Devotions on 1 John 4:1-6–Test the Spirits

July 2-8, 2018

 

Monday, July 2, 2018–Test the Spirits

“Test the Spirits to see if they are from God” (1 John 1:1a).

In the tabernacle and temple periods of Jewish history, the high priest would seek God’s leading through the use of the Urim and Thummim. As best we can determine, these were a black stone and a white stone whose random selection indicated whether a decision was affirmed or negated. When the disciples were faced with filling the position vacated by Judas Iscariot, they cast lots in order to determine whom to select. Both examples display a desire to do God’s will and a need to verify that the decision, which was made, was truly “of the Lord.”

We might not need to test the spirits to decide which brand of eggs we should purchase or whether we should rent from Hertz or Avis. There are critical times in our lives, however, when it is important for us, as followers of Jesus, to determine (as best we can) God’s will. We do this acknowledging that God is involved in our lives and wants to lead us. We test the Spirit by using the gifts that we have at our disposal; our gut feelings, the scriptures, times of meditation and prayer along with the counsel of family and friends. Through these gifts, and others, God leads and we are able to walk in the light.

Lord, open our hearts and minds to your leading so that we might test the Spirits and be obedient to your will. Amen.

 

Tuesday, July 3, 2018–Test the Spirits

“Many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1b).

False prophets are not a product of the world, but rather of the church. They are men and women cloaked in the veneer of religion who have attained positions of authority. They speak the vocabulary of the church, but their words do not reflect the teachings of Jesus. The one command that Jesus gave us was, “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 13:34-35). Today’s false prophets encourage their followers to judge others and to act toward others in the most unloving and unchristian like ways.

False prophets have always been a part of the church and their influence has been substantial. This is evidenced by the fact that, instead of viewing the Christian faith as one of love, a majority of people today see the church as judgmental, exclusive, anti-science and out of touch with reality. Our challenge as followers of Jesus is to turn a deaf ear to today’s false prophets and to follow the Spirit’s leading along the difficult and sometimes costly path of love.

Fill us with your Spirit, Lord, so that we are able to love others as you have loved us. Amen.

 

Wednesday, July 4, 2018–Test the Spirits

“Every spirit that confesses that Jesus has come in the flesh is from God” (1 John 4:2).

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1, 14). A core belief of John, the writer of the gospel and the three letters, is that Jesus was God incarnate. Jesus was not a spirit or the product of over active imaginations. Jesus was a man—a historical figure—but also more than a man. Jesus was God, who took on our form and lived among us.

Many people believe in a god who is a distant creator being; who now sits back and watches creation unfold. Followers of Jesus affirm that the God whom we worship is the creator of all. We also believe that our God is not limited to a distant dwelling place in the universe, but is intimately involved in our lives. God became involved in our lives in the person of Jesus and continues to be involved in our lives, in the presence of the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit, who reminds us that God is with us even in the most difficult and darkest times of our lives, is the true Spirit. The Spirit, who whispers to our hearts that there is nothing in all of creation that is able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:38), is the one to whom we need to listen.

Speak to us, Holy Spirit, words of life, hope, love and forgiveness. Amen.

 

Thursday, July 5, 2018–Test the Spirits

“The Spirit of the antichrist … is already in the world” (1 John 4:3).

Carol Ann was visiting her uncle and aunt’s farm for two weeks during the summer. They owned a small hobby farm and raised a few chickens, goats and llamas along with tending a huge vegetable garden. When Carol Ann was at the farm, she was expected to participate in the daily chores. One morning after collecting eggs from the hen house, she forgot to close the gate to the pen. By the time she realized her mistake, the chickens had escaped and were all over the farm yard. Carol Ann and her aunt spent the better part of the morning chasing the chickens back into their pen. It was not an easy task.

