“Don’t stifle the Spirit. Don’t despise prophecies, but test all things. Hold on to what is good. Stay away from every kind of evil.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22

If you read the story carefully in Genesis 3, you realize Eve was not tempted by the existence of the forbidden fruit. In fact, she never seemed to care about it at all until the serpent came along. The true temptation was the message, “you will become like God.” Once those words were spoken, the fruit suddenly looked very tasty. One slick messenger with a very appealing message, and suddenly the Word of God didn’t matter all that much anymore. Oh, how we fall into the very same trap on a regular basis!

1 Thessalonians 5:19 warns us not to stifle the Spirit. How do we stifle the Spirit? One of the main ways I see it happening today is when we find a political party, a message, or a messenger we like, and we allow them to be our decider of truth and fiction; right and wrong. After that decision has been made, we only then turn to the Scripture, simply looking to justify our predetermined conclusion. When you read the Bible, pray, or seek God in this way, you are sure to stifle the Spirit. God speaks to those who want to hear. He reveals truth to those who are truly seeking. This problem is not exclusive to conservatives or liberals. Honestly, the fact that a believer would view themselves by such divisions is a problem. We are followers of Christ. That alone is our true identity. Manmade categories are below us. So don’t stifle the Spirit. Test everything you hear and only hold on to the things that line up with God’s Word. This will keep you from being sucked into the evil that is happening all around us.

Almighty God and loving Father, deafen us to the lies and temptations around us. Keep us from allowing our desires to determine truth. Let us be so in tune with Your Word and Your Spirit that Your voice drowns out all others.

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Shane Cannon