The Gifts of the Spirit

Lesson 4
Lesson Text: I Corinthians 12:7-11
7

But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. 8For to one is
given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same
Spirit; 9To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same
Spirit; 10To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning
of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:
11
But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally
as he will. ~ I Corinthians 12:7-11
The Gift of Discerning of Spirits
In this lesson we will learn about the fourth revelatory gift of the Spirit called discerning of
spirits. These gifts are called revelation gifts because the Spirit reveals something to us
in order to help us accomplish some divine purpose of God. As with the other eight gifts,
this gift is given to the believer as the Spirit wills and for the common good of man. (I
Corinthians 12:7, 11)
Notice that this gift is called the discerning of spirits denoting that there is more than
one kind of spirit to discern. In First Corinthians 12:10 the word discerning is defined as:
a distinguishing; discerning or judging. [1253, Joseph Thayers Greek-English Lexicon of
the New Testament] Through the gift of discerning of spirits then, the Holy Spirit gives a
believer the supernatural ability or power to discern or judge what manner of spirit is
influencing a person or circumstance.
With this gift we are able to distinguish whether a spirit that is influencing a person or
circumstance is Gods Spirit, the human spirit or an evil spirit. It is a gift which protects and
guards our Christian lives and also enables us to minister to others effectively in the
power of the Spirit. This gift can also work in conjunction with other gifts of the Spirit in
order to accomplish some divine purpose of God. These gifts would include:
A word of wisdom
A word of knowledge
The gift of faith
The gifts of healing
The working of miracles

This gift can help us to:

Discern or judge whether the spirit behind a preaching, teaching, prophecy, tongues
or interpretation of tongues is from the Spirit of God, the human spirit or an evil
spirit. (I Corinthians 14:27-30)
Discern whether a spirit that is influencing a person or circumstance is from Gods
Spirit, the human spirit or an evil spirit. (Matthew 16:21-23; Acts 5:1-11; Acts 8:18-23;
Acts 16:16-18; II Corinthians 12:7; I Thessalonians 2:18)
Discern whether a person is oppressed or possessed by an evil or demonic spirit(s)
for the purpose of ministering healing or deliverance to them by the power of the
Spirit. (Mark 9:14-26; Luke 13:10-13; Acts 10:38; 16:16-18; I Corinthians 12:10)
Discern spirits through dreams, visions and trances for the purpose of revealing
Gods will or the evil intents and plans of men, the devil and his demons. (Matthew
1:12-15; Acts 9:10-12; 10:3; 9-17; 12:5-11; 18:9; Revelation 9:17-19)
Gift of Discernment vs. Discerning of Spirits
Before moving any further, its important not to confuse what some in the body of Christ call
the gift of discernment with the supernatural gift of discerning of spirits.
Whats the difference? There are those in certain denominations today that believe in a gift
of discernment but not the gift of discerning of spirits. They believe certain Church leaders
or saints can possess a keen perception or exercise wisdom and judgment according to
their knowledge of the word of God however they dont believe that the gifts of the Spirit
(including the discerning of spirits) are still valid for the Church today.
The discerning of spirits however is a supernatural manifestation of the Spirit. This gift is
imparted by the Spirit as he wills and is not dependent solely on our knowledge of the word
of God. One of the greatest benefits of having the supernatural gift of discerning of spirits
released to us by the Spirit is that he is able to make up for any areas of human weakness
or biblical knowledge that we may be lacking in. In short, God is omniscient and knows
what we do not. Sometimes a believer may be lacking in the knowledge of Gods word and
therefore unable to render a proper discerning or judgment. Its also possible that the
believer personally may be deceived by another spirit (i.e. the human spirit or evil spirit). (II
Corinthians 11:3-4) In such cases the Holy Spirit must supernaturally expose that spirit to
the believer to loose them from the deception and lies of another spirit that is not of God.
Also the gift of discerning of spirits is given to the believer in order to aid them in casting out
devils so that others might be set free from possession and oppression. When this gift is
manifested for this purpose, the supernatural anointing or power of the Spirit is also
released to loose the one being possessed, oppressed or blinded by devil and his evil
spirits. (Isaiah 61:1; Luke 4:17-21; Mark 16:17; Acts 8:3-8; 16:16-18; 19:11-12) One of the
reasons that Jesus came was to expose and destroy the works of the devil. The Lord
continues to destroy his evil works by giving believers within the Church the authority and
power to carry on the Great Commission. (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-20; I Corinthians