Like Carol Ann’s chickens, the antichrist has escaped and is roaming freely in the world. The writer of 1 John does not share this news in order to create paranoia in the Christian community—the Zombies have escaped and are coming for them. He does want to inform them, though, that the world is not a neutral place. The world is inhabited by the antichrist. It is a place of darkness and therefore it is necessary for the followers of Jesus to open our lives to reflect the light of God and pierce the darkness. We won’t be able to round up the forces of evil and place them in a box. We are able, however, to let our little lights shine in the darkness of the world.

Lord, empower us in our witness, so that we may stand against the evil that is so prevalent in the world today. Amen.

 

Friday, July 6, 2018–Test the Spirits

“For the one who is in you is greater than the one in the world” (1 John 4:4).

Big brothers are great! Oh, they may be a pain in the butt sometimes, but then little brothers and little sisters can be, too. Big brothers, though, are probably the most effective means of fighting off bullies. Our meager attempts at appeasing bullies never seem to be enough and never stop the abuse. No matter how powerful bullies feels or how invisible they believe they are to the prying eyes of teachers and school administrators, though, they are never more powerful than big brothers. Nor, are they ever beyond the reach of a big brother.

There are times when evil seems so powerful in the world. Certainly, the early Christians suffering under the persecution of the Roman Empire felt that there was nothing equal to the force of evil. For many of us as we see our elected leaders promote the pollution of our land and waterways, increase the division between the wealthy and the poor, remove the health care, voting rights and welfare programs from the needy and incite white supremacy, homophobia, xenophobia and islamophobia among the population, evil seems so powerful and unstoppable.

All would be hopeless if it were not for the fact that the one who is in us (God’s Spirit) is greater than the one who is in the world. God is more powerful than the evil that we face. Each day we live in the hope that justice, equality, prosperity and mercy will one day be experienced by all. Such a hope empowers us to shine brightly even when the darkness seems about to envelop us.

Lord, move within us so that we never give up—never give up—never give up. Amen.

 

Saturday, July 7, 2018–Test the Spirits

“They are from the world; therefore what they say is from the world and the world listens to them” (1 John 4:5).

Juan and his son Diego had a close relationship. It became strained, though, during Diego’s teenage years. It wasn’t that they didn’t have time for each other. Rather, they began to speak different languages and they struggled to understand one another. Tariq had a similar experience with his grandmother. She had emigrated from Lebanon and only spoke Lebanese. Tariq was a second generation American and didn’t speak a word of his grandmother’s language. When the two were together they would smile, hug and use primitive hand gestures to speak to each other. Their limited shared language, though, placed limits on their relationship.

It should not surprise us that the language of faith and the language of the world create a gulf between us. The world focuses on wealth, achievements, successes and power. Faith calls us to love, grace, service and forgiveness. We should not be content with the difficulties of communication between faith and the world. There is such a thing as translators, and we have been called to translate our stories of faith into the language of the world so that those of the world may be enticed to learn a new language taught by the Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit, flow through our words and actions so that the wonders of your love and grace can be communicated to those around us. Amen.

 

Sunday, July 8, 2018–Test the Spirits

“We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us” (1 John 4:6).

Lamar was struggling. The restructuring caused by the recent merger of his company with another had forced him into a job that did not match his passion or his gifts. He thought God might be moving to open up a new career and path of service for him. No opportunities, though, had yet presented themselves. Lamar shared his doubts and frustrations with the men’s group of which he was a part. Several of the men nodded in understanding. They had walked similar paths and were able to share words of encouragement and prayers of support for Lamar.

One Lord, One Faith and One Baptism binds us together. We are family—God’s family. We share common goals, loves and purposes for living. We also share one another’s burdens. We are able to share our stories, both our triumphs and our tragedies, knowing that other followers of Jesus understand us and support us, as we do them. We are from God and we are part of a listening community.

Thank you, Lord, for our faith community. Help us to use our ears to listen to the words and heart of others and, when appropriate, to use our mouths to share your love and grace. Amen.