 The gift of discernment is an often misunderstood spiritual gift, but it is necessary in order for the body of Christ to function properly, especially in this hour. We need true discerners, and I believe that could be you. Tell me if I'm describing you here. The type of person who can usually see things before other people see them. In other words, someone perhaps is introduced to the church or to the friend group, and you're able to discern certain things about them. You're able to see things about them before anyone else recognizes it. You call it like you see it. You call it before anyone else calls it. You see it coming from a mile away, and maybe even oftentimes people say that maybe you're overly critical because they don't always see what you see. You can tell a lot about a person. You can see their struggles. You can see if there's something going on inside of them internally, in their soul, in their mind. You can see the different attacks maybe even that are happening inside of their mind. Do you often see things in people before others see those things? This could very well be a gift of discernment. Tell me in the comments section right now if I'm describing you, and I want to give you five different signs, five very important signs that reveal the gift of discernment in you, because I could very well be describing you when I talk about the true discerners that are needed for this hour, and man, do we need true discerners in this hour? Deception is on the rise. The church is being attacked by the enemy more intensely than ever before with deception and false doctrines and doctrines of demons and bizarre strange theologies. We need true discerners in the body of Christ. So again, tell me in the comments section if you think I'm describing you, and before I give you these five important signs that will reveal the gift of discernment in you, I want to take a moment here to answer just a couple of questions. First, I want to answer the question, what is the gift of discernment? And then I want to look at the question, what is the difference between discernment and the gift of discernment? Let's take a look at what the Bible says. I'm going to read first out of the King James Version, then out of the NIV, then out of the NLT. Now, the reason I'm doing this is because there is a collective power that really helps us to understand the Scripture when we put together the various translations. Now, I don't have time to get into why there's different translations and so forth, and I know that there are some people watching who are very adamant about King James only. Well, then just consider the other two versions that I read, a commentary, if you will. But let's take a look first. 1 Corinthians 12-10. This is the King James Version. The Bible says to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits. That's how the King James Version describes this particular gift. And here in 1 Corinthians 12, Paul the Apostle is describing several different spiritual gifts. Now, the original language that the Scripture is written in is much richer than the English language. There's much more going on in the original language that can often be communicated in the English alone. This is not to say that the translations aren't accurate, but we can get a better picture or a more rich description of these truths as we put the different translations together. 1 Corinthians 12-10 and the NIV says, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy. Watch this now to another distinguishing between spirits. So this gives us a little bit of a different perspective in that it's describing this distinguishing, being able to tell the difference between two different things or maybe even two or three different things. 1 Corinthians 12-10 in the NLT says it just slightly differently. He gives one person the power to perform miracles and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else, watch this, the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. So here in the NLT, the translators became a little more descriptive than we saw in the other two translations. So to another, the ability to prophesy, and he gives some the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Now put all of this together and we see clearly that the gift of the discernment is the ability to see into the realm of the Spirit with clarity and to be able to tell whether or not something, whether that be a message or a person, is of the Spirit of God or is of another spirit. Categorically speaking, we can say the other two spirits are a secular spirit and a satanic spirit. A satanic spirit is of the demonic realm. A secular spirit is of the Spirit of Man or worldliness or sinfulness or the things that consume culture today. That's secularism. But the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, that's the things of God. That is the true nature that is described in the Word. That is the true mind of God. So you have the Spirit, you have the secular, and you have the satanic. Those are really the three major categories, and really any spirit will fall under one of those three categories. Any message will fall under one of those three categories. Any ministry, any organization, any company, any agenda will fall under one of those three categories. Either it's of the Spirit, it's of the secular, or it's of the satanic. So the gift of discernment is the ability, the God-given ability, to have that clarity to be able to distinguish between those three different categories. Now the gift of discernment is not the gift of criticism. It's not the gift of suspicion. Some people are very suspicious of other people. They're very untrusting, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you're discerning, because oftentimes we're suspicious of people when they don't deserve that suspicion. Sometimes we're critical of ministries or ministers when they don't necessarily deserve that criticism. And so the gift of discernment