12:10; Ephesians 5:11; I John 3:8) Its important then to call this gift by what the Bible calls
it, which is the discerning of spirits.
Thats not to say that the Word of God doesnt help us to discern between the spirits
because it most surely does. However its not the only means by which we can discern
between the spirits. Knowing the word of God is not the only way that weve been given by
God to help us to be able to discern whether a spirit is of God or not. However, we must
understand that the Word and the Spirit will always agree. Its important to understand that
when believers are operating in the gifts of the Spirit (including the discerning of spirits) that
all of them should be uses wisely in conjunction with our knowledge of the Scriptures. The
more educated and spiritually mature we become in the word of God, the less likely we will
become deceived by the devil or err in our use of the gifts.
All knowledge that God reveals to us is always for the purpose of doing some good in our
lives whether personally or to those we minister to by the Spirit. Gods greatest purpose is
to always give us the victory that his Son has obtained for us through the Cross. (I
Corinthians 15:57) The Spirit gives the gift of discerning of spirits in order for the believer to
be able to distinguish or judge what type of spirit is in operation so we can accept that
which is of God and reject that which is not. For this reason, its important that we also ask
God for his wisdom. Wisdom tells us how to best apply the knowledge that God has given
us. In this way we can cooperate with the Spirit to carry out the divine purposes of God for
the good whether in our own lives or in the lives of others.
Discerning the Voice of God
There are many voices speaking today and for this reason we need to be able to discern
which voice among these is the voice of the Holy Spirit. The devil and his demons are very
subtle in their tactics and wiles against Christians. (II Corinthians 2:11; 11:3-4; Ephesians
6:11; I Peter 5:8) The devil doesnt just show up at in our homes and Churches in his true
form or openly reveal his evil motives of wanting to devour us. (I Peter 5:8) Instead he
appears as an angel of light in order to deceive. He deceives in order to try to get people to
receive his diabolical plans which often include leading others away from Christ and the
faith. Just as God seeks to work through people to fulfill his good purposes, the devil seeks
to work through people to fulfill his evil purposes in whatever way he can.
Its important as believers that we are able to discern what is from God and what is not.
Being able to discern begins with spending personal time in the presence of the Lord
through worship and prayer. The more time that we spend with someone the more we get
to know them. In the same way by spending quality time with him we will come to know and
hear his Spirit distinctly from all others. We will learn to respond to his voice and allow the
gifts of the Spirit to operate and function through us as he wills.
Different Ways in Which We Can Discern
In the scriptures we learn about the different reasons why believers need to be discerning.
All believers need to discern the spirit behind a preaching, teaching or prophecy in order to
keep from being deceived or led astray from Christ and his truth. Those spirits that are not

