The Spirit Of Truth And The Spirit Of Error
A Christian Living Article from All-Creatures.org Guide to Kingdom Living

True Christian living requires us to live according to Kingdom standards which bring Heaven to earth.

FROM Wally Duncaster

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God,  and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.  You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.  They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them.  We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error. 1 John 4:1-6

It’s a fact that we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6;12). In my many discourses with Christians I have run across many Christians who are very quick to label other Christians as false prophets and even attribute all their words and actions to the devil.  But we are commanded by God to love one another and look to ourselves that we do not lose those things we worked for but that we may receive a full reward? God’s word is unchanging:

And now I plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we have had from the beginning: that we love one another.  This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it. For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.  Look to yourselves, that we do not lose those things we worked for, but that we may receive a full reward. Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. 2 John 1:5-9
 
The deceiver and an antichrist is not necessarily some Christians just because we disagree with them and their doctrines.  Those who want to attack Christians because they don't like their doctrine are foolish and on dangerous ground according to the words of Jesus in the gospel of Matthew:
 
"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.'  "But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire.  "Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,  "leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.  "Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. "Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny. Matthew 5:22-26
 
Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. Hebrews 6:1-2
 
God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us. Hebrews 11:40
 
As Christians none of us have arrived or are perfect and are in a continual state of repentance, renewal and learning and even saying and doing foolish things. Hence it’s foolish and dangerous to call any Christian a deceiver and anti-Christ because we don't like something they say. The real deceiver and anit-Christ is the devil and not a Christian no matter what denomination he belongs to! Every FOOLISH deceived Christian, be he a fundamentalist, Calvanist, Armanian, Charismatic or Evangelical, will say the Jesus Christ is Lord and has come in the flesh and so what?  They are still wrong and fighting with each other about the truth and most of them have a spirit of error in some area of their lives. It's to be noted that truth and love comes from the Holy Spirit and lies, errors and doctrines of demons come from the devil.  And Apostle Paul and Jesus told their disciples be no deceived?
 
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.  And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. 1 Corinthians 6:9-12
 
The key thought here is that "I will not be brought under the power of any?"  I have seen too many Christians being brought under the power of everything except the Holy Spirit and love, including their pastor, false doctrines, lusts, heresies. Our task and responsibility is to pray for one another that we are might be healed and delivered and become mature and not condemn one another (Ephesians 4:11-16, James 5:16-20). And as we pray God will also judge and deal with the false prophets amongst His people. His is unchanging:
 
But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.  And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.  For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;  and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly;  and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly;  and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked  (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)-  then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, 2 Peter 2:1-9
 
But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. Jude 1:5
 
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.  Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness,  idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,  envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.  And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Galatians 5:18-25

Go on to: The Struggle to be 'Good': Christianity in Focus
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