is not the gift of criticism, and it's not the gift of suspicion. Again, just because you're an untrusting person or you're hesitant with people or you're highly suspicious of people and their motives all the time, that doesn't necessarily mean you have the gift of discernment. It probably just means that something happened in your life that maybe caused you to be untrusting with people. So that's to answer the question, what is the gift of discernment? Again, I'm going to give you five important signs that reveal this gift in you, but we're going to take a look at this second question before we look at those signs. That second question being, what is the difference between discernment and the gift of discernment? And many times, believers don't even know that there is a difference. Well, let's take a look at what the Bible says in 1 Corinthians chapter 12. I'm going to read verses 4 through 11. There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. So here, Paul the Apostle in 1 Corinthians 12 is describing the spiritual gifts. There are nine of them listed here in 1 Corinthians 12. Verse 7 tells us the purpose of the gifts. A spiritual gift is given to each of us, so we can help each other. Verse 8 to 1, person, the spirit gives the ability to give wise advice, or the translations would say the word of wisdom. To another, the same spirit gives a message of special knowledge, or the word of knowledge. The same spirit gives great faith to another. To someone else, the one spirit gives the gift of healing. He gives one person the power to perform miracles and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern, here we see the NLT again, the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another Spirit. Still, another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages or tongues, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have. So here, as we look at the various gifts that are listed in 1 Corinthians chapter 12 verses 4 through 11, we actually see some insight into what the distinctions are between spiritual gifts and regular functions within the body of Christ. Take for example, the gift of healing. There is a difference between the gift of healing and laying hands on the sick and seeing them recover, as described in Mark chapter 16, because Mark chapter 16, the very tail end of the chapter, describes the fact that those who believe the gospel message will have certain signs that follow them. Namely, they'll speak in new tongues, they'll cast out devils, and they'll lay hands on the sick and the sick will recover. So if this is for all who believe, what then is the difference between healing or speaking in new tongues, and then the gift of tongues in 1 Corinthians 12, and the gift of healing in 1 Corinthians 12? Take also, for example, the fact that all believers are to have knowledge of the things of God, but not all of us have the word of knowledge. All believers are to walk in wisdom, but not all believers have the word of wisdom. All believers are able to believe for miracles or to see miracles happen in their lives, but not everyone has the gift of miracles. All believers can hear from God, not all believers have the gift of prophecy. And so, if we break all of these gifts down, we can actually begin to see a pattern forming. There is a difference between the function and then the spiritual gift. What is that difference? Well, a spiritual gift is something that's used in the context of the gathering of the saints, the assembly of believers, the body of Christ. A spiritual gift, as revealed in 1 Corinthians 12, 7, is used for the edification of the body of Christ. In other words, it's a public ministry expression. It's an area of grace. It's a distinct, focused purpose of ministry. So then, there's a difference between someone who has the gift of healing and the function of healing. Someone who has the function of healing, they can pray for the sick as believers. They'll see miracles. But the one who has the gift of healing, that's a focused area of grace for public ministry that God has ordained for them specifically. So, all believers can lay hands on the sick, but not all believers are called to the healing ministry. All believers can hear from God, but not all believers can prophesy. All believers have wisdom, have knowledge, but not all believers have the word of wisdom and the word of knowledge. All believers should have discernment. All believers should be watching out for the tactics of the enemy and his deception. All believers should pay attention to those around them, but not all believers have the gift of discernment. The gift of discernment being the special area of grace, the special area of ministry function, to where their assignment in the body of Christ is to watch out for wolves, their assignment in the body, and this could be you. Their assignment in the body of Christ is to see deception and to warn the people about that deception. That is the difference between the gift and the function. That is the gift of discernment that we're talking about. Now, this is your assignment. This is your post. This is what God has given to you to do specifically in and for the body of Christ. And that is a very needed gift, as I've been saying. We are living in a time of great deception. There is so much information coming at people from all different directions, and sometimes it can become confusing because people don't know who to believe on what topic, who to believe on what doctrine, who to believe on what opinion. And this is why we need true discerners, people who will rise and speak very clearly, very focused, and take that confusion and cause it to become clarity. That's what happens when someone is a true discerner. They don't cause more confusion. Rather, they're able to pinpoint specific issues, speak very boldly, very truthfully, very lovingly, and cause there to be clarity where there was once confusion. They don't stir up division. They