Discernment is the big buzzword these days. This is a look at discernment vs. the gift of discernment.
Let’s ask the dictionary first.
Discernment, a noun
keenly selective judgment: good taste and judgment
synonyms: judgment, acumen, discrimination, perspicacity, taste, shrewdness, sensitivity, selectivity
Discern a verb
1. transitive verb see or notice something unclear: to see something that is not very clear or obvious
2. transitive verb understand: to understand something that is not immediately obvious
3. intransitive and transitive verb distinguish: to be able to tell the difference between two or more things
Synonyms
make out, notice, see, perceive, discover, observe, catch sight of, glimpse, detect, spot understand, perceive, distinguish, fathom, detect, be aware of distinguish, tell the difference, separate, discriminate, differentiate, determine, detect, recognize, know by sight.
Encarta® Thesaurus © 2000 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
Let’s take that and make a working definition: discernment is the ability to see or understand something that is not immediately obvious, or to tell the difference between two or more things that is not immediately obvious. In our discussion it will apply to good vs. evil; true vs. false; or right vs. wrong. It implies that there is some effort made to know what is not immediately obvious.
The Gift Of Discerning
The Bible mentions the Gift of Discerning of Spirits in first Corinthians, when it lays out the various gifts of the Spirit.
1 Corinthians 12:4-11
4 Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
5 And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.
6 And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.
7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;
9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;
10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:
11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
Where it mentions discerning of spirits, it is not clear if it’s speaking about spirits of men, or angels or both. I knew a pastor once who a gift of being able to read people’s spirits. He told me he was surprised that others couldn’t do the same thing. When discussing a certain individual in their church, he said to a group of people: Can’t you see this guy is a wolf! No one else discerned the man in question. But he knew it automatically. He had that gift, and did not realize that it was the Holy Ghost operating in him to provide supernatural knowledge. He does now of course.
So What’s The Difference?
The gift of discerning of spirits then is an immediate automatic knowing the nature of a person’s spirit and or an angelic spirit. It implies that the knowing is immediately obvious. So there is a big difference between the two. Discernment is something you have to work at. The Gift of Discernment is just that a gift, an automatic knowing whereby things become immediately obvious through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
Let’s put that a little differently. You have a situation where something is not immediately obvious. Using some study or making some effort of some kind can lead you to an answer. That’s discernment. With the Gift of Discernment, the Spirit of the Lord gives you the answer right away. So that someone with this give, as the spirit activates it, will know things that are not immediately obvious to others.
Now what prompted me to get on this topic is a recent article on Discernment that I’m going to quote from and make some comments. The quotes below are all indented and taken from The Lost Gift of Discernment by Lee Grady http://fireinmybones.com/index.php?col=090308~The%20Lost%20Gift%20of%20Discernment. Emphasis is mine.
‘We also learned that discernment is one of these nine supernatural gifts (see 1 Cor. 12:8-10). We were taught that since the devil has the ability to counterfeit, and since Satan’s activity includes “all power and signs and false wonders” (2 Thess. 2:9, NASB), God’s people must be equipped with the supernatural power to tell the difference between the true and the false.’
So far so good, the gift of discerning of spirits is a supernatural power and God’s people need it.
‘God gave us spiritual gifts in a package, and discernment is part of the set. It is not optional. Yet today it seems we’ve set discernment aside—perhaps because we’re suspicious of any gift that requires us to exercise clear judgment.’
Here’s where we run into trouble.
First God didn’t give every one of his people this gift.
Second the gifts do not come as a set all in a package
Third, the gifts are all optional.
A careful reading of 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 quoted above shows that some are given one gift and some are given another. And that the gifts are given and operate as he wills. That means when He, the Holy Spirit wills.
There are those who claim that if you have the gift of prophecy, you can prophesy any time and any place you want. Those who prophecy for money depend on this to justify the practice.
Yet this is a common misconception in charismatic circles. People assume that they have all the gifts and can use them when ever.
Then the writer says: we’ve set discernment aside—perhaps because we’re suspicious of any gift that requires us to exercise clear judgment.
Well have we set discernment aside? Can we say, I thought I had it right here in my pocket, what happened? Or could it be that we never had it to begin with, except for a few select individuals? If discernment is a gift, why are we required to exercise anything? That would be doing things in our own strength. In other words by works and not faith.
Next the writer gives three examples of what the bible teaches about discernment.
‘1. We are commanded to discern. The apostle John instructed us to “test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). The word “test” means to “examine as metal”—the process a jeweler would use to prove authenticity. Metals may look the same; only when you apply heat will you find which ones are fake or of low quality. All that glitters, in such cases, is not gold.’
This is not the gift of discerning of spirits, it is applying a formula to get an answer where something is not immediately obvious. But this example does show that we need to learn to test the spirits. This can lead to more discernment.
‘2. Discernment is a sign of spiritual maturity. The author of Hebrews told his readers that they were immature babies who couldn’t handle eating spiritual meat. “Solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil” (Heb. 5:14). The implication here is that those who don’t learn to discern are spiritually stunted.’
This is not the gift of discerning of spirits because it comes from practice. If the church lacks discernment or ability to tell good from evil, then the church lacks spiritual maturity. Can we achieve this by our own works or is it a gift we as a whole do not have? We can increase our level on maturity and thereby discernment if we concentrate on teaching the meat of the word.
‘3. Discernment is damaged when leaders compromise. The prophet Ezekiel denounced the priests and governors of Israel because they didn’t teach the people to discern. “They have made no distinction between the holy and the profane, and they have not taught the difference between the unclean and the clean” (Ezek. 22:26). Discernment, according to this passage, is shaped by the choices leaders make.’
This also is not the gift of discerning of spirits because it speaks of being taught by men. This last example is the most useful though. The church can increase in discernment through sound teachings, both in the foundational truths and the more profound ones. Lately it seems the only thing we can discern is the speck in our brothers eye.
Still all three of these examples concern discernment but not the gift of discernment.
There is a good example of real life operation of the Gift of Discerning Spirits in Kathie Walters article, Making Righteous Judgments [www.etpv.org/2008/mkrju.html].
Here is a good example from scripture of the Gift of Discerning Spirits in operation.
Acts 16:16-18
16 And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:
17 The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation.
18 And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.
Here Paul knew automatically by the Holy Spirit, what spirit he was dealing with, and when the right time came, he commanded it to leave.
But today’s church is not walking in the Spirit as Paul did. It does not have the Gift of Discerning Spirits operating, nor does it exhibit spiritual maturity to any noticeable degree. And why not? Here may be a clue from Judges.
Judges 17:6 In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
Summary
Discernment basically means to know. The extended meaning is to know some thing that is not immediately obvious. Like “is it real, or is it Memorex?” The idea is that some effort is involved to know what’s what.
The Gift of Discernment is a spiritual gift of the Holy Spirit. This means that the Lord reveals things that are not immediately obvious. When this operates in a person they are allowed to know things that others do not.
The church lacks discernment mainly because it lacks sound teaching.
The church lacks the gift of discernment, perhaps because we have not asked for it. We may think we already have all we need, like the church of Laodicea.
Scripture references.
1 John 4:1-3
1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
James 4:1-11
1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?
2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?
6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
11 Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.