TESTING WHAT YOU HEAR
You now understand what spiritual discernment is. Now you must learn how to apply it.
If you do not test what you hear, you will absorb things that shape your thinking in the wrong direction.
DO NOT ACCEPT EVERYTHING.
EXAMINE IT.
You will hear many voices. Preachers. Teachers. Friends. Online content. Music. Not all of them are true. Scripture is entirely clear on this command.
“but test everything; hold fast what is good.”
Testing begins with your standard. That standard is the Word of God.
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”
If something does not align with Scripture, it is not truth. No matter who says it. This means you must know the Word for yourself. You cannot rely only on what others say. You must act like the early church.
“they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”
They listened. Then they checked. That is the model.
THE DECEPTION OF WORSHIP MUSIC
False teaching is not only spoken from a pulpit. It is sung. The enemy frequently uses music to bypass your theological discernment and manipulate your emotions.
BEWARE OF HILLSONG, ELEVATION, AND BETHEL.
These organizations are not simply producing songs. They are the marketing arm of the mega-church prosperity and false-signs gospels. The spirit behind their teaching is not the Holy Spirit. It is a spirit of emotionalism, self-worship, and theological error.
You cannot separate the song from the source. If the root is poisoned, the fruit is poisoned. Scripture is fiercely protective against associating with false teachers.
“Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God… If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works.”
God does not accept worship born from false teaching.
“Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen.”
Do not feed your mind with the soundtrack of a false religion. Remove it from your life. Worship must be in spirit and in truth.
THE METRICS OF TESTING
Testing means you pay attention to the full message. Not just parts of it. Something can sound right in one sentence and be entirely wrong in its overall direction. You must ask clear questions:
[ ? ] IS THIS ALIGNED WITH SCRIPTURE?
[ ? ] IS ANYTHING BEING ADDED?
[ ? ] IS ANYTHING BEING IGNORED?
[ ? ] IS THIS POINTING TO CHRIST OR SOMETHING ELSE?
If something adds to Scripture or removes from it, it is a lie.
“I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book,”
Truth is not adjusted. It is received.
THE DANGER OF EMOTION
Testing what you hear also means you do not rely on how something feels. Something can feel powerful and still be wrong.
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?”
Feelings are not your standard. Truth is.
Testing also involves the outcome. Where does this lead? Does it lead to truth? Does it lead to obedience? Does it lead to Christ? Or does it lead somewhere else? Good teaching produces growth in truth.
“so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.”
THE PROTOCOL FOR TESTING:
[ X ] TEST EVERYTHING.
[ X ] USE SCRIPTURE AS YOUR STANDARD.
[ X ] DO NOT RELY ON FEELINGS.
[ X ] EXAMINE THE FULL MESSAGE AND THE SOURCE.
[ X ] HOLD FAST TO WHAT IS TRUE.
Without testing, you will be moved easily. With testing, you become stable. This is not about being suspicious of everything. It is about being strictly loyal to truth.
YOU CAN LISTEN. YOU CAN LEARN.
BUT YOU ALWAYS TEST.
Now that you understand how to test what you hear, the next step is learning how to recognize the voice of God clearly so you are not confused by other voices.