cause peace. They don't necessarily cause the division, I should say, because sometimes when you speak truth, that does actually cause some division, but that can be good in only some instances, especially when we're talking about those who are participating in blatant heresies. That's where the discerners come in, and they're able to call them out. So, when I talk about division, and I say that discerners don't cause division, what I mean is that they don't cause that unnecessary, unhealthy, immature division, which we should actually call drama. Discerners don't cause drama, but they do when they speak the truth, sometimes cause division, though that's not the purpose of the gift. We'll talk more about that right now. So, the signs that you have this gift. Let me know in the comment section. You're following me so far. I see you all over the place, the different nations represented, the different names coming across the screen. Let me know in the comment section if this is blessing you, if you're receiving this, and let's go look at these signs. Now, we're going to reveal this gift. If this gift is in you, biblically speaking, there will be signs that manifest themselves, and here are some of those signs. So, number one, how do you know if it's true discernment? That true expression of the gift of discernment in you. Number one, you are not speaking only negatively. In other words, you're free of jealousy and bitterness. This is one of those things that people often misunderstand about the gift of discernment. They think that the gift of discernment is specifically and only to call out the negative in ministries, in people, in situations. Many times, people who think they have the gift of discernment are actually just really negative people who are hyper-critical of ministries, ministers, churches, movements, and all they do is complain, and complaining is not clarity. Complaining actually causes more confusion. Yes, as I said, just a few moments ago, sometimes there's a healthy division. Jesus himself saying, I came not to bring peace but a sword. He was talking about making this stand that was so firm, that was so clear, that was so in some regards controversial, at least to the religious people, that people would divide over, and still to this day, people divide over the words that Jesus has spoken. But the purpose wasn't unhealthy division. The purpose wasn't drama. We have people in the body of Christ who are doing nothing but stirring drama. And in stirring drama, they call themselves discerners. And the Bible tells us to, at best, in everything that we do, with all power that is able to be summoned, to live peaceably with all people. In other words, you have to try to live at peace with one another. Sometimes people do just the opposite of that. They're not looking for a reason to remain united. They are digging, looking, hoping for a reason to divide. And that's just immaturity to where, for example, let's say a true, a true discerner, I'll give you an example. A true discerner will call out something that's unbiblical, and when the person responds and explains themselves what they're actually meaning, or maybe even corrects it, a true discerner is going to lead that alone and say, okay, God bless you. You corrected it. Praise God. What a wonderful thing that occurred. But someone who's just looking for drama isn't going to accept that. They're going to instead listen to that response and try to find something else that's negative, and then use that to only further dramatize the situation. And that's just immaturity. But that's on a tangent, just so you can kind of see just a little bit of what I'm talking about here. Hebrews 1215 says this, look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. Bitterness is a root. Bitterness pollutes the soul. This is the problem that we have in the body of Christ is that many people who claim to have to get the discernment actually only have bitterness, and they're just bleeding all over everyone and calling it discernment. Someone who is a true discerner is going to call out both positive and negative. Look, don't hear what I'm not saying. Absolutely. There is a time to call out the negative. And I've gone over those reasons in lessons past where I talked about the fundamentals of the faith when somebody violates a fundamental foundational truth of the faith. Okay, that is a reason for division. We understand that. But those who are truly discerning aren't nitpicking at every little thing, looking at every little point of disagreement, ironing out every single doctrine and making sure everyone is 100% in alignment with them on every single little thing before they leave them alone. That's not true discernment. Someone who is truly discerning is going to be free of jealousy, free of bitterness, free of negativity, free of cynicism, free of suspicion, and actually follow the way of the Spirit. Don't mistake suspicion for spirit. Don't mistake the flash for a gift that the Holy Spirit has given to the church. Some people are just complaining and they say that they're speaking truth. People who say things that are so negative, so nasty and hurtful. They gossip about other members of the body, not just ministers, other members of the body. And they say things, well, I'm just saying. I'm just saying. And often what they're actually doing is they're participating in foolishness. Truly, those who are wise speak because something absolutely needed to be said. But those who are foolish speak because they just wanted to say something. They had to contribute in some way. And this is why we need mature discerners and not just complainers, both the negative and the positive. All you ever hear from someone is negative, negative, negative, negative, negative, negative. That is not the true gift of discernment. That is negativity. And they're trying to disguise that as a spiritual gift and even maybe self-deceived. Now, sometimes it's frustration with their own lives. Here's a little bit of a psychological profile on those who actually participate in criticism and call it discernment. They usually, these are people who are not really seeing much fruit in their own ministries, not really seeing much fruit in their own churches, not really seeing much fruit in their own lives. And they're looking for something to give them a sense of control, authority, and importance. And in criticizing others and calling it discernment, they can actually gain some credibility, some traction, well actually not contributing to the body of Christ at all. And so, this is something that you absolutely must avoid if you're a true discerner. Now, it's possible you have a true gift of discernment, but until you deal with that bitterness, until you deal with that jealousy, until you deal with that cynicism in your own heart, that bitterness will be that root. That bitterness will be that weed that chokes the life out of the gift of discernment. Now, sometimes it's frustration with their own lives, and they criticize others to help work out that frustration. Other times, it's just absolute jealousy. Look at Acts chapter 8, Simon the Sorcerer. He saw what the apostles were doing. He saw that when the apostles laid their hands that the Holy Spirit's power was imparted. He comes to the apostles, he says, look, I want to buy this power. I want to have this same thing so that when I lay hands, other people will receive the Holy Spirit too. Look, he wanted a good thing, right? He wanted the power of the Holy Spirit, but his motive for wanting it was misplaced. And because of that, he was called out by the apostle, and the apostle tells him, you're full of the gall of bitterness. You're bitter, and you're jealous, and that bitterness and jealousy were intertwined with one another. So, when someone is only negative, it's a sign that it's bitterness and jealousy at work, and not the gift of discernment. Sometimes, it's misguided zeal. Sometimes, they're very passionate about the truth of the Word of God. They think it's the way that it's properly done, and so that's misguided zeal that's actually being applied, and they're not necessarily helping the body of Christ, but again, causing unnecessary drama. Sometimes, it's your own personal preference. I've been in meetings where I see that the power of God moved. I'll go to other people's services, other people's conferences, other people's churches, and I'll sit to the service and I'll go, my goodness, that was just a powerful move of the Holy Spirit, and then I'll hear someone else complaining. I don't know. Something about this just doesn't sit right in my spirit. I don't know. Something about this just seems off, and really all it was was their own preference. They had their preference, and because it didn't match their preference, because the music wasn't the way they wanted it, because the pastor did topical and not expository, because the church pews weren't the color that they liked, because they didn't like the screens that were being used. They didn't like the lighting that was being used. They didn't like the location of the church. They didn't like the way the pastor was dressed. Now, all of a sudden, they want to blame the Holy Spirit for their own preferences, and that's just not the true gift of discernment. You may have the gift, as I said, this may be something that's at work in you, but if you're not dealing with that bitterness and that jealousy in your own heart, you're going to speak negatively, suspiciously, critically, and sometimes unnecessarily, and then try to blame the Holy Spirit for the flesh being out of control in your own life. I know this is a little bit harsh, but I'm just giving you the truth according to the Word. Don't let that root of bitterness choke out the actual gift of discernment. So that's number one, how you know it's a true gift of discernment. Number one, you are free of jealousy and bitterness, and you are not just speaking negatively. Number two, you base your discernment on the Bible. Hebrews 4-12 says this, For the Word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. The Word of God gives true discernment. A true discerner is not going to discern based upon their preference. Not going to discern whether or not, based on whether or not they like the personality of the person speaking. On that note, it's actually interesting to me that when we perceive ego in others, it actually reveals ego in ourselves. Confidence looks like arrogance to the insecure. So when we see people and there's a personality clash, we say, well, that person just comes across prideful. Really, they come across prideful or they're knowledgeable? They come across prideful or they're confident in what they're saying? They come across prideful or they have deep convictions that cause them to make bold statements? This is why I said it's interesting to me in the body of Christ that when someone boldly proclaims what we believe, we throw up our hands and say, wow, how bold. I love that they don't compromise the Word. Yet on the other side of the coin, when someone with that same boldness and zeal declares something that we don't believe, suddenly now that's not boldness, that's arrogance, that's pride, that's overconfidence. God needs to deal with that person. And I've seen this not necessarily all the time in this season of my life, but I've seen this, that people use these sorts of criticisms against ministers who I love and respect and honor, and churches that I love and respect and honor. And that really is a subtle form of spiritual pride. And what that actually is, is that the pride in you is being agitated by what you perceive as pride in another person. Just because someone speaks confidently or intelligently or coherently or passionately doesn't mean that they're speaking arrogantly or pridefully. And this is a revelation to us where our hearts are, where we can judge someone based upon