The Discerning of Spirits

The Gift of Discernment in 1 Corinthians 12

Hello.

In this video, I just want to give a brief definition of the spiritual gift of discernment. I had noticed that Remnant Radio did an hour-long video explaining all this, and while it's good to go in-depth, sometimes what the average person needs is a more simple definition.

So here it goes in three minutes or less. What is the spiritual gift of discernment, or discerning of spirits, as it's called? In 1 Corinthians chapter 12, the Apostle Paul is teaching on the spiritual gifts.

He says in verse 4, there are diversities of gifts, but the same spirit, referring to the Holy Spirit, who is the giver of gifts. And then in verse 10, he mentions that to some is given the gift known as the discerning of spirits.

How Discernment Sees Error Before Others Do

So what is this? Well, since we're on YouTube, maybe you've heard of Discernment Ministries, and for those who have that gift, they are able to see things that other people can't. Or at least they're able to see things first, long before others.

And really, once the false doctrine or the error gets a lot of attention and people are talking about it and it's explained, then a lot of people will come around and they will see the issue. But those who have the gift of discernment, they saw it before everyone else.

And because they saw it first, and they were the ones speaking up when no one else was speaking up, yeah, you catch a lot of flack when you have the gift of discernment and when you exercise it. Now, John MacArthur says about the gift of discernment, "...discernment is the ability to tell which things are from the Spirit and those which are not from the Spirit, distinguishing truth from error.

This gift serves as protection for the church.". Of course, because those who have this gift are on the front lines, sometimes they get shot at, and they even receive some friendly fire. But discernment is a spiritual gift, so whether people recognize it or not, it's necessary.

Discernment Builds Up the Body of Christ

And in the end, it does serve to build up the body of Christ. One last thing, Charles Haddon Spurgeon once said about discernment, and I really like this, he said, "...discernment is not knowing the difference between right and wrong, it's knowing the difference between right and almost right.".

Proverbs 15 .21 says, "...Folly is joy to him who is destitute of discernment, but a man of understanding walks uprightly.". Thanks for watching and until next time, may the Lord be with you, have a great day.