God is greater in us

1 John 4:1–6 ESV

1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

Today we have a text before that will help us understand how to determine true from false. But we need to be sure to understand that the truth we are determining is spiritual truth and logical truth. It is not mathematics or science.

The Bible is not saying 2+2=4. So when you hear 2+2=5 be on guard. That would be easily seen and logical to people who were taught basic math skills. in a base 10 mathematical system that is).

But discerning spiritual truth and falsehood is different than just looking at numbers and verifying. Many people now a days preach word that are written in the bible and claim to preach the gospel and truth. They say, “look, there are the words right there in black and white, I am telling the truth”… But shouldn’t there be a way to tell if someone is teaching truth and someone is teaching false?

Well that is exactly what John is telling us. And this has been going on since the very beginning of the church. The enemy has always been trying to discredit the Gospel and confuse people away from truth. John is again giving some assurances to the people of God on how to know truth and error.

But it is important to understand 2 things.

First that Spiritual truth is not understood by logical or intellectual reasoning alone. Intellectual reasoning is a part of the truth discernment process, but truth is not discerned that way ALONE.

Second, is to realize that if there is spiritual truth, there is also spiritual error and falsehood. If there is spiritual error and falsehood, then we must be sure we are not listening to that.

The Apostle John deals with these issues here, and I want to use a break down of these 6 verse the same way that Jonathon Edwards did, when he used this text for his famous sermon at a Yale commencement ceremony in 1741.

But before we get there I need you to see one of the biggest truths we learn from this text. It is the overarching point to this sermon...

Spiritual truth comes “from God”

6 times in these 6 verses John uses the phrase “from God”. What he is tying to tell us is that spiritual truth comes from God. It does not come from observation of simple fact in an experiment over time.

The Bible is not a Science book and so we do not need to used scientific methods to square scripture with other things in this life. Te Bible is a divine revelation of God from God to us. He is the main subject of scripture and the implications for us are many, yet we are not the main character or hero found in the pages of scripture.

In scripture God is telling us what truth is and how things work according to his will and design. And part of understanding this is accepting that God can and does do supernatural things that logic and science can never explain or understand.

But for the opposite of spiritual truth, there is falsehood, and in the supernatural there can be counterfeit meant to be used to deceive people away from the truth. When we understand this, suddenly there is more at stake than a simple assertion of how to know spiritual truth. If spiritual truth comes from God and it brings us to God, then falsehood will move us away from him. There is much at stake for us, and we must be committed to belonging to truth. And in keeping with John’s theme of loving God and others, this means that the implications are to love each other in spite of things that we may hold to that are not spiritual truth matters.

When Jonathon Edwards preached this passage he showed that there are 3 tests found here that will help us to determine truth and error.

Test 1 - in vs 2,3 - in the form of a question for false teachers; Do they confess Jesus as divine Lord?

Test 2 - vs 4 - Do they posses divine life?

Test 3 - vs 5,6 - Do they profess divine truth?

We will see this unfold here this morning, but let’s look at the text and gain understanding of God.

1 John 4:1 ESV

1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.

First thing we need to see is the instruction of John. “Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits”.

Notice the use of the lowercase “s” in the word spirit. Whenever we see a capital “S” in the word Spirit it means to refer to the Holy Spirit. When we see a small or lowercase “s” it is usually referring to a demonic spirit. And within the christian culture sometimes we use it to describe a benign attitude, like a “spirit of complacency”, etc… This is not to mean that there is an evil spirit out there whose name is complacency and he is gonna get you if you are not careful, as some false teachers would try and teach. but rather we need to see that the Holy Spirit has special reference in scripture by the use of a capital S.

So when John says, “Do not trust every spirit” lowercase s… he means to say do not trust every demonic spirit that may be out there.

Rather test them. But for what purpose? “To see whether they are from God”. Why? Because spiritual truth comes from God and and spiritual falsehood does not.

He goes on to say that many false prophets have gone out into the world… This sounds a lot like what Paul was warning young Pastor Timothy of...

1 Timothy 4:1 ESV

1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,

What do we notice about the source of false teaching here? If in 1 John 4 we learn spiritual truth comes from God, then in 1 Tim 4 we discover that false teaching comes from Satan and demonic forces and not from God.

So there is a lot at stake when we hear of this. Because scripture warns of those that will depart the faith. And if it was true then, it is certainly true now. But this isn’t just teaching from John and Paul… Jesus warned us of this as well.

Matthew 24:5 ESV

5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.

But it isn’t just that people will claim to be the “anointed one from God” or Christ… But as a prophet that claims to speak for God. they will even show signs...

Mark 13:22–23 ESV

22 For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. 23 But be on guard; I have told you all things beforehand.

If Jesus warned us of this, and Paul warned Timothy and John is warning us to test the spirits. Then we should be careful to watch. But where? Where will it come from? Paul tells the church in Ephesus where false teachers will come from...

Acts 20:29–30 ESV

29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them.

Paul says they will come in from outside and be even found among the believers.