their presentation style. We judge someone based upon how they dress. We judge someone based upon the style of the venue in which they are ministering. We judge someone based upon how fast they're talking or how not fast they're talking, whether they're screaming or whether they're whispering. And these types of preferences are not the basis of true discernment. True discernment will see through the presentation. True discernment will see through the style, will see through the different methodologies and right to the spirit. It's the discerning of spirits, not the discerning of personalities. It's the discerning of spirits, not the discerning of methodology. So just because we have an issue with someone with the way they do something or the way they dress, that's something in our own. I'll give you an example. Personally, I find it easier to receive from people who are polished, who speak intelligently, who are dressed in a way that presents elegance and class, at least in my mind. Again, this could be a little religious on my part, but I know this about myself, that if someone's not dressed appropriately when they're preaching, like they're not wearing something that's at least relatively nice, then I have to be careful. Me personally, I'm sharing things from my heart now. When I'm watching someone preach and they have tattered jeans and just a regular t-shirt and a baseball cap, part of me wants to turn them off right away, and I have to be careful because that's not my discernment, that's my flesh. And I've received many powerful revelations in truth and even breakthrough from people who minister with a different style than me, from people who minister with a different tone than I do, from people who minister through different methodologies and with different styles of music. I've seen people from the hardcore punk rocker scene who've been very anointed, and at first I was hesitant because of their appearance, and then I had to see by the spirit through the outer shell and into the actual spiritual realm, and then I saw humility, and I saw anointing, where my flesh wanted me to see pride because I was agitated by what I was seeing. And some people are just the opposite. They don't like polished preachers, they don't like when they're dressed nice. They think that's fake, and they want what they would call real, and this is why the body of Christ is so divided, because we're basing our discernment on superficial methods, we're basing our discernment on the outer shells of the minister, the outer shells of the churches and the ministries. Well, you know, that church, they have big screens and a nice venue, so I think it's fake. Really, that's why you think the church is fake, because they put an emphasis on excellence, or just the opposite might be true. Well, you know, that church, it was small, and it wasn't really well put together, and it wasn't polished, and that couldn't be God, because God doesn't show favor to the small. And then that is not true either. That's another form of spiritual pride, because it doesn't match what you're comfortable with. It doesn't match what you grew up with. It doesn't match what you've always believed to be the truth. This is why you have to set aside culture, personality, methodology, preference, and go right to the Spirit. So, how do you do that? The Bible tells us here, the Word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit. That statement right there alone is such a powerful statement. Why? Watch this. It cuts between soul and spirit. Spirit is deeper than soul. Spirit is deeper than soul. So, the spirit is really the core of who that individual is. The spirit is really the core of that ministry. And so many times, we look at soul. We look at emotion. We look at dress code. We look at style. We look at all of those things, and because there's things sometimes clashed with our personality or our preference, we say, well, I don't know. Something in my spirit doesn't sit right with us, or I don't know. This just seems off to me, or I don't know. I don't know if I can receive from that ministry. And we're being religious when the Bible clearly tells us that it's the Word of God that cuts through the soul and the spirit. It divides those two, and it gets right between the joint and marrow. The Scripture says it exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. So, it actually gets right to the root of who we truly are and what we truly represent. The Word gives true discernment. So, a good question to ask is often, what does the Bible say? I mean, 1 Corinthians chapter 12, verses 1 through 3, very clearly Paul the Apostle says that if you want to know if someone is truly of God or not, look at the message that they're speaking. Look at the truth that they're declaring. Where does that come from? If they are blessing the Lord, if they're saying Jesus is Lord, not just in phonetic pronunciation, but with their lives and with their message, then they are of the Holy Spirit. You have to stop looking at the shells. You have to stop looking at the exterior. Man looks at the appearance. God looks at the heart. So, on either extreme, some people don't like polish. Some people do. Some people don't like preachers with a little bit more of a casual look, we'll say. Some people do. And it goes just beyond even the look and the personality of the preacher and the style of the church building. Those are just examples. There are so many other things that we look at besides the Spirit, but the Bible tells us that it's the Word that exposes the innermost thoughts and desires. It's the Word that cuts between soul and spirit. It's the Word that gets in between the joint and the marrow. So that's number two. You know you're a true discerner if you base your discernment on the Bible. Number three, there's a deep desire in you for this gift. 1 Corinthians chapter 14 verse 1 says that love be your highest goal, but you should also desire the special