Knowing Jesus in the Flesh
Just because a spirit recognizes Jesus doesn't mean it agrees to follow Him
![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff2bf81c0-8b6a-4337-8dd0-0530a5a3f533_1024x768.jpeg)
In class yesterday, this scripture came up toward the end.
1Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
2By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God;
3and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.
1 John 4:1–3 (NASB95)
I say regularly there are no contradictions in scripture just things we don’t fully understand yet. A class member then asked about the scripture that says demonic spirits recognized Jesus. His question was that they clearly recognized Jesus and knew Him. That sounds like a contradiction. Let’s look at that scripture.
28When He came to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two men who were demon-possessed met Him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way.
29And they cried out, saying, “What business do we have with each other, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?”
30Now there was a herd of many swine feeding at a distance from them.
31The demons began to entreat Him, saying, “If You are going to cast us out, send us into the herd of swine.”
32And He said to them, “Go!” And they came out and went into the swine, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and perished in the waters.
33The herdsmen ran away, and went to the city and reported everything, including what had happened to the demoniacs.
34And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, they implored Him to leave their region.
Matthew 8:28–34 (NASB95)
This story appears in Mark 5:1-20 and Luke 8:26-37. Luke tells essentially the same story. But Mark has a single passage in it that is a little different.
6Seeing Jesus from a distance, he ran up and bowed down before Him;
Mark 5:6 (NASB95)
This sent me back to the 1 John passage to look at the words there to look at the Greek word Confess from verse 2. Let’s take a look at that.
Greek Strong’s Number: 3670
Greek Word: ὁμολογέω
Transliteration: homologeō
Phonetic Pronunciation: hom-ol-og-eh’-o
Root: from a compound of the base of <G3674> and <G3056>
Cross Reference: TDNT - 5:199,687
Part of Speech: v
Vine’s Words: Confess, Confession, Profess, Profession, Promise, Vouchsafe
Usage Notes:
English Words used in KJV:
confess 17
profess 3
promise 1
give thanks 1
confession is made 1
acknowledgeth 1
[Total Count: 24]
from a compound of the base of <G3674> (homou) and <G3056> (logos); to assent, i.e. covenant, acknowledge:- con- (pro-) fess, confession is made, give thanks, promise.
James Strong, “Ὁμολογέω,” Strong’s Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary (WORDsearch, 2020).
The two base Greek words break down into homou, which is “together,” and “logos,” which is a word or speaking. