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Ms. Kespert will not make an argument from the Bible. She will not discuss or quote any Scripture dealing with discernment. In fact, she will manage to quote only one Scripture, and that one does not speak to discernment at all.
Ms. Kespert will not make an argument from the Bible. She will not discuss or quote any Scripture dealing with discernment. In fact, she will manage to quote only one Scripture, and that one does not speak to discernment at all.
She will instead cite anecdotal experiences and draw her conclusions from them.
Since Ms. Kespert seems not to be up to the task of discussing this topic from the Bible, we shall undertake to educate the reader. Before we begin, we should note that Ms. Kespert's entire presumption about what discernment is is based on this verse:
(...)
He. 5:14 But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
She does not quote the verse, but it is clear that the training in Bible knowledge she values for the purpose of discernment is based on this verse. And this sort of training is of course valuable. We should definitely grow in faith and knowledge so that we can more readily distinguish good from evil.
The word distinguish is diakrisis, which is distinguishing; hence: deciding, passing sentence on; the act of judgment, discernment. It is the evaluation of things [in this case, good vs. evil] in order to decide or judge. In the context of He. 5:14, this judgment is honed by constant use of discernment.
The same word is used here:
Ro. 14:1 Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters.
So discernment is used for important matters, not for nit-picking minor things. The word is also found here:
1Co. 12:7-10 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits...
Distinguishing between Spirits. So, contrary to Ms. Kespert's claims, we find that this judgment or decision-making is employed in spiritual matters as well.
Manifestation is phanerósis, which is a manifestation, disclosure. Every spiritual gifts is a disclosure or showing forth of a spiritual ability.
Paul opens this chapter [12] with
1Co. 12:1 Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant.
Spiritual gifts is pneumatikos, which means relating to the realm of spirit. The word gift is implied here, but is not part of the Greek word. We find the idea of gifts here:
Ro. 12:6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.
"Gifts" is charisma, [which] divinely empowers a believer to share God's work with others, i.e. Spirit-empowered service to the Church to carry out His plan for His people.
Let's put all this together for Ms. Kespert's edification. A spiritual gift [pneumatikos charisma] is a showing forth [phanerósis] of the Holy Spirit by his His divine endowment of spiritual power. All charisma is a Spirit empowerment, whether it is prophecy, serving, teaching, encouraging, generosity, or showing mercy [Ro 12:6-7]; faith, healing, miraculous powers, distinguishing between spirits, tongues, or interpretation [1Co. 12:9-10].
Every spiritual gift is a empowerment, not a natural ability. Every spiritual gift is relating to the realm of the Spirit. That empowerment should be honed and perfected through constant use [He. 5:14], but the supernatural ability is given by the Holy Spirit.
Which of course means that discernment is not simply learning doctrine and studying the Bible so that one might be able to find false teachers. It is specifically a spiritual empowerment relating to the spiritual realm.
(...)
But as troubling as the appeal to emotion was, several people were even more troubled by the women’s claim to be discerning.
I am one of those people,
Someone in the conversation about this matter remarked that, according to her observation, women who claim to have discerning spirits almost invariably have almost no Biblical discernment. (That is, her experiences are what she will use to build her doctrine.)
I am one of those people,
Someone in the conversation about this matter remarked that, according to her observation, women who claim to have discerning spirits almost invariably have almost no Biblical discernment. (That is, her experiences are what she will use to build her doctrine.)
Frankly, I’ve noticed the same phenomenon. I think specifically of a friend of mine in Memphis who believed God had given her the gift of discernment. I know I’ve told this story before, but it bears repeating.
During my first few months in the nursing home, my friend in Memphis noticed that another middle-aged resident had befriended me. This resident happened to use thick glasses that greatly magnified her eyes in an eerie sort of way. One day my self-proclaimed discerning friend (with a knowing look on her face) informed me that she sensed a demonic spirit in the resident who had befriended me. She claimed she could “discern” it in the resident’s eyes. (The obvious question, not answered by Ms. Kespert: Was this person demon-possessed or not?)
Should I mention that a year later this “discerning” woman attended a Benny Hinn meeting, (Apparently the standard for the gift of discernment is that one can never be wrong.)
During my first few months in the nursing home, my friend in Memphis noticed that another middle-aged resident had befriended me. This resident happened to use thick glasses that greatly magnified her eyes in an eerie sort of way. One day my self-proclaimed discerning friend (with a knowing look on her face) informed me that she sensed a demonic spirit in the resident who had befriended me. She claimed she could “discern” it in the resident’s eyes. (The obvious question, not answered by Ms. Kespert: Was this person demon-possessed or not?)
Should I mention that a year later this “discerning” woman attended a Benny Hinn meeting, (Apparently the standard for the gift of discernment is that one can never be wrong.)
believing that God would use Hinn to heal her diabetes? (Desperate people will sometimes do desperate things. This really has nothing to do with discernment.)
How is it, I wonder, that a person with the gift of discernment couldn’t discern that Benny Hinn is a fraud? Looking back, I can readily see that my friend based her “discernment” on a subjective reaction to the glasses.
The woman who maligned my online friend recently has made the same error in understanding the nature of discernment that my friend in Memphis made. (Another anecdotal story presented as definitive evidence.)
The woman who maligned my online friend recently has made the same error in understanding the nature of discernment that my friend in Memphis made. (Another anecdotal story presented as definitive evidence.)
She loves the false teacher because that teacher causes her to feel good. My friend in Memphis disliked the woman with the glasses because of an uncomfortable feeling. Neither offered Scriptural substantiation for their declarations — they only assured us that they had discernment.
Discernment, however, is not a form of baptized Extra Sensory Perception. Biblical discernment depends on knowing God’s Word well enough to rightly apply it. (Two declarative statements, neither of which are documented with a Scripture.)
Discernment, however, is not a form of baptized Extra Sensory Perception. Biblical discernment depends on knowing God’s Word well enough to rightly apply it. (Two declarative statements, neither of which are documented with a Scripture.)
Paul’s warning to the Colossian church speaks to the folly of listening to anyone with this mystical approach to discernment.
It isn’t important, for purposes of this article, to name the false teacher that sparked this controversy. My goal is to address the erroneous idea that discernment comes through emotional impressions. Studying Colossians makes it quite plain that mysticism has no place among Christians. It has nothing to do with Biblical discernment. (Again making undocumented claims, Ms. Kespert goes farther and equates mental impressions with mysticism. She simply dangles this accusation out there with no context or explanation.)
Beware of people who claim to be discerning and yet refuse to consider evidence that their preferred teachers are false. (We would generally agree.)
18 Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God. ~~Colossians 2:18-19 (NASB95) (Discernment is not mentioned, and not under discussion in this passage. It is an odd choice when there are several other Scriptures that actually address discernment.)We hold fast to Christ, the head of the body, by leaning into His Word, not by letting our subjective feelings carry us away. A false teacher may seem charming, vivacious and devoted to Scripture, but all the while be guilty of manipulating Scripture to lead followers into error. Biblical discernment requires us to evaluate everything (including this blog) through the lens of God’s Word. (Yet again Ms. Kespert makes declarative claims without documenting them. While it is certainly important to evaluate any claim by the perfect standard of Scripture [which ironically Ms. Kespert has studiously avoided], this is not discernment. It is merely factual analysis.)
It isn’t important, for purposes of this article, to name the false teacher that sparked this controversy. My goal is to address the erroneous idea that discernment comes through emotional impressions. Studying Colossians makes it quite plain that mysticism has no place among Christians. It has nothing to do with Biblical discernment. (Again making undocumented claims, Ms. Kespert goes farther and equates mental impressions with mysticism. She simply dangles this accusation out there with no context or explanation.)
Beware of people who claim to be discerning and yet refuse to consider evidence that their preferred teachers are false. (We would generally agree.)
When they use emotional appeals to deflect arguments from Scripture, ask yourself if their claims of discernment line up with Scripture. If their “discernment” ignores clear evidence that their teacher doesn’t really follow God’s Word, you may want to think about whether or not they are really all that discerning.
Discernment isn’t a game like Magic 8-Ball, nor is it a baptized version of ESP. (Ms. Kespert has not proven these points, or even really discussed them.)
Discernment isn’t a game like Magic 8-Ball, nor is it a baptized version of ESP. (Ms. Kespert has not proven these points, or even really discussed them.)
It comes through knowing God’s Word and properly applying it as we evaluate what we read and hear.
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