abilities the Spirit gives, especially the ability to prophesy. So here the Scripture is telling us clearly that we ought to desire the spiritual gifts. So if I am to desire the spiritual gifts, this means that that desire was put in there by someone. So there's nothing wrong with wanting a spiritual gift. There's nothing wrong with wanting for God to use you in a certain function. There's nothing wrong with asking God, for example, the gift of prophecy, the gift of healing, for saying, Lord, I need you to use me in this way to affect the people around me. Or Lord, I so desire to be used by you in this one area or that area. That is perfectly biblical. The Bible talks about desiring these spiritual gifts. Now here's the question for you. If you desire a spiritual gift, who was the one that gave you that desire? If you desire a spiritual gift, where do you think that came from? That spiritual gift comes with a spiritual desire. And it didn't come from Satan. Satan wouldn't want you to have a spiritual gift. It didn't come from your flesh. Yes, your flesh may desire the things that result from spiritual gifts sometimes, like people looking to you or honoring you. That's what the flesh wants. But the spiritual gift itself, that function, that desire to help other believers, that has to come from the Spirit. So if it's the Holy Spirit who gave it to you, why do you think he gave you that desire? Paul says to desire the spiritual gifts, and if you do desire a spiritual gift, then it was the Holy Spirit who put it there. And if it's the Holy Spirit who put it there, then the Holy Spirit wants you to have it. Desire many times means destiny. Passion many times means purpose. Very often, your desires are linked to your destiny, and your purpose is linked with your passion. How does this desire look? Well, sometimes this may manifest in you as a protectiveness for others. Are you highly protective of others wanting to help them stay free of deception? Do you have this righteous indignation in your heart when you see other people tormented by ungodly demonic doctrines, or even just bizarre and twisted strange doctrines? And you have this desire to help them. You have this desire to give truth. You have this passion and this zeal for the truth of the Word of God, this righteous indignation deep within you, that protectiveness over others, that righteous indignation, that passion for truth that could very well be the desire for the gift of discernment manifesting in those various ways. And those deep desires are signs that the spiritual gift resides in you. Now, I'm going to give you number four and number five in like just a few seconds here, but if you're watching right now and you haven't subscribed to EncounterTV yet, do that right now and make sure to click the notification bell. When you do, be sure to also like this video. We don't just ask for likes because of clout. We ask for likes because it actually helps to spread the message all around the internet. So the live streams respond or the live stream algorithm responds to likes. And so when you like it actually indicates to the live stream platform that people are enjoying this and therefore it should spread it to more people. So that's a very simple way you can support like. And again, if you haven't subscribed on our YouTube channel, make sure to do that now. About 60% of those of you who watch EncounterTV have not subscribed yet, which is pretty incredible. So make sure you're subscribed. You will not regret it. Number four, number four, a sign that you have to get the discernment. You can pinpoint the problem. The get the discernment is not vague. And for this point, I'll reference back to Hebrews chapter four, verse 12 where the Bible tells us that the Word of God is sharp. In other words, it's pointed. In other words, it gets right between the bone and marrow, right between the soul and spirit. People who say things like, well, I don't know. This just doesn't sit right in my spirit. Most often are not using the gift of discernment. Most often they're speaking out of their own preference and emotion. And this is why we have to get back to biblical discernment because the Holy Spirit is not vague. Yes, the Holy Spirit will sometimes speak in part. In other words, He won't give you the whole picture, but the part of the picture that He does give you will always be clear. It's not going to be a blurry piece of the puzzle. That piece will always be clear. So though He speaks in part, He still always speaks specifically. Though He speaks in part, He still always speaks clearly. So the Holy Spirit speaks in part, but always specifically. So this idea of, well, I don't know, something's off or something's not right. More often, I would say nine times out of 10, it's just us being critical. Nine times out of 10, it's just us having our own preferences and trying to pass it off to the Holy Spirit. But a true discerner is going to be able to pinpoint the problem directly. It's not as if the Holy Spirit is whispering in your ear, hey, by the way, something is off. I'm not going to tell you what it is. I'm not going to point out exactly where they're wrong. I'm not going to point out what exactly has gone awry here. I'm going to leave you to figure that all I'll tell you is something is off. No, the Holy Spirit is going to speak very clearly. He's going to say, here is how you discern. Here is what you look at. This is what the problem is. This is what the issue is. And again, it's going to come back to the Word. He's going to bring to your remembrance the Word and show you here is where this contradicts that. Here is where what they're saying contradicts the Word. Here is how the way they're doing it contradicts the way the Scripture tells us to do it. You can pinpoint the problem and you are not vague. That is a sign of true discernment. I can't tell you how many times I've seen my dear friends in ministry just totally attacked for no reason. I