Learning to be Discerning, Part 1

God calls us to practice spiritual discernment so that we learn to discriminate between truth and falsehood. The consequences for failing to do so can be grave, and the evangelical landscape is littered with tragic examples. Whole denominations have redefined the fundamentals of the faith, and movements regularly come and go that equate the gospel with the acquisition of material wealth, embrace postmodern relativism, or thrill the unwary with fanciful tales of visits to heaven and personal conversations with Jesus. How does this happen, and how can we guard ourselves against being deceived? Discernment begins by choosing your spiritual influences wisely. Don’t partner with those who walk in sin, or lend an ear to those who mock God and twist the Scriptures. Make a daily habit of meditating on the truth, and learn to delight in the Law of the Lord. When some new teaching is presented to you, be like the Bereans and evaluate it against the clear testimony of God’s Word. In short: examine everything carefully, hold fast to what is good, and abstain from every evil thing.