The Believer’s Call as He Approaches:

Part 3 – To Discern

As the day of Christ’s return draws near, the call to discern is not a luxury for a spiritual elite, but a non-negotiable mandate for every believer. Scripture does not present discernment as optional or peripheral. It is the natural outworking of those who are watching for His coming and guarding the gospel deposit entrusted to them. When you fix your eyes on Christ’s return and hold fast to the message of grace, discernment is not a rare gift—it is the necessary result. You will inevitably recognize everything that deviates from the truth.

Watching and Guarding: The Wellspring of Discernment

To watch for Christ’s coming is to remain awake to the reality of His finished work and the inheritance secured for us. To guard the gospel deposit is to refuse any message that would compromise justification by faith or diminish our sonship. This vigilance produces a spiritual clarity: you begin to see the difference between what is of God and what is a counterfeit. Satan’s primary strategy is to steal what is yours in Christ and to introduce counterfeits—teachings and practices that look spiritual but are empty, powerless, and ultimately destructive.

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1)

Discernment, then, is not suspicion or cynicism. It is the fruit of valuing the truth above all, of refusing to tolerate error for the sake of a superficial peace. It is the ability to “approve things that are excellent”—to distinguish the genuine from the imitation, the gospel from its many distortions.

The Enemy’s Tactics: Stealing, Counterfeiting, and Withholding

Satan’s attack is twofold: he seeks to rob you of assurance and to flood the church with counterfeits. But his work is often aided by human hands. When leaders withhold the “key of knowledge”—by discouraging personal study, by refusing to teach justification by faith alone, or by making believers dependent on human authority—they impede spiritual understanding. This is not a minor error; it is a direct assault on the believer’s inheritance and conscience-cleansing. The result is a church that cannot distinguish between the voice of the Shepherd and the voice of a stranger.

The Stigmatization of Discernment: A Grave Loss

Today, discernment is frequently maligned in the churches. To question doctrine or expose error is to risk being labeled divisive, unloving, or even a Pharisee. This is not the Spirit of Christ, but a tactic to silence those who would guard the flock. When discernment is stigmatized, the church is left vulnerable to every wind of doctrine, unable to protect the gospel or the saints’ assurance. What is lost is not mere theological precision, but the very foundation of our confidence before God. If discernment is surrendered, justification by faith is quickly replaced by works, sonship is exchanged for slavery, and the inheritance is obscured by counterfeit promises.

Scripture’s Unyielding Mandate

The Word of God does not leave us defenseless against these accusations. It commands discernment and supplies the wisdom to answer every objection. Paul’s prayer is not for a love that tolerates error, but for a love that abounds “in knowledge and in all judgment,” so that we “may approve things that are excellent; that [we] may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ” (Philippians 1:9-10). Discernment is the safeguard of sincerity and the bulwark against offense. It is the means by which the church remains unspotted, awaiting her Bridegroom.

No Room for Compromise

Let no one deceive you: discernment is not a threat to unity, but its only sure foundation. To reject discernment is to embrace confusion, to forfeit the clarity of the gospel, and to abandon the very means by which God preserves His people. The call is clear—watch, guard, and discern. Anything less is disobedience and leaves the door wide open for the enemy’s theft and deception.

As we await His appearing, let us be found awake, unwavering, and unashamedly committed to the truth that sets us free. Discernment is not the enemy of love; it is its truest expression. To discern is to treasure Christ and His gospel above all, refusing every counterfeit, and holding fast to the promise that is ours in Him.