How to Test the Truth
How do we navigate the world of prophecies and deception? To understand how to differentiate truth from lies, fact from fiction, we need to turn to the Bible and the apostle Paul. In his first letter to the church in Thessalonica, Paul warned them to “not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil” (1 Thess. 5:19–22).
When Paul says to “not quench the Spirit” (v. 19), he is likely warning about disobeying the Holy Spirit by immoral behavior. We resist the Spirit’s work in our sanctification when we sin. The quenching of the Spirit likely also involved the despising of prophecies (v. 20). “Paul’s answer was that they should not neglect the prophets but rather test every supposed prophetic utterance to see if the one delivering it was a true prophet” (v. 21). Paul also said to reject even the appearance of evil (v. 22), “most likely a warning not to entertain those who were false prophets, though Christians have the general duty not to engage in moral evil.”
What are some practical ways to discern what God is saying through all the prophets out there—some proven and some not? This is especially key when their messages contradict each other. R. Loren Sandford, author, pastor, and prophetic leader, stated:
Lately, prominent voices have prophesied words concerning national and world events that would seem to be at odds with one another. For instance, some prophesy an imminent and catastrophic economic crash, while others have prophesied a season of economic prosperity, especially for Christians. What is a believer to do when well-known prophetic people speak conflicting words? How can we sort the true word from the spirit of error?…
The apostle Paul instituted a structure for testing prophetic words spoken in the public assembly. First Corinthians 14:29 says, “Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others pass judgment” (NASB). … New Testament prophetic people didn’t always deliver 100 percent accurate words [so] their words therefore needed evaluation to separate the good from the bad…
It follows that prophetic words, whether spoken in the public assembly, promoted through electronic media or published in print, must be tested and that we believers therefore carry a responsibility to sort out what we hear.
Sandford then presented us with six “word tests” we can use to know if the prophetic message is from God.
Test 1: Scripture
True prophetic words never contradict any portion of Scripture, meaning we need to be “biblically literate as believers lest we render ourselves vulnerable to deception packaged and presented as anointed revelation.”
Test 2: The Revealed Nature and Character of God
When looking at prophetic words about “God’s wrathful judgment in catastrophic economic or natural disasters, we must begin with God’s essential nature.” Who is God as He revealed Himself in Scripture? Predominantly, He shows Himself to be “a loving Father who sends ample warnings over extended periods of time, again and again calling His children to turn from destructive ways.”
Test 3: Reality Check
We need to think rationally rather than be carried along with our emotions. God is all-knowing, and all intelligence comes from Him. He wants us to use our brains. As the apostle Paul wrote in Romans 12:3 (NASB):
For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.
Sandford said to look at prophetic words about the coming revival that will “sweep America and restore the nation to its Christian foundations.”
Forget for a moment who is prophesying such a revival and do the reality check. Where is the surrounding culture headed? What elements need to be present in the culture for there to be that kind of revival, and are those elements present? Are those conditions in place today? Would it therefore be a culture-sweeping revival or something that would manifest in certain islands of glory amid a continuing sea of darkness?
At this point I’m not judging the accuracy of these prophecies of culture-changing revival. I’m saying that as we evaluate the accuracy of any prophetic word, we need to realistically assess the culture in which we live in order to wisely adjust our focus and strategy.
Test 4: Concrete Realities
Flowing from test 3, there will often be tangible signs “confirming reality embedded in or accompanying the prophecy itself.” Think of Moses at the burning bush accompanying God’s call on his life, or Paul’s blindness when Jesus redirected his life.
Test 5: Filter Out Emotions
Whether a word is positive or negative, true or false, it will pass through our emotions and magnify and distort them. It is vital that we “seek and live in intimacy with the Lord, not the excitement generated by any positive or negative prophetic pronouncement.”
Test 6: The Speaker’s Fulfillment Track Record
Before you receive any prophetic word as truth, evaluate the track record and character of the speaker.
In Acts 11:28, Agabus accurately prophesied a famine so that the body of Christ could prepare in advance. Later, in Acts 21:11, he told Paul that the Jews would arrest him if he went to Jerusalem. One hundred percent accurate? Not quite. The Romans, not the Jews, arrested him, although they did it in response to Jewish pressure. Agabus’ track record for accuracy fell just short of 100 percent, but he was certainly accurate in substance. Deuteronomy 18:21–22 addresses this kind of scenario: “You may say in your heart, ‘How will we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?’ When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing that the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.”
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