In the previous two posts on this subject we saw how "spirit" may denote a disembodied being such as angels and demons (or ghosts) but may also denote a person's state of mind, as in having a happy spirit, a vengeful spirit, an angry spirit, etc. So, to "test" or "try" spirits (I John 4) will involve "discernment of spirit" (I Cor. 12: 10) to discover what is influencing a person in what he says and does, especially as it relates to teaching the Bible in the name of Christ. We saw where even born again people, yea, even apostles of Christ, may have a bad spirit or state of mind.
Anyone who has a smattering of knowledge about church fights and divisions knows this to be true, for many professing Christians who were engaged in such were acting out of a bad spirit or attitude. Oftentimes these church fights reveal a Christian's "true colors." So James the Lord's brother wrote:
"Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?" (James 4: 1 nkjv)
John Gill, commenting on Luke 9: 55 and the case of James and John, said: "...so good men, for want of attention, may not know sometimes from what spirit they act; taking that for a good one, which is a very bad one..."
This is why there are so many scriptures that warn people to be careful of the spirit that is motivating them, such as when Solomon wrote: "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall." (Prov. 16: 18) As followers of Christ we ought to be careful of the kind of spirit that is moving us to believe things, especially religious dogma, and to do things. We must not only test the spirits of others, but our own spirits. Scripture enjoins us to work on being of a humble and contrite spirit and to avoid being influenced by a proud spirit, a vengeful spirit, etc.
How many professing Christians have, out of false zeal, killed other Christians who they deemed as "heretics"? So Jesus said: "the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service." (John 16: 2 nkjv) In doing this the murderers are acting out of a bad spirit for such zeal comes from a wrong spirit.
The apostle Paul exhorted Christians to "examine yourselves whether you be in the faith" (II Cor. 13: 5), and this would certainly include examining our spirits.
Every lost unregenerate sinner is greatly influenced by the "spirit" of the Devil, or "the prince of the power of the air." So wrote the apostle Paul:
"And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience." (Eph. 2: 1-3 nkjv)
Here we see that the word "spirit" refers to an intelligent being. However, having this malignant spirit working in a person produces a kind of spirit, attitude, belief system, state of mind, etc. So we read of people being "hardened in spirit" (Deut. 2:30) and having a "spirit of whoredoms" (Hosea 4: 12) and experiencing "vexation of spirit" (Eccl. 1: 14,17), rather than having "a right spirit" (Psa. 51: 10) or "a faithful spirit" (Prov. 11: 13) or a "humble and contrite spirit" (Psa. 34: 18; Prov. 16: 19).
What is said of all men who are "dead in trespasses and sins" in regard to being influenced and controlled by "the spirit" or "the prince of the power of the air" may also be similar to what is said by the prophet: "The LORD hath mingled a perverse spirit in the midst thereof: and they have caused Egypt to err in every work thereof, as a drunken man staggereth in his vomit." (Isa. 19: 14 kjv) This "perverse spirit" was a judgment given by God for Egypt's sins and it "caused Egypt to err" even further. This is similar to what Paul wrote in these words:
"...because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness." (II Thess. 2: 10b-12 nkjv)
This delusion of mind and spirit is a judgment from the Lord for their rejection of the truth and leads them to believe the lie of the "man of lawlessness." Similarly we read this oracle of the Lord:
"Woe to the rebellious children," says the Lord, "Who take counsel, but not of Me, And who devise plans, but not of My Spirit, That they may add sin to sin." (Isa. 30: 1 nkjv)
Here there is an allusion to sinners having a rebellious spirit and who devise plans from some other spirit other than Yahweh's Spirit. These have a "spirit of error" as John said (I John 4:6), and "follow deceiving spirits." Of saved people Paul wrote: "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." (II Tim. 1: 7 nkjv) This "spirit" is a spirit of faith, a spirit of power, a spirit of love, a spirit of a sound mind. The unsaved sinner does not have such a spirit, but has rather a spirit of fear, a weak or impotent spirit, a spirit of hate, and a spirit of foolishness in things pertaining to God.
Paul, in his letter to the Galatians, said to those who were departing from the gospel of grace and embracing salvation by law keeping, "this persuasion comes not from him who calls you." (5:8) You could just as similarly say "this spirit comes not from him who calls you." So we hear Paul say to the Christians in Rome: "But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter." (Rom. 7: 6 kjv) Unsaved people do not have this newness of spirit.
Do you have this newness of spirit? Or, are you trying to serve God or a god by your good works or merit? If so, you have the wrong spirit, the wrong belief, a spirit of error. We will have more to say about that in the next concluding chapter.
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