Testing the spirits

[JaneLee]

Does testing the spirits mean to ask a spirit if it confesses that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, and if it confesses that means its a spirit from God? Has anybody tried it? Can an evil spirit or demon ever acknowledge that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh, can they ever say that? Does anyone have any experience?

1 John 4:1-3 "1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God."

 

[Hekuran]

I think the key to understanding this passage is the mention of false prophets.

If someone comes claiming to speak by the spirit, we can apply this test to them. If they deny Jesus, we know they are not sent by God.

 

[Brad Huber]

This was said at a time that christianity was relatively new, and even those that had heard of christianity didnt know much about it. But some pretended to be christians to find and persecute believers, mostly jews. In this current time, so many know of christianity, often more about it (like atheists, for the purpose of thwarting those of faith) than christians. So this alone isnt much of a test nowdays. But the Holy Spirit always gives us the ability to test the words of supposed believers, both by knowledge of His word (which can take some time to memorize), and by trusting the Holy Spirit to warn us (also difficult because most christians have a weak connection to the Holy Spirit).

 

[Beetow]

The Greek word translated "spirits" in that passage is somewhat ambiguous. It can
refer to a current of air, a breeze, a breath, an invisible being, the rational soul, a
vital principal, and a mental disposition.

It's my guess that the spirits in 1John 4:1-3 are winds; for example winds of
change (trends) and/or winds of doctrine, cf. Eph 4:11-14.
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