First John 4:1-3 offers a Christological criterion for distinguishing between true and false prophecy; verses 4-6 add an ecclesiological one. You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 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 … Continue reading Church Matters (1 John 4:4-6)