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Key Bible Verse: "But you may wonder, 'How will we know whether or not a prophecy is from the Lord?'" (Deuteronomy 18:21). Bonus Readings: Deuteronomy 18:22; 13:1-3; Jeremiah 14:14; Galatians 1:8

Phil told my wife and me about attending a meeting of two or three thousand people where a priest said, "A young man is here fighting leukemia." Phil was fighting leukemia but thought that in such a crowd there probably were several fighting leukemia. But the priest continued, "This man is also going through a divorce." Phil thought, Well, that's two for two." Then the leader predicted that this young man would have chemo treatments and return "next September to testify to answered prayer." That's what happened: Phil returned to testify to his perfect healing.

Was this priest a true prophet of God? I don't think so. Though an inaccurate prediction disqualifies a prophet, a correct prediction doesn't automatically prove that the man or woman is to be followed. I asked Phil, "How would this man answer this question: What does a person have to do to enter heaven?" Phil answered, "He'd say that you have to follow God and be a good person." That, of course is "another gospel."

—Erwin Lutzer in Who Are You to Judge?

My Response: How does a spokesperson's lifestyle bear on the validity of his message?

Thought to Apply: The gift of discernment has been neglected in charismatic circles, but is the gift that most needs to be sought and cultivated, because its exercise is the key to the right use of all the rest.—Tom Smail

Adapted from Who Are You to Judge? (Moody, 2002) by permission.

Copyright © 2009 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integritymagazine.
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Prayer for the Week

Lord, help me to so saturate my outlook with your Word that I readily spot whatever counters its teaching.

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