of God [whether of human or evil origin] are deceptive and when followed after can lead us
into error or sin with their lies. (I Timothy 4:1) The Holy Spirit is a gift that God has given us
to help us in every area of our lives including to ability to discern the difference between
good and evil. We must learn to trust him implicitly and rely on him. Discerning properly
helps us not only personally but will also help those that we minister to. It will help us to
know truth from error, receive divine protection and deliverance from bondage and help us
to set the captives of the devil free.
According to the Word of God there are different ways in which a believer can discern
whether or not a spirit is from God. Although many of these ways will help us to know
whether a spirit is from God or not, they may or may not help us to specifically pinpoint
whether a spirit is of human or demonic origin and this is where the gift of the discerning of
spirits becomes valuable to the believer.
Supernatural Discerning
Every born again believer in Christ has been given the ability to be able to discern in all of
the ways mentioned in the link above by virtue of having the indwelling of the Spirit and
knowing the word of God. However, there is a different kind of discerning that is only given
to believers who have received power from on high or the baptism with the Spirit. The
Bible teaches us that there is more than one baptism. (Hebrews 6:2) Receiving the baptism
with the Spirit is another baptism subsequent to our being born again and baptized in
water. (Acts 19:1-7) It is Gods will for all believers to be baptized with the Spirit so that we
may be supernaturally empowered to do works of service for God and be powerful
witnesses for Jesus in the earth. (Acts 1:8)
The gifts of the Spirit are given to those who have been baptized [or immersed] into the
Spirit. They are supernatural manifestations imparted to the believer as the Spirit wills or
determines in order to accomplish some purpose for God. (Acts 1:8; 2:1-4; 10:44-48; 19:17; I Corinthians 12:7, 11) The gifts of the Spirit enable us minister supernaturally, beyond
our human capabilities or talents. When the Holy Spirit imparts a gift to us, we are given a
divine impartation or ability to know, see and accomplish what we never could by our own
human might or power. (Zechariah 4:6) Through the gifts of the Spirit, we can not only
know and see what God does but we are divinely enabled by the Spirit to minister to others
effectively in supernatural power. God doesnt want us to minister to others out of our flesh
but rather the Spirit. Our flesh will not profit us or anyone else; only the Spirit can effectively
touch and transform people by the power of God. (John 6:63)
Although all ways of discerning mentioned in the link above are necessary and helpful to
aid us in being able to judge whether a spirit is from God or not, they may or may not help
us to discern whether the spirit at work is human or demonic. There are times when there
will be no visual or audible evidence in the natural to help us to be able to distinguish this
properly and even then we may discern in error. There are times when we may find
ourselves in a situation where a spirit is not so easily discernable by simply knowing the
word of God. New converts also may not have enough knowledge of the word to know the
difference. Although we may have an inward knowing or unction that something is just not
quite right or not of God, we may not know anything beyond that. It is in these instances

that the Holy Spirit can supernaturally help us to know through the gift of discerning of
spirits.
In such cases the Spirit of God may deem it necessary to reveal the spirit behind a person
or circumstance through supernatural means for some specific purpose of God such as to
expose a false teaching or prophecy, to bring deliverance to one that is oppressed with a
sickness or disease or possessed with a devil (s). Another notable difference between the
former ways of discerning and the latter is that through the gift of discerning of spirits, the
Holy Spirit can give one the ability to see good or evil spirits in the realm of the spirit as he
determines is necessary. (I Corinthians 12:11) This supernatural gifting can give one the
ability to see Jesus, the Spirit of God upon people, holy angels or demonic spirits as the
Spirit wills for some special purpose of God.
Discerning and the Occult
Its been made evident that people who are active within the occult have the ability to
discern spirits as well. However those who are not born again and filled with the Spirit are
not exercising their gift under the influence of the Spirit of God but rather the influence of
demons or evil spirits. According to the Gospel, those who are not born again are not under
the power of God but Satan. (Acts 26:17-18; II Corinthians 4:3-4) Satan is a copycat and
has a counterfeit for every genuine gift of God. While Gods gifts are good and holy,
Satans are evil and perverted. Whereas believers receive their information from the Spirit
of God, those who operate in occult activities receive their information from demons or evil
spirits who are from the kingdom of darkness.
The Bible teaches us concerning the types of spirits that work through those who exercise
occult activities, i.e. witches, sorcerers, psychics (fortune tellers) and mediums and makes
it clear that these practices are detestable to the Lord. Although this may not be a complete
list we learn that such people get their information from familiar spirits, deceiving spirits or
spirits of divination but no matter which one, they are all lying spirits and their goal is to turn
people away from Gods truth and prevent them from coming to the faith or try to turn
people from the faith. (See Deuteronomy 18:9-12; I Samuel 28:7; Acts 13:6-10; 16:16-18; I
Timothy 4:1)
Some in the world today who are suffering with demonic oppression or possession are [out
of desperation] turning to psychics and mediums for help and deliverance but the truth is,
those that operate under the powers of darkness cannot help those that are possessed or
oppressed by the devil and his demons for two reasons. 1. Unbelievers have not been
given the authority and power set others free because they are not in Christ. 2. Jesus
clearly taught in the Gospels that someone under the influence of the devil will not cast out
devils because Satan will not cast out Satan. If he did he would be dividing his own
kingdom and defeating his own evil purposes among men. (Matthew 12:22-27; 19:13-16)
This is why those that seek help from those in the occult do not get delivered. Sure,
demonic spirits may limit their evil activity for a short while under the ruse that they are
gone but in such cases, they will begin to torment their victims again and continue inflicting
their evil deeds.

