1 John 4:2, 3 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God; Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. --NIV In the name of the One Who came in the flesh, amen.
Many people have a spirit that they would like to pass on to others. There are those who want to lay hands on anyone they can, in an effort to pass on a spirit. But we should not let anyone and everyone lay hands on us. Not every spirit is good and holy as our passage from yesterday indicated. Today we consider the test that St. John gave for the spirits. It seems simple and straightforward, but we should consider what it means to acknowledge that Jesus came in the flesh.
The fact that Jesus came in the flesh assumes that He was true God. It means that He was born of the virgin Mary. It is inseparably tied up with the fact that He died for our sins, and that His sacrifice alone paid for our sins. Any spirit that does not acknowledge these things is denying that Jesus came in the flesh.
But we have the Holy Spirit Who teaches that Jesus, true God and true man, was born of the virgin Mary and lived and died for our salvation. This is the Spirit of God. Amen.
Prayer: Holy Spirit, give us such a knowledge of the Scriptures that the spirit of the antichrist can never lead us astray. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
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