Where is the wind blowing?

1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. One of the great challenges of living to love with Jesus is wanting to please people. Paul wrote to the Corinthians that love “believes all things.” This verse helps us understand that Paul didn’t mean that love is gullible or that it is loving to believe everyone or everything. The context of 1 Cor. 13 was love guiding their relationships with those who have differing spiritual gifts. Love is the way to navigate the differences and love believes the Holy Spirit is the source of every kind of spiritual gift. Scripture interprets Scripture. It’s a guiding hermeneutic as we read the Bible. This verse begins by addressing those who are loved by God. As we have seen in previous verses and in the verses to come in this chapter, the ones who are loved by God are those who love. We are encouraged in this verse that if we are to love our brothers and sisters well, we must be discerning. We are to test the spirits to see if what is being said is from God. The word for spirit is the same word meaning wind or breath. A word picture may be helpful. When we hear something, it is like the blowing of the wind. What direction is it coming from, and where is it blowing us? Is the wind coming from the love of God carrying us toward loving and obeying the Father and Son? Is it moving me into the path of loving with Jesus and fellowship with others who believe He is the Son of God in the flesh? So as we walk with Jesus, we can’t be naive and believe everyone who says they are Christian or says they believe in Jesus. They may have another Jesus. That why John admonished his readers to test the spirits—ascertain where the wind is coming from. True love that glorifies God can only come from the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, the breath of Jesus, the Son.