The only path to total deliverance is through the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Savior and
Deliverer of those lost and bound. Jesus is the strongman who has bound Satan and
through the Cross disarmed him and his principalities and powers so that the captives can
be set free. Now the Lord works through his Church and he has given the saints both the
authority and power to preach his gospel and set captives of Satan free today. Each of us
must do our part in helping to accomplish this great commission so that others may be
turned from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. (Colossians 2:15; Isaiah
61:1; Luke 4:17-21; Matthew 12:22-30; Mark 16:15-20; Acts 26:17-18)
Divine Purposes for the Gift of Discerning of Spirits
As was mentioned in Lesson Two of this series, each gift of the Spirit has different
purposes but often the Spirit will manifest more than one gift to work in conjunction with
another gift in order to accomplish Gods overall divine will. For the purpose of ministry or
works of service for Christ, the gift of discerning of spirits is often used in conjunction with
the word of knowledge, the gifts of healing and miraculous powers or the working of
miracles. In the following biblical examples given we are able to learn how these gifts work
together for the overall common good of others. Sometimes the gift of discerning of spirits
can be released through dreams and visions as well. As we study the New Testament we
can find many examples of how this gift was in operation powerfully through the Church in
the first century and how beneficial it can be to us in the Church today.
Judging
The Holy Spirit will manifest the gift of discerning of spirits through a believer in order to
help them to distinguish or judge what type of spirit is at work. With this gift we are able to
discern whether the spirit behind a persons words or actions or a circumstance is from
Gods spirit, the human spirit or an evil or demonic spirit. This gift is particularly helpful for
new believers that may not be rooted and grounded in the word of God yet. New converts
may not have enough knowledge of Gods word to discern whether a prophecy, preaching
or teaching is not of God. In these cases sometimes the Holy Spirit will release or manifest
the gift of discerning of spirits to a believer to help them discern so they may be protected.
However, the Spirit still manifests this gift through mature Christians as well. All believers,
no matter how long we have been saved, need to keep our reliance on the Spirit rather
than self.
Healing
There are several stories recorded throughout the life of Jesus and the apostles where the
gift of discerning of spirits was manifested by the Spirit in order to bring healing and
deliverance to others. Sometimes an individuals sickness or disease can be of natural
causes but sometimes it is due to an evil or demonic spirit as we will learn in the following
biblical examples. The Holy Spirit will help us to discern the difference when we are
ministering healing to others.