This is why biblical eldership and membership is so important. It is very possible for people to come in from outside as fierce wolves teaching false doctrine. But perhaps that isn’t as surprising as seeing people rise up from among us and try to draw away believers after them.

John is telling us to test the spirits to know if the are form God. So let’s look at how.

1 John 4:2–3 ESV

2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.

First we see how to know if the Holy Spirit is teaching. Because of the subject of the teaching.

Confessing Jesus Christ has come in the flesh and is from God.

Please notice the trinity on display here. For those who say we do not see the word trinity in scripture I would point out that the author doesn’t have to sign his name in order to see his work and know him. In verse 2 we see the Spirit of God, or Holy Spirit; the Son of God is Jesus Christ who came in the flesh; and the Father God who sent the Son and speaks by the Spirit.

But here is the first test to knowing spiritual truth from false teachers. How can we spot false teachers? Test 1

Test #1 - Do they confess the divine Lord?

Why use that language, divine Lord?

To believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. That he is not created but is in essence God himself in the person of the Son and he came in flesh being sent by the Father is to speak of a divine mystery and nature that cannot be proclaimed by someone who thinks they can explain God apart from his own revelation.

So this first test looks at what they say and teach. But not in any abstract way, specifically about Jesus. Meaning do they get the gospel wrong? To take the divinity away from Jesus is to teach from someone other than God. John calls it the spirit of antichrist. Without spending much time on this here, John is not pointing to a person calling them THE antichrist but showing that the spirit behind being against God is antichrist. Much of what we hear in this world comes from the spirit of antichrist.

The test that John is setting forth, is to see if the teaching declares Jesus has come in flesh and is from God. Confession of the Divine Lord in Jesus Christ.

Can you think of any people who do not teach this? Let me list a few and show you how they are not from God.

Jehovah’s Witnesses - They believe that Jesus is a god, not THE GOD. Their official doctrine teaches that Jesus was the first creation of God. He is describes as being originally Micheal the Archangel before divesting himself of his angelic nature and appearing in the world as a man. Jesus is thus an angel who became a man according to them. He is a godlike figure, but is not God the Son, second member of the trinity.

Mormons - Mormonism teaches, “each of these gods, including jesus and his father, being in possession of not merely a spirit but a body of flesh and bones.” Mormons believe in many gods and that Gods was once a man. They believe that Jesus before his incarnation was Lucifers brother. That Jesus was born of Mary, but not by means of Joseph or the Holy Spirit. Rather they believe that heavenly father, a god of flesh and bones, had physical relations with Mary and Jesus was then conceived. they also believe that Jesus was the husband of both Mary and Martha and had children by all his wives.

What about the Abrahamic religions of Christianity, Judaism and Islam? Dont they all believe the same thing? The spirit in the world would have you believe this lie.

Islam - according to Timothy George’s book “Is the father of Jesus the God of Muhammed?” He succinctly write this… “Christians predicate something essential and irreducible about God that no Muslin can accept. We call him our Heavenly Father.” Islam rejects the Trinity and God as our father. furthermore, on the mosque at the temple mount in Jerusalem are written the words, “God has no son”. So No Islam is not like Christianity. And there are so many other ways, but this fails John’s first test.

Judaism - They cannot believe that Jesus Christ is the messiah and that he has come in flesh, and so clearly they fail john’s test as well. Even though there is much to agree on, this is key to testing the spirits.

To quote Martyn Lloyd-Jones, “If the incarnation is not an actual fact, if he really has not been made flesh and dwelt among us, then there was no real humiliation involved in His coming into this world. He really did not limit himself, as it were, to the position of a man dependent upon God; there is no real meaning in the laying aside of the insignia of the eternal glory; there is no true humiliation.”

Test #1 - Do they confess the divine Lord? If not there is no Good news in there so called “gospel”.

1 John 4:4 ESV

4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

Here we have Test #2 in discerning false teachers and false doctrine...

Test #2 - Do they possess divine life?

All false teachers claim to be from God. They claim to speak for him and teach for him, but there are ways we can tell if this is true. And here in this verse we have a truth that has been so twisted by modern false teaching that it misses the entire point of the passage and point towards another gospel altogether.

Have you ever heard a pastor teach that “greater is he that is in ME than he that is in the world.”????

You can spot it in the wrong emphasis. False teachers emphasize the ME rather than the HE. They use this as a proof text for ME being powerful, for God making much of ME.

And so, Greater is he that is in ME than he that is in the world, because I am the head and not the tail, I am above only and not beneath, because I am more than a conquerer and I can do all things when I exercise MY faith.

If you cannot hear the difference in that statement, which is full of scripture, than what we teach when we preach Christ and the gospel… then I am very concerned for your soul. See you can say what the Bible says without knowing what it means and be found believing a different gospel and not worshipping the true God of scripture at all.

Let me teach this verse in the context of what the Apostle John is actually teaching us.

