Christian DiscernmentSample

Discernment can be taught

Our emotions are not trustworthy, but thank God we have them. It is good when our emotions cooperate and are in agreement with the truth. It is a beautiful thing to feel love for Jesus Christ and His church, to be moved in our hearts as we sing songs of truth or hear a sermon setting the truth before us. Those are lovely things, and God gave us emotions for a reason, but our feelings were never meant to guide us. 

Our emotions are meant to respond to the mind, and we are to fill the mind with truth. I don’t trust my emotions for decision-making. I go to the truth of God’s Word, and then I call upon my emotions to agree with what Scripture says. The same is valid with experience; frequently, the worst decisions I’ve come across, in counseling people as a pastor, are when people in a crisis allow their experiences to color their thinking. I say, “The Bible says this...,” and they reply with, “Pastor, you don’t understand, this is what I’m going through right now.” They begin to argue against what the Bible says based on what they are experiencing. 

They get into the culture’s way of determining truth, which is often anecdotal, and I hear, “I know all these people who’ve experienced this, so this is what is right to do...” Now they are allowing emotion and experience to dictate how they think. Those are untrustworthy sources. You cannot find discernment there. 

We find discernment in Christ and His word. I think what we are suffering in the church, living in this culture, is the weakness of present believers. We have forgotten what the Bible teaches us about His church. When you think about how discernment is developed, you must know that one of the key elements is to be in a healthy Bible-teaching church where you allow the church to instruct you. Paul writes that the church is the pillar in support of the truth in the world. 

Where is the truth upheld in the world? Where is the truth defended and sustained? The Bible says that it is the church. In that particular context, Paul is not talking about the universal and invisible church; he’s talking about the local church where you have elders, deacons, discipline, Bible teaching, and the singing of truth. The church is where God’s truth is upheld and displayed in the world. If I want to learn discernment, I have to be a good member of God’s local flock. 

This devotional was based on an episode of the Straight Truth Podcast. Consider subscribing to the Straight Truth Podcast YouTube Channel.   We release new episodes every Thursday.