The spirit of truth and the spirit of error

1 John 4:6 We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error. In today’s verse, we learn another test by which we can discern or test the spirits to see if they are from God or not. Where does the Spirit blow from? The wind blows from the apostles of Jesus Christ, those who walked with Him and were eye witnesses. John said in the beginning of the letter, “What we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life—and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us.” The apostles are from God. They confess that Jesus was God in the flesh sent to be the propitiation for our sins and the giver of eternal life. Those who know God, listen to the inspired word of God through Jesus’ apostles and believe it to be the truth. Those who are not from God do not listen to them and instead listen to those who are from the world. They listen to the spirit of error, the antichrist. One of the first things that those who apostatize or deconstruct their faith say is that they do not believe that the words of the apostles written in the Scriptures are authoritative. They say there is no objective truth. As one listens to them or reads what they write, it is clear that they are carried by the winds of our culture. The reason we live to love with Jesus is because we listen and obey what we find written in the Scriptures, the four gospels, Acts, and the letters of the apostles. We will be encouraged more in the following verses that love is the evidence of faith in Christ and knowing God. I hope that we will make reading the New Testament Scriptures a part of our daily routines. Be careful who you listen to as you walk through life.