The Test of Sonship (Part 8)

SERMON:  GM14-029

SERIES:  Christian Living in a World of Chaos & Contradiction

SETTING:  North Kelso Baptist Church

SERVICE:  Sunday AM

SUB-SECTION:  The Christian Life Viewed as Son-Ship

SCRIPTURE:  1 John 4:1

SUBJ:  Genuine Christians tests all spirits

SUMMARY: The Christian life is a life that demands constant discernment

SCHEME:  That Christians develop the discipline of discernment in order to distinguish between truth and error
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The Test of Sonship

1 John 4:1 * Part 8

INTRODUCTION

A.  The Difficulty of Discernmet

 Which do you think would be easier to discern—two objects that differ in weight by ¼ ounce or two objects that differ by ¼ pound?

 According to doctor and author Richard Swenson, “We can tell the difference between a letter weighting 1 ¼ ounces and one weighing 1 ½    ounces, but not between [a bowling ball weighing] 10 pounds and [one weighing] 10 ¼ pounds—the difference needs to be at least 2 percent.”

B.  The Desire for Discernment

It is like that for us. Discernment can be a tricky thing. In life, the ten pound bowling balls or life’s weightier issues can be more difficult to figure out or to discern

REVIEW

2A  The Christian Life Viewed AS SONSHIP  (2:29-4:6)

       1B  Sonship Demands the practice of righteousness

       2B  Sonship Demands the practice of love

TRUTH FOR TODAY

       3B  Sonship Demands the practice of discernment

              1C  The Command given for discernment  (4:1)

                     1D  The People Addressed

                            "Beloved..."

                     2D  The Process Advised

                            "...do not believe every spirit..."

                            "...but test the spirits to see whether they are from God..."

                     3D  The Product Advocated

                             "...for many false prophets have gone out into the world."

CONCLUSION

       A. W. Pink said, ““The face of error is highly painted and powdered so as to render it attractive to the unwary.”

The false prophets, whether of the papist or the Protestant order, make a great show of devotion and piety on the one hand, and of zeal and fervor on the other, as did the Pharisees of old with their fasting and praying and who “compassed sea and land to make one proselyte” (Matthew 23:15).

They are diligent in seeking to discredit those truths they design to overthrow by branding them “legal doctrines” and denouncing as “Judaizers” those who are set for the defense of them.

Exhortation:  I exhort you to love with every ounce of your energy and with no limits test every person who claims to speak for God and determine from scripture whether they are from God since so many false prophets and teachers are in the world today. 

Paul wrote in Romans 16:18 (KJV) 

““…by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naïve.”

Let’s pray! J