1 John 4:9-10 This is how God showed his love among us; He sent his one
and only Son into the world that we might live through him.  This is
love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an
atoning sacrifice for our sins.

 Did you recall how this section of God's Word started?  It said, "Dear
friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether
they are from God."  Those are rather important words for us to consider
and understand.  Important, because if we do not grasp the duty to test
or we are a people who fail to test, we may indeed be jeopardizing the
very faith and salvation that God has brought before us.
 A case in point.  A new movie is out.  The book that movie is based on
has been out for some time and yet no one got too excited about it.  Now
the movie is out and people are all upset.  The movie I'm talking about
is "The Da Vinci Code."  This movie is supposedly about how Jesus and
Mary Magdalene were married and produced children.  The code is how this
truth is revealed to the world.  Please note that the book and movie are
fiction.  The problem is that people want to believe what they say.
 Why?  Because then Christianity and the very divinity of Jesus is
undermined.  Don't we grasp that Jesus warned us that the world would
stand opposed to him and his message?  Don't we grasp that he world hated
him in the first place and will continue to hate him and us just because
He is God?  It is the reason that Jesus warns us here to test the
spirits.  Test the spirits because the Devil and the world are going to
do whatever it can to destroy this precious gift of faith and salvation
that God has revealed in Jesus.
 On this day of worship and praise to God, on this day when we once again
have confirmands stepping forward to promise faithfulness to the Lord,
let's look at this important issue of testing.  Our theme will be: A LIFE
OF TESTING.  1st. How to Test.  2nd. What to test.  3rd. Why you test.
 It is rather clear in our text and in many other portions of God's Word
that testing, testing what you know and learn is clearly to be a part of
our lives.  This testing is not just to be in the world of religion, but
rather is to be a part of our everyday existence and life, a testing that
goes on with everything that we deal with in life.  Yes, there is no
doubt that we are truly to test what is taught us in our churches, but
just as important we are to test other areas as well.  For instance, when
you go to the doctor and he tells you this and that is what is needed,
well, common sense wisdom says not only should you get another opinion
but it would be wise to get a few more test run.  We tend to do the same
with our vehicles.  Most of us, before we would ever buy a car would take
that car out for a test drive or if it were a used car we would want to
take that vehicle to a mechanic to have it checked over.  Common sense
says we are to be careful in everything we do.
 But our primary purpose here at St. Paul is not our everyday life.  Our
primary purpose is God's Word and what it says.  Clearly then we are to
test what is taught.  Clearly then we are to weigh not only what is said
but also what is practiced in a church body.  The most important thing to
grasp is how you are to test.
 Actually our text gives us some great guidance in understanding how we
are to test.  We are to "test the spirits to see whether they are from
God."  In other words, our concern is to be whether or not what is said
or done is in accord with God and his Word.  It is after letting us know
that we are given to specific points to look for.
 The first way to see if what is said is of God is revealed this way:
"This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that
acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God and
every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God."  I don't
know about you, but I find those words very clear and concise.  If I run
across a church that teaches and preaches Jesus as the living Son of God
and the Savior of the world that a pretty good sign they have the Spirit
of God.  But that's not all that is said.  These words also tell us that
if Jesus is not acknowledged they are not from God.  In other words, a
church that denies the physical resurrection of Jesus would be a false
church.  A church that denies that the Bible is God Word in any way,
would be a false church.  A church that claims "Jesus is Lord" but then
fails to follow what Jesus clearly says would be a false church.  The two
lines combined help us to grasp that the issue of "acknowledging Jesus"
is one of grasping the complete package that Jesus is.  You are not to be
the judge of who and what Jesus is, God and His Word is the judge.
Either you believe in Jesus as God says, or you do not.
 There is one other point that can help us see if the spirit is of God or
not.  Verse 5 says, "They are from the world and therefore speak from the
viewpoint of the world."  One of the easiest ways to determine if
something is right and Godly is to check the viewpoint.  If the view is
"there are no such things as miracles" or "the Bible was written by men
and men make mistakes" those are worldly views.  Or the one we are most
apt to run across would be "everyone else is doing it, it must be okay!"
Usually a worldly view is a good reason to run.