look at the comment section sometimes because I like to support my friends in ministry and sometimes I'll go leave a comment and every so often I'll read comments and I'll see something like somebody writes, well, I don't know, something just doesn't sit right in my spirit about this person. So in other words, they were a little uncomfortable with something that was presented. And then someone else will come along in the comment section. And these are keyboard warriors, Facebook theologians, internet apostles, YouTube scholars, right? They get on the comment section and they find each other somehow, always. And they'll comment the same thing. They'll say, you know what? I was going to say the same thing. Something is just not right. And now that you said that, that shows me I'm right. And so you get all of these people who are hypercritical finding each other online agreeing upon the criticism without being very specific at all. And because of that, they feel validated because they found someone else who was just as bitter and jealous. And that is not true discernment. Or they'll say something like, you know, something about this, I stopped watching a long time ago and now I know why. And what they really mean is I was always suspicious of this person. And now that I found something that they said that I don't like. Now I know that's the Holy Spirit and that's just nonsensical. It's emotionalism. It's preference. It's spiritual pride. But those who are true discerners can pinpoint, here is where the problem is. This is exactly why it's not of God as opposed to just tossing out vague insults and vague criticisms that attract other people who also make the same sorts of criticisms. Number five, the fifth sign that shows that you have the true gift of discernment is you have a track record of accuracy and others come to you. Now I'm talking about others recognizing your gift. Proverbs 18 16 says, a man's gift make his room for him and bringeth him before great men. I'm talking about legitimate spiritual authority, legitimate bodies and members of the local church. I'm talking about legitimate credibility, not just gathering a bunch of other bitter people who say, you know what, I have the same criticisms that you have. That's not what I'm talking about. Because like, think about this, every church has two or three bitter people who have left and who were hyper critical. And now because we have the internet, they all are able to find each other and then they create an army of critics and they go around validating each other. And that's just not what we're talking about here. I'm talking about legitimate recognition of your gift, legitimate spiritual leaders recognizing that gift. I'm talking about the body of Christ where you attend, where you're accountable, where you regularly attend, where they know you, where you're actually involved in local gatherings of the believers, where you fellowship, where people are actually connected to you and they can validate that gift on you. And you're not someone who has a track record of leaving churches out of bitterness. You're not someone who has a track record of causing drama and division. You're not someone who has a track record of just being hyper critical, but you actually have a heart to see the body of Christ come together. You actually have a heart to protect people from real deception. That is a sign that you have the true gift of discernment. This track record, others come to you not to hear gossip, not so that you can talk bad about somebody, but they come to you because they're genuinely interested in making sure that things are being properly discerned. So this is true recognition within the body of Christ. And again, not just a gathering of the bitter. Now I'm going to pray that the Holy Spirit would reveal this and then I want to talk to you about something. So don't log off if you're watching live and if you're watching the replay, stay for the rest of the video because I need to talk to you about something. But I do want to pray with you. And when we pray right now, let's ask the Holy Spirit to begin to bring to your remembrance things that will remind you of the five signs. Number one, you don't just speak negatively. Number two, you base your discernment on the Bible. Number three, there's a deep desire in you for this gift. Number four, you can pinpoint the actual problem. And number five, you have a legitimate track record of discernment. This is how the Bible reveals to us what the true gift of discernment is all about. So Father, in the name of Jesus, come on pray and you're watching online. I want you, if these signs are beginning to reveal things in you, if these signs are sounding familiar to you, let me know in the comment section and let's come into agreement in prayer. Father, in the name of Jesus, we thank you for this beautiful gift of the Holy Spirit that you deposit in each and every one of us. And Lord, I pray that that discernment would be revealed, not just the discernment itself, but Lord, the gift of discernment, that specific gift in 1 Corinthians 12. Lord, I pray you would also reveal those discerners in the mighty name of Jesus. Lord, we repent of bitterness. We repent of jealousy. We repent of being overly critical. And we pray, Father, that we would have the true discernment that comes only by the Holy Spirit based upon your word. Come on, pray right now. Begin to pray in the Holy Spirit. I believe there is a stirring of the gift happening right now. I believe the Holy Spirit is illuminating minds right now. He's revealing truths. He's revealing things about you. You maybe just thought you were good at reading people, but now you see it's a gift of discernment. Father, I thank you for the true discerners. Lord, I pray in the mighty name of Jesus that you would cause them to boldly stir up that gift. Lord, in love, not in bitterness, in the accuracy of your word, not in the vagueness of the flesh, I pray that