As Christians our life comes from God. And so he starts off this verse placing the “YOU” in the first clause for emphasis against the false teachers he pointed out in the last verse. He was talking about the spirit of antichrist, teaching not from God… But YOU are form God. That is why he calls us “Little Children”, and he went into length in the previous chapter to show us that we may know we belong to him.

We are from God, and our true source in life and in teaching is found in God. For this reason we have “overcome” them - the false teachers. John uses this greek word NIKAO, which means to “conquer; to overcome.” It is the same word used for Victory, and in fact that is what the word NIKE means, victory. It is the same word used here.

The manner is which we overcome is not overtly stated here, but the implication is that it occurs by our relying on true teaching and rejecting false teaching.

We overcome false teaching by receiving true teaching and rejecting false teaching

It is impossible to receive true teaching and hold fast to false teaching as well. You cannot cling to both false teaching and spiritual truth. one will choke the other out. That is why it is so important to be careful what kind of preaching and teaching you are watching and listening to. We live in a day and age where charismatic pastors with large followings can energize the masses by getting them to be excited about all sort of non-gospel issues, and do it in Jesus name.

They do it with your prosperity, your patriotism, your physical desires, and your power hungry heart that is always wanting to worship something other than the God it was created to worship.

Christianity is about submission to the one who informs you of real spiritual truth. It is not about your freedoms, and it is not about YOUR faith. It is HIS faith that he has called you to above all other things.

I had to read a letter of a believer who is in sin and claims that I cannot understand because it is THEIR Faith… I am sorry but this is not MY faith or Your Faith nit is the faith that has been handed down to us by the blood of the martyrs that God has called to preserve it for us to believe it and not edit it to fit our life.

We need to hold fast to what is true and reject what is false.

This world is working constantly to get us to believe false teaching… Teaching that will deny the Divine Lord, it will deny divine truth and it possesses no divine life. And so GREATER is HE that is in me, than he that is in the world…Or to be true to the text...

HE who is in you is GREATER than he who is in the world.

God is greater in bringing spiritual truth in me than the false teaching of this world.

But also notice that small word “IN”… God in us is greater than what is in the world. Notice that there is an internal reality of truth that fights the external nature of the world around us. When God is at work in you it will change your very life and your interests.

Jonathon Edwards put it this way...

“When the spirit that is at works operates against the interests of Satan’s kingdom, which lies in encouraging and establishing sin and cherishing men’s worldly lusts, this is a sure sign that it is a true and not false spirit.”

God is greater in us as we possess divine life than the false teaching of this world that denies God in Jesus Christ.

1 John 4:5–6 ESV

5 They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

And here we have Test #3 to show false teachers and false doctrine.

Test #3 - Do they profess divine truth

John is clearly saying that the content of our message is actually a lot different from what false teacher believe and teach.

Notice how he starts here… The word, “THEY” in contrast to the “YOU” from the last verse.

False teachers do not have their source from God but from the world, and that is why the world accepts their message. False teaching is always more concerned for the rest of the world agreeing with them than the church as whole. That is where all this seeker sensitive none sense comes from.

And please understand that does not mean that we are unaware that there may be outsiders in the room when we gather, but it doesn’t mean that we preach a watered down message for them that is different from the truth we would normally affirm because we are afraid of offending them. That is the world’s way of thinking. That we need to do better an advertising and marketing...

We must Profess divine truth. Which means we call sin sin, and call people to repent. We spell out the Gospel of Jesus Christ and point others to him at all time in every message. He is the main subject and not an add on in the end.

We should always scrutinize the message of preachers… Does it proclaim Biblical truth or is this pastor just saying words found in the bible but adding his own thoughts to them? Is this preaching in line with what the church has always believed or is this a new things we are supposed to believe now?

Are they declaring the Bible and the Bible alone as the word of God? Is the interpretation within the same orthodox framework of historical Christianity, or is this person twisting scripture and doing spiritual gymnastic to distort the message to make it say something more relevant to our culture?

John tells us that those who know God will listen to true gospel preachers. He goes on to say that the ones who will not listen to us are not of us, meaning they are not of God.

And so John gives one final assurance here to the believer, “By this we know the Spirit of truth and spirit of error.”

By this, means to refer us to what he just said… The world doesn’t listen to us because they are not from God like we are. Those following the Spirit of truth, or the Holy Spirit of Truth listen to the Apostles teaching and the bible taught by men who affirm the same beliefs; those who follow the spirit of error do not. It is that simple.

Martin Luther said it this way, “When we speak from the Spirit of God, the majority snore.”

And so John is teaching us here that we must test the teaching we hear, whether it comes from God or not. Does it pass the test of teaching Jesus the divine who came in flesh? Does it pass the test of whether the unsaved world will listen to it? Does it proclaim divine life within us that points to God being stronger, or does it make you the savior? Does it show the sufficiency of Christ and his work on the cross and proclaim a message that forces us to submit to the God who is greater than the ways of this world?

Beloved, Test the spirits and Love one another, this is the most reasonable way to know you love God and are born of him.