 I wish I had more time because there really is so much more to say in
all of this but we need to get to our next point.  What to test?  Again
our text leads us to the answer.  Verse 6 says, "We are from God, and
whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not
listen to us."  This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the
spirit of falsehood."
 The first thing we want to clarify here is who the us is because
obviously it is important.  This epistle was written by the Apostle John
under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  In the context of the whole of
his epistle it is rather clear that John is writing in accord and
agreement with the other Apostles of Jesus.  The "us" are those who were
eye witnesses of Jesus' life, death, resurrection and ascension.  The
"us" are those 120 gathered at Pentecost and counted as disciples of
Jesus Christ the Son of God.  We can further grasp that the "us" is the
entire collected works of the Apostles and evangelists as found in the
Bible.  In other words, what the Apostles and evangelists taught is what
is found and taught in the Bible.  At the time that John wrote this
epistle the New Testament was not yet completed but in a decade or so
would be.  It was the Apostle and evangelist who had the truth of Jesus
and gave us that truth in the Bible.  Clearly, the "us" refers to the
Apostles and evangelists of Jesus day and what they taught.  Thus the
simplicity of what is said next.
 Those who do not listen to the Bible are not of God.  Isn't that simple!
 You cannot throw out portions or parts, or ignore this or that in God's
Word and still lay a claim as a follower of Jesus.  You cannot trash what
is of God and claim to be a believer.  You cannot deny heaven or hell or
the righteous judgments of God and still claim to be a believer.  Pay
attention to what is said here.
 You cannot deny God's Word and still claim the Spirit of truth.  It is
clear that the Apostle John knew and had the Spirit of truth and so did
the other disciples of Jesus.  Understand, there were many, even in those
days that denied who and what Jesus was.  The Jewish official position on
Jesus was that he did his miracles by the power of Satan and that his
body had been stolen by the disciples in order to deceive the world.
That was just the beginning of all the attacks and falsehoods that would
be found.  John says, stick to the truth they spoke.  Stick to the Word
of God and you can't go wrong.
 The real measure of testing though is found in the verses that I
highlighted for today.  Listen again to verses 9-10: "This is how God
showed his love among us; He sent his one and only Son into the world
that we might live through him.  This is love: not that we loved God, but
that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins."

 Here is the best and truest measure of faith.  If the faith you proclaim
and belong to doesn't grasp or have as its central teaching the atoning
sacrifice of Jesus for sin then there is a serious, serious problem.
When a church no longer accepts that Jesus Christ is God and Lord as
shown in the Bible then there is a serious problem.
 The same for all of you.  If you don't grasp that your faith is all
about Jesus and his life, his death, his resurrection and his victory for
you, you are missing something.  If you think that church is about
learning to live right, do right, be right, appear right, or it's about
learning to obey God better and on and on you will still be a person who
misses the central truth of God's Word.  John sums it up beautifully
here.  The message of the church is to be the message of Jesus.  How he
lived the perfect life we could not.  How he offered himself in our place
to the torments of hell to pay for our sins.  How he rose from the dead
and proclaimed the greatest victory ever.  Here, here in this wonder and
marvel is found the love of God.
 God's love is seen and realized in Jesus.  I do like how John in this
sentence so wonderfully keeps our focus to Jesus.  He throws in those
seemingly light weight words but what an impact they have.  I'm talking
about the words, "not that we loved God."  If you think your faith is
about your love and how you have so much feeling for God then please note
that the Apostle wants you to grasp you've got it wrong.  It is about
God's love for us.  Our love is fickle, shallow, at best an emotional
roller coaster and highly unstable.  God's love is sure and certain.
God's love is gracious and merciful.  God's love is unchanging and
steadfast.  God's love for the sake of Jesus overlooks our faults and
loves us anyway.  God's love still sent his Son even when we least
deserve it.
 There is the test of faith.  Is Jesus alive in you?  Is Jesus the heart
and core of your life?  I'm not saying he has to be, I am saying he will
be when you grasp this love of God found in Jesus.  Jesus is what our
faith is about.
 Dear people, we have a life of testing to undergo.  It is a life where
we must fight the good fight and run the race of faith marked out for us.
 We fight and run only in Jesus.  Please don't forget the wonder and
marvel of Jesus.  Don't abandon his Word or his Truth.  Cling to the
wonderful, life giving, strengthening victory of Jesus.  He is what
really counts.  Amen.