We Are Being Trained to React, But Scripture Trains Us to Discern

We are being trained to react. Every day. All the time. The world teaches us to respond quickly. To have an opinion. To take a stance. To pick a side.

This is what we are taught. See something, say something. Hear something, respond something. The world trains us to react.

But Scripture trains us differently. Scripture trains us to discern. To evaluate. To test. Not to react. To think.

This is the difference. This is what we have forgotten. We are being trained to react, but Scripture trains us to discern.

The Training We Receive

Turn with me to 1 Thessalonians. Paul is writing to the church:

Test all things.

Not: React to all things. Not: Respond to all things. Test all things.

That is the training of Scripture. Not thequick response. The tested response. Not the emotional response. The evaluated response.

This is what we forget. We are trained to react. But God trains us to test.

And then there is this, from Acts:

They received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily.

They did not react. They searched. They evaluated. They tested.

That is the training. Not: Believe immediately. But: Test carefully. Not: Respond quickly. But: Search daily.

The Testing We Need

And then there is this, from the Gospel of John:

Test the spirits.

Not: Accept every spirit. Not: Believe every teaching. Test the spirits.

That is the training. Not thequick belief. The tested belief. Not the emotional response. Thediscerning response.

This is what we forget. We are trained to react. But God trains us to test.

Why? Because not every spirit is from God. Not every teaching is true. Not every voice is worth following.

That is why we need to test. Not to react.

The Question That Matters

So what does this mean for us? It means we need a different kind of training. Not the training to react. The training to discern.

How do we get that training? Through Scripture. Through prayer. Through practice.

Through searching the Scriptures daily. Through testing every spirit. Through holding fast what is good.

This is what we need. Not the quick response. The tested response. The discerning response.

I know what it is to react. I know what it is to respond quickly. I know what it is to have an opinion without testing.

And I know what it is to test. To evaluate. To search. To discern.

That is the difference. That is what we need.

We are being trained to react. But Scripture trains us to discern.

One produces quick responses. The other produces discerned faith.

Which one are you being trained by?

We are being trained to react. The world trains us to respond quickly. To have an opinion. To take a stance.

But Scripture trains us to discern. To evaluate. To test. Not the quick response. The tested response.

That is the difference. That is what we have forgotten.

Let us be trained by Scripture. Let us test all things. Let us hold fast what is good.

That is the training that matters. That is the training that produces discernment.