by Jon Burnett
In the words of John the apostle, �do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God� (1 John 4:1). This principle of testing the spirits is seen put to action in Acts 17:11. In this passage we see that Luke praised the Bereans not only for receiving the word eagerly, but also for �examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.� The standard the Bereans� used for their doctrine was not the preaching of Paul and Barnabas only, but rather the word of God! The Scriptures was their only guide in religion. The only reason the Bereans followed the apostles was that the gospel they were preaching found to be �the word of God� (v 13) as revealed in Scripture. This leads us to two other questions: What are we to do if they are true? And what if they�re false?
The answer to the first is simple. If the message you receive is of God, it requires our continued dedication and faithfulness. Paul said that because of the victory we have in Christ we should thank God and �be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain� (1 Corinthians 15:57,58). Earlier in the same book, Paul says to the Corinthians that he and Barnabas too must follow the gospel, �that you may learn by us not to go beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up in favor of one against another� (1 Corinthians 4:6). Paul tells us here that the revealed word of God stands as it is as our doctrine. We are not to go beyond the word, and we are to be immovable in our faith in such divine will. Such is the duty of any good Christian!
Fellowship also comes through proclamation of the truth. In 1 John 1:7, we read, �But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.� Christ�s way is this light. Once we have discovered a message to be from Christ, and then obey it, we are able to have fellowship together. Christian fellowship is only open to those who are obedient to Christ�s word. To have fellowship with other Christians we must obey his will.
Salvation is the final result of the previous two reactions. You hear the word, you test it, you obey it, you have fellowship with others who have done the same, and you have salvation! Peter tells us in 1 Peter 1:22 that we are purified by our obedience to the truth �through the living and abiding word of God� (v 23). Our salvation and purification from sin are reliant on God�s word!
As uplifting as our reactions are to truth and good gospel preaching, there are equally pressing measures to be taken having heard false doctrine. False teachers are those that twist God�s word out of context. John said in 2 John 9 that everyone �who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ does not have God.� Remember Paul�s warning not to go beyond what is written? Apparently his message had already fallen on deaf ears. As much as Paul stressed this point, other apostles still had to bring it up. Obviously, we are not to obey false teaching because it does not bring salvation. Only abiding in the teaching of Christ brings us to God.
John presents false teaching as a sin that separates man from God. Paul gave Timothy some good advice that we can learn from, �Do not be hasty in the laying of hands, nor take part in the sins of others, keep yourself pure� (1 Timothy 5:22). If we are to keep ourselves pure, we cannot listen and definitely not follow these false gospels. To do so would be hasty and sinful! Instead we must listen to Paul and not to take part in the works of darkness, but rather expose them (Ephesians 5:11). Only this will ensure that God�s word will prevail.
In every day life we�re presented with so much information, that we forget more than 75% of it before we�re done taking it in. This makes it easier for lies to be taught to us without us realizing them. But as Christians we must be prepared to deal with such lies. So, when listening to a sermon during worship, or the lesson in Bible class, or reading your daily devotional, or even this very article, what is expected of us? We must test the spirits using the word of God. To those messages we find to be true, we must obey them and reap the rewards of fellowship and salvation. To those that are lies and false teachings, we must take no other means but refuse compliance to them and withdraw fellowship from those who continue in it. False teachers are not to be followed, but rather exposed!
To close I leave you with one of Paul�s best known passages, �And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of (by the authority of) the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.� (Colossians 3:17).