Can We Smell Spirits??

The Claim That Discerning Spirits Can Be Smelled

Have you ever smelt a spirit?

Do you smell it? The smelly smell.

Apparently, discerning of spirits involves your sense of smell. Watch this clip that made it to the Holy Nope, episode 225.

Discerning of spirits is being able, it's not just seeing, it's not just hearing. Sometimes it can be smelling in the spirit world. Because something you will find is like a homosexual spirit or something of that nature has a sulfur smell.

It will smell like just rotten egg.

Why the Claim Is Unbiblical and Anecdotal

Now, our first question should be, where is he getting this information? Well, it's purely anecdotal, right? Nowhere in scripture are certain smells associated with certain spirits, nor is there a spirit of homosexuality mentioned in scripture.

The irony is that anyone with the gift of discerning spirits would be able to tell that this teaching is unbiblical because it does not align with the word of God. So what is the discerning of spirits mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12 .10?

The Gift of Discernment in the Early Church

This was a spiritual gift given to some Christians, enabling them to recognize lying spirits and to identify false doctrines while the New Testament canon was not yet completed. Peter exercised this gift in Acts chapter 5 when he discerned the lie of Ananias and Sapphira.

When Paul instructs the church at Corinth in chapter 14 verse 29, let two or three prophets speak and let the others pass judgment, someone with this gifting would be able to identify what was the word of God and what was not.

Biblical Discernment Versus Mystical Revelation

Now, all Christians are called to be discerning, but the biblical idea of discernment does not involve receiving some extra biblical revelation like a certain smell associated with a certain spirit. That's nonsense.

We grow in discernment by growing in our knowledge of the word. As we mature in our understanding of the scriptures, we will be able to distinguish between false teaching and true teaching, between right and wrong, and perhaps more importantly, between right and almost right.

And it does not involve any sort of mystical experience and certainly not smelling sulfur when you're around gay people. So, when John tells us in 1 John chapter 4 verse 1 to test the spirits, he isn't talking about having some mystical knowledge about someone that you see, hear, or smell in the spiritual world as the man in this video suggests.

John is talking about discerning false doctrines coming from false teachers by our knowledge of the word of God. It is an exhortation for us to be like the Bereans, examining the scriptures to determine truth from error.