anointing is stirring the gift in you. If you believe it, I want you to say it right now. Say amen. Wow. I truly believe that something's being stirred here today. True discerners are rising. The Lord is doing that work. Now, let me read a portion of Scripture to you here. Matthew chapter 6, verse 21. The Bible clearly says, wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will be also. Can I tell you something that's just really interesting? I can preach on any biblical topic and no one will ever tell me, well, I shouldn't say no one because these days you can find someone to tell you anything online, but any biblical topic I cover, usually most believers don't even bat an eye. They're okay with it. Why? Because it's in the Scripture. I can preach on sin. Everyone says amen. I can preach on the gifts of the Spirit. Everyone says amen. I can preach on evangelism. Everyone says amen. The moment I start to talk about money, there's always some who say, and I'm not responding to it because it's necessarily ruffled my feathers, but I'm responding to it because I want to help correct the mindset in many who are watching. This mindset that gets upset whenever money is talked about is just not biblical. It's amazing to me that preachers go through great lengths to say, well, I got to make sure to not spend too long talking about finances. Why? The Bible talks about it, and the church should not be ignorant about anything that the Bible talks about. So it's good to talk about finances. And here the Scripture tells us in Matthew 6, 21 that money is a test of the heart. Where your treasure is, that's where your heart will be also. And so I want to ask you this. Where is your heart? Is your heart in the gospel? Is your heart in souls? Look, I know that sometimes when things become a little scary, like what's happening in our world right now, what we're hearing in the news, sometimes it can become a little scary and we're tempted because of the fear to grip a little tighter in regards to our finances. But I want to challenge you to have faith today. I want to challenge you to step into the more. I want to challenge you to step into increase. How? By taking steps of faith. Let money be your servant, not your master. Show the Lord that you're a good steward. Show the Lord that you understand he's your source. Show the Lord where your heart is by supporting Kingdom ministry. I want to challenge you right now, and I'll actually see the names coming in live on my phone. I want to challenge you right now to go to davidhernandezministries.com slash donate and give a one-time gift, become a monthly partner or do both. This will be a test of the heart, not just in your generosity, but also in your faith. Look, when you give, it helps to fund these live streams. It helps to fund the content. It helps to fund the events that we do around the world. As I record this live, we are also in the middle of, or not in the middle, we're at the tail end of finishing up the fundraising for Project ETV. All of it helps. I want you to take this step of faith. I want you to be generous in your giving. I want you to subject the flesh, correct the flesh, tell the flesh, no, I'm not going to listen to you. I'm not going to listen to fear. I'm going to get behind what this ministry is doing. I want to challenge many of you to become monthly partners too. You can do that for 15, 30, 60, and I think 120 a month. It's all there on the website and these different tiers of partnership don't mean anything other than what you're able to do. Every gift counts. Everyone's giving matters. Don't say someone else. Don't say some other time. Help this ministry continue to expand. Look, in this season, we've not had to shrink back. In this season, we've been able to expand. We've been able to grow. We've been able to see God's favor. Be a part of that. Connect with the favor that's on this ministry. Thank you to Ashley for becoming a monthly partner. Thank you to Francia for becoming a monthly partner to Anna for your monthly partnership. Yolanda and Maria and Marie for your monthly partnership. Thank you so much for signing up to become a monthly giver today. I also see Cheryl. Thank you for your monthly support. And Nantine, thank you for your one-time gift. I'm seeing it. Those of you giving at David Hernandez Ministries dot com slash donate. I'm seeing your gifts coming in. Go right now. I know that when we watch online, it's tempting to say, well, no one will know if I just leave. And I get that. My goal isn't to make you feel guilty or pressured. My goal is to inspire you to get involved. My goal is to inspire you to say, you know what? Yeah, I want my heart to be in the gospel. And I want to demonstrate that. And I want to be one of those who gets behind what God is doing, not just one of those who watches and who spectates. I want to get involved with the cause. Look, we as Christians, we have missions to accomplish. The main one being soul winning. So help us do it right now. Again, David Hernandez Ministries dot com slash donate. You can give from anywhere in the world. I see Valicia. Thank you for your gift. I so appreciate that. Thank you, Brenda, for your monthly partnership. Silas for your monthly partnership. Christopher for your monthly partnership. Tira for your monthly partnership. Also to Aileen, thank you for your monthly support. Many of you signing up from around the world and you actually can sign up from pretty much anywhere in the world. Thank you, Jules for your one time gift. We so appreciate that. I'm asking everyone right now to go. David Hernandez Ministries dot com slash donate. Help support this wonderful ministry work. And I know the Lord will bless you for it. But more importantly, we'll see the fruit of our partnership together. One more time, David Hernandez Ministries dot com slash donate. Now, if you enjoyed this teaching, you will love how to know you have the gift of healing. Six important signs