Deliverance
The gift of discerning of spirits can manifest to help the believer personally by discerning
when the devil or his demons are coming against them so they can exercise authority over
them. For those who minister to others however [i.e. especially those who go out and
preach the gospel to the lost], the Spirit most often manifests this gift in order to do good by
bringing healing and bringing deliverance to those who are oppressed and possessed by
the devil. (Acts 6:12-16; 8:3-8; 10:38; Acts 19:11-12)
Miracles
The gift of discerning of spirits can be used to perform miracles. What is a miracle?
According to Websters dictionary a miracle is an event that appears to be contrary to the
laws of nature and is regarded as an act of God; an event or action that is totally amazing,
extraordinary, or unexpected. Although some people are healed gradually some are
healed instantly and this constitutes a miracle. The realm of the miraculous can influence
many areas of life and bring glory to God. The gifts of discerning of spirits along with
healing, deliverance and miracles manifests most strongly when laborers are preaching the
Gospel to the lost. Those who walk in the power of God or signs, wonders and miracles are
demonstrating the proof that the message that they proclaim is truly of God.
Biblical Examples
During Jesus ministry he discerned many spirits and cast them out so people could be set
free from sickness, disease and Satans bondage. (Acts 10:38, Mark 1:21-25, Mark 5:1-13;
7:24-30) One day while teaching in a synagogue Jesus discerned by the Spirit that a
daughter of Abraham had a spirit of infirmity that had caused her to be crippled for eighteen
years. She was bent over and couldnt straighten up at all. When he loosed her of that spirit
and laid hands on her, she immediately straightened up and praised God. (Luke 13:10-17)
In the book of Acts we see the gift of the discerning of spirits being manifested through
Philips evangelistic ministry. When he went down to Samaria to preach Christ he discerned
many evil spirits within people there and cast them out, he also healed many paralytics and
those that were crippled. (Acts 8:4-8)
Once when the apostles Paul and Barnabas were going to a place of prayer, they were met
by a slave girl whom Paul discerned had a spirit of divination. This girl walked behind them
for days shouting, These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the
way to be saved! She did this for many days but Paul finally became so troubled in his
spirit that he turned around and commanded the spirit to leave her. Immediately the spirit
left her and she could no longer predict the future. (Acts 16:16-18)
In the city of Ephesus we see God doing extraordinary miracles through Paul and his
apostolic ministry. Even the handkerchiefs and aprons that touched his anointed body were
taken to the sick and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them. (Acts 19:1112)

Modern Day Example

Years ago Terry and I attended a Church in a nearby city. We often ministered to others
there through the gifts of the Spirit. One Sunday morning a lady walked in that I had never
seen before. I went up to her right away to make her feel welcome and we had a pleasant
conversation. Later she came to the evening service. After the Pastor gave the sermon, he
asked if anyone wanted to come up to the altar to receive ministry. This same lady got up
out of her seat and went to the front. She stood there along with several other people to
wait her turn to receive ministry.
As she stood there I glanced at her. At that instant, the Spirit of God spoke a word of
knowledge to me. He said, Witchcraft. I went to the front and shared this discreetly with
the Pastor. He called the woman over to ask her some questions. He asked her if there
was anything that she wanted to tell him and she said, Yes, Im on drugs and alcohol. He
asked her if there was anything else she would like to tell him and she hesitated but said
no. Just as soon as she said that though she fell backward onto the floor and began to
shake violently.
At that moment the Holy Spirit gave me discerning of spirits through a word of knowledge
that she had seven demons in her. Immediately, the Spirit gave me instructions to cast
them out one by one. Others around me joined in taking authority over the demons in the
name of Jesus. After the final one was cast out, the woman laid there on the carpet as
though she were dead. We waited for a little while and she finally started coming around a
little bit. Another woman standing there suggested that she and I should help the woman up
and take her to another room, which we did.
After she came to herself, she wanted to know what happened. I told that she had seven
demons cast out of her and that Christ had set her free. She said she saw the last one
come out and she said it was really hideous looking. She went on to share with us that she
had just recently moved from Louisiana to West Virginia. She confessed that she had gone
to see a Voodoo Priestess while she was living down South. She said that this woman
performed some ritual over her. (This confirmed what the Holy Spirit had told me
concerning the witchcraft.) I told her that she had unknowingly opened a door in her life to
the demonic. Her eyes got very big and she said, No wonder my life has been a living hell
these last seven years!
She went on to share that she was had been struggling with drugs and alcohol for several
years. We took her back into the sanctuary and the Pastor led her in a prayer of salvation.
We then laid hands on her to receive the baptism with the Spirit. Before we left the Church
that evening she shared with us that she felt strongly that she needed to come to our
Church to receive help. We, too, believed that God had brought her there so he could set
her free and to receive salvation in Christ. She continued to attend the Church weekly after
that.
I wanted to make a final comment concerning the knowledge that the Holy Spirit had given
me concerning this woman through the gifts. That Sunday morning when she came to our
Church, there was absolutely nothing that gave me the indication that she had seven
demons in her. That is, nothing that was outwardly visible or audible. That evening however

the Holy Spirit manifested the gifts of the word of knowledge and the gift of the discerning
of spirits for the purpose of setting her free and saving her soul. Without the manifestation
of these two vital gifts, this woman most likely wouldve left the same way she came: bound
by demons.
All of this should make us think: How can we in the Church effectively minister to others
today without the power of the Spirit? The answer is that we cant! These gifts empower us
to minister effectively to others so that they may be set free and receive eternal salvation.
All of this is for the glory of God. Without the gifts of the Spirit brothers and sisters in Christ,
we will not be able to effectively impact the lives of others for Christ. We must always
remember that our flesh will not profit anyone; it is only the Spirit who gives life. (John 6:63)
Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. He is the way to eternal life. The Holy Spirit
backs up the message of the Gospel with power to prove to those in the world that the
message that we preach is truly of God!
What Discerning of Spirits is Not
Through the gift of discerning of spirits, the Holy Spirit gives us the supernatural ability to
judge or distinguish between what type of spirit is influencing a person or circumstance. In
light of this definition we can understand that we do not discern or judge based upon our
own intellect, opinions or suspicions but on actual truth or facts as given to us by the Spirit.
We are not to judge people themselves but the spirit behind their preaching, teaching,
prophecy or interpretation of tongues. It is not for the purpose of passing judgment on
opinions, Romans 14:1 [1253 Joseph Thayers Greek-English Lexicon of the New
Testament] The Bible clearly states that we are not to judge people for this is Gods place
alone. (Matthew 7:1-5) Only he truly knows the hearts and minds of others.
The discerning of spirits is also not a formula, method or pattern that has been created by
man. Rather it is a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. (I Corinthians 12:7) Today many
charismatic ministries have written books on the subject of how to discern spirits but some
are teaching the saints unscriptural methods of how to discern and cast out devils. By doing
this they are also teaching believers to rely on the flesh rather than the Word and the Spirit
to discern. As a result there are many people in the Church who are misusing and abusing
the gift of discerning of spirits. All of this in turn creates unhealthy and unbalanced
ministries that bring harm to others rather than healing. Our work is a spiritual work that
cannot be accomplished in the power of our own might or flesh. We can only accomplish
Gods purposes in the power of the Spirit. (Zechariah 4:6; II Corinthians 10:3-5; Ephesians
6:10-18)
If we judge according to what we see and hear in the natural or by some formula rather
than according to what the Spirit reveals, we are liable to judge or discern in human error.
Ministering to others through the flesh instead of the Spirit will do more harm than good and
will not profit the one that we are ministering to. Jesus confirms this statement with these
words, It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak
to you are spirit, and they are life. (John 6:63 NKJV) Our effectiveness as laborers for
Christ comes by our hearing and obeying the Spirit of God. What he tells us to do will
always line up with the written Word of God. This is how we know that that we are truly
hearing from God. The work that we do must be conceived and birthed out of our

relationship and fellowship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. (I John 1:3; II Corinthians
13:14) We must remember that we who are sons of God must be led by the Spirit of God.
(Romans 8:14) In this way we will be powerful and credible witnesses for Jesus and bring
glory to God.
Related Article: Scriptural Ways in Which We Can Discern
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