Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.  1 John 4:1-3

There are many people within the Church, who claim to be prophets, who claim to be apostles, they claim to be speaking for God, yet these people are not of God , but of Satan. Just because someone quotes scripture or has a following, don’t automatically assume that they are filled with the Holy Spirit. We must test every spirit that comes into our path! As the Apostle John says “Beloved, don’t believe every spirit, but test the spirits whether they are from God”

Remember when Satan confronted The Lord Jesus he quoted scripture also (Matthew 4) Many people today would have believed Satan, they would have said “Well he is quoting scripture” but he twisted the Word of God to fit his agenda. Doesn’t that sound familiar today? Or remember Eve was deceived by Satan in the garden, “You surely won’t die” promised Satan, but it was a lie from the pit of Hell that condemned humanity. Be careful when believing the promises of a false prophet, because they could condemn your soul

So how do we identify a false prophet? Here are a few things from my experience and perspective. Firstly, everything they say must line up with the Word of God. Every statement the false prophet makes, can it be backed up with scripture? Every promise or “prophecy” can it be verified with scripture? Remember Satan used scripture also, are they using scripture in the complete context of the chapter in the Bible?

Secondly, a false prophets ministry will always be carnally minded and not interested in the Kingdom of God. As the old saying goes “follow the money trail” , when a preacher is mostly interested in money, its a huge red flag. When a preacher just keeps asking for money and makes claims your money can produce “blessings” in your life, they are false, they are carnally minded. The false prophet desires the things of the flesh instead of crucifying their flesh. Money, power, sex, worldly possessions, are all driving points for a false prophet. As Jesus said “What does it profit to gain the whole world and to lose your soul” (Mark 8:36)

One common denominator I always find with a false ministry is the denial of the Trinity, the denial of the Deity of Christ,the denial of the bodily resurrection of Christ,  which typically leads to the denial of the authority of scripture. As the Apostle John says here “By this you will know the Spirit of God, every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come into the flesh is from God” Many cults claim to follow Jesus, but what is their description of Jesus? Is their belief of Jesus Christ, the same as what the Bible says? Most cults always believe in a false Jesus, the purpose is they deny his deity, they lower Christ into nothing more than another creation of God. Beware of these false prophets and groups! Nobody can be saved without Christ (John 14:6, Acts 4:12) If you don’t know the real Jesus, it doesn’t matter what you do know!

As the Apostle John said “And this is the spirit of the AntiChrist, and is now already in the world” Satan’s ultimate goal is to mislead people on who Jesus is and damn everyone’s soul to Hell. You need to make sure you are following the real Jesus Christ of the Bible, any other variation is just a false idol and you are simply not saved at all! Test the Spirits, because your soul is on the line! Amen!