Volume 2, Issue 3

"Preparing Servants for the Nations"

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Appraising All Things

Lawrence "Buddy" Martin
Senior Pastor
Christian Challenge

Jesus said to those who were following Him, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” Their response was, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?”

But Jesus was speaking of bondage of sin. Being descendents of Abraham did not exclude them from this bondage. The truth that would make them free would be God’s message of redemption through the cross.

This brings up an important issue with regard to the new covenant. We know that Truth itself is not a religion, but a Person. To live in the truth of God is to be aware of Jesus Christ in your life. Only people who are born from above have the ability to recognize the true things of God.

The apostle Paul gives insight into this area of knowing truth, when he said, “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God.” (1Co2:12) The word ‘know’ is eido in Greek. It means ‘to see, perceive, to turn the eyes, the mind, or the attention to anything; to get knowledge of; to be skilled in, or to know the meaning of.

He adds, “But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one.” The word ‘appraises’ in Greek is anakrino. It means to examine, to ask questions, search, discern, and enquire into, to scrutinize, or to sift. In a forensic sense it means to hold an investigation to determine the excellence or the defects of a thing.

The beauty of a believer’s walk is in the ability to know the things of the Lord. It is this ability that protects a believer from error. Satan cannot successfully mislead a mature child of God. Two other words relate to this area. Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd, and I know (ginosko) my own and my own know (ginosko) Me.” (John 10:14) Peter adds another word, when he says, “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge (epignosis) of God and of Jesus our Lord.” (2Peter1:2)

Ginosko means to be personally acquainted with; to understand; to have knowledge. Epignosis speaks of a deepening knowledge. It actually means precise and accurate knowledge.

The ability to know if a thing is of God is crucial, since the world of the spirit also takes in the demonic. Satan is a spiritual being, and the hallmark of his work is deception. We are especially warned that in the last days there will be a great increase of deception in the earth.

To take this a step further, the work of demons is closely linked to the prideful flesh of man. For this reason what a fleshly person attributes to God is simply ‘soulish’ powers that are in cooperation with spirits of darkness.

The Corinthian Church is a classic example of an immature flesh-driven church. While there were godly people in the Church, many of the people had such a low level of consecration to truth that they seemed unable to discern evil works.

Then we have the Thessalonian believers. Paul told these believers what to do in dealing with those who claim to speak for God. Paul says, “Examine everything carefully.” The apostle point is that the Scriptures must be consulted and applied against teachings and prophecies.

These believers were also told to, “Hold fast to that which is good.” If it is a true revelation, which, of course, will accord with the gospel message, then it must be kept for future generations.

The apostle adds, “Abstain from every form of evil.” The word ‘abstain’ is apecho. It means to be distant from. We are to hold back from anything falsely attributed to the Holy Spirit, whether it be teaching or prophecy. The Holy Spirit will never give a revelation that runs contrary to God’s Word.

I’ve heard the complaint that people should not be searching for Scripture or verse for everything. It is true that we should not rush through the Scripture to find support for something we want to believe. Yet we must be careful to apply God’s word, rightly divided and in context, to anything that claims to be a revelation. Any true teaching will stand the scrutiny of the Word. For a person to claim to speak for GOD is not sufficient!

What are we to examine? We are to examine any claim a person makes to being an apostle or a prophet. We are to examine ourselves to make sure we are in the faith. We are to examine all teachings to make certain they are in agreement with the gospel message.

We are to especially examine what are said to be spiritual operations. Demonic spirits bring a false anointing. These spirits love to prophesy. They love to provide information about people, and to speak words over those being addressed. Careful examination will often reveal a deceiving spirit at work.

I counseled a fallen minister who found that what he thought were gifts of the Spirit were workings of a strange spirit. He knew things about people that he could not have known in the natural. But it left him puzzled. For some reason this anointing always drew him to women. He had had more than one failure in this regard. Why was he unable to discern? He had been taught that it wasn’t God’s will to understand the supernatural. He was taught to let God fill in the blanks. Yet all during this time this brother had a sensing that something was wrong.

Here are some guidelines that can help in learning to make proper spiritual appraisals:

1st: Arm yourself with the knowledge that not all supernatural things are from God. Remember that everything the Lord has, the enemy has a substituted.

2nd: Understand that anyone can be deceived, even the most devoted of believers, if the believer is ignorant of how Satan works. It is this knowledge that will help keep you on guard.

3rd: Learn to trust your own intuition! As we consecrate ourselves to God’s service, we find our ability to judge become keener.

4th: Understand that discernment and testing aren't one and the same. We discern by the Holy Spirit. We test by the Word of God. When you may sense a thing is wrong, don’t ignore that sensing. The more you become acquainted with God’s Word, the more you will be able to recognize why what you sensed was wrong.

5th: Be willing to adjust the way you do things. Even the apostles had to make changes. Peter would not go to Cornelius’ house until the Lord opened his understanding. What did Jesus tell those who were following Him? He said that the truth would make them free! The true gospel of Jesus Christ produces a freedom in the believer that will reveal itself in every area of the believer’s life.

Have you met the Truth? Think about it. His name is Jesus.

Bro. Buddy and his wife Betty founded Christian Challenge in 1976 after having pastored and evangelized for several years. He serves as Senior Pastor and General Overseer. Bro. Buddy and Sister Betty have 3 children and 9 grandchildren, all of whom worship at Christian Challenge.