Spiritual DiscernmentSample

The Gift of Discernment—Part 1

The gift of discernment, or the discernment of spirits, is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12. At times, this gift has been misunderstood, or even unfortunately misused.

Firstly, although I might sound like a broken record, we need to go back to the beginning. Order is important. You got it—God comes first! God existed before everything, and good existed before evil.

Therefore, because this gift relates to the discernment of spirits, our primary focus should be the person of the Holy Spirit! The first function of the gift of discernment is to recognize what Holy Spirit is doing in any given situation or environment. When we keep our eyes fixed on God, everything else comes into alignment.

Secondly, discernment requires the wisdom and maturity to recognize that not everything is a spirit. There are many influences, both external and internal, that can affect people and situations. There can be influences of culture, external environments, influence of the world, or human weaknesses that we all have. We need wisdom so that we don’t label something as "demonic" when it may be just the environment, the situation, or emotions coming to the surface. And we also need understanding to represent the heart of Father God to those around us. Even if we recognize that something isn’t God’s way, we are not called to judge, fix, or speak into every situation.

This is a good time to highlight that discernment between spirit and soul is vital in the outworking of spiritual gifts. If you ignore the promptings of the Holy Spirit in your personal life, you cannot expect to have the gift of discernment in your ministry expression.

Thirdly, every spiritual gift is given for the benefit of the church, for the common good. Therefore, it should be a benefit and a blessing to others! Every member should be working together in unity. Discipleship and accountability to oversight is vital in order to maintain humility and stay on track with God’s intention. The gift of discernment is not a license to be judgmental of people—we must start and remain in the foundation of love.