems so innocent and harmless. But let’s take it to another level.
The words of apostle John warns us to “not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see if they are from God.” What is the test? In 1 John 4:2-3, we are given the test for that which is true and that which is false: (1) “Every spirit who confesses that Jesus Christ came to earth as a human is from God.” And, “every spirit who refuses to say this about Jesus is not from God. It is the spirit of the enemy of Christ, which you have heard is coming, and now he is already in the world.” John continues to make a distinction between these two forces in the world: (2) To the one who confesses that they who belong to God have defeated “them.” The reason: “God’s Spirit is in us,” and He “who is in us, is greater than the devil, who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4). The person who belongs to the world (ruled by Satan), “speak the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. “But we belong to God, and those who know God listen to us. But those who are not from God do not listen to us. That is how we know the Spirit that is true and the spirit that is false.” (1 John 4:5-6).
There is an old legend of a swan and a crane. A beautiful swan alighted by the banks of water in which a crane was wading about seeking snails. For a few moments the crane viewed the swan in stupid wonder and then inquired, “Where do you come from?”
“I come from heaven!” replied the swan. And where is heaven?” asked the crane. “Heaven!” said the swan, ‘Heaven! Have you never heard of heaven?”
The beautiful bird went on to describe the grandeur of the Eternal City. In eloquent terms the swan sought to describe the hosts who live in the other world, but without arousing the slightest interest on the part of the crane. Finally the crane asked: ‘Are there any snails there?”
“Snails!” said the crane, as it continued its search along the slimy banks of the pool. ‘You can have your heaven, I just want snails.”
Pastor Richard and Merleen Strum
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