“The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2 Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. 3 They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. 4 For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, 5 because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.” (1 Timothy 4 v 1-5)
It was 11am Sunday morning, half an hour into the service and Big John stood up and spoke at length in a language very unfamiliar to me. The person next to me whispered, “the Holy Spirit is talking, wait and you will hear the message in English.” I was 14 yrs of age and learning that the Spirit spoke in an unknown language but that it could be understood in English. Big John would follow the similar pattern most Sunday mornings and usually the Spirit chose 11am to speak.
We all have experiences like mine perhaps. Thankfully they are fewer than the real directive, encouraging directional words of the Spirit that have shaped ours and many people’s lives.
The letter from Paul was for Timothy who was leading the church in Ephesus.
The temple Artemis was there. It was regarded as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
Various cultures and religions (usually involving some form of magic) mixed in Ephesus. Sport, sex, art (usually depicting some sex act) was big business.
“Timothy, the Spirit clearly says that what you are experiencing with regards false teaching is going to come.”
But I want to know how we know what the Spirit is clearly saying?
Is there anything in these few verses that can help us?
The clarity of the Spirit:
1. Will be focused on the FUTURE, v1
2. Will be culturally RELEVANT in the present, v1-3
3. Will always COMPETE with other spirits to speak to us, v1
4. Will be founded from within CREATION, when everything was good, v4
5. THANKFULNESS as a lifestyle is the best environment to hold the Spirits voice, v4
6. The regular repeated reading of the BIBLE familiarises us with the voice of God, v4
7. PRAYER will take us to the quiet meditation of our spirit with God’s where we can begin to listen and contemplate the still voice within us, v4
Today let’s make sure we are living in such a way that the Spirit’s voice is very clear.
Within these verses there is one stand out phrase, “whose consciences have been seared” that jumps off the page to us and why we need to keep listening to the Spirit. It paints a picture of people who can no longer distinguish between truth and falsehood and have become numb to the voice of the Spirit. Worse than that, these people are not the obvious heretics, but are people promoting ideas that sound spiritual. Paul lists a few of the deceptions and they still exist in various forms today where the ‘holy’ elevate their preferences to the level of what the Spirit is saying (but He isn’t) and then judge others by the standards of God (which He never established).
How can we help ourselves?
- Stay in the Bible.
- Be thankful to God for everything.
- Be wary of restrictions that look unnecessary.
- Trust the character of the God of joy and love.
- Memorise the 7 point checklist above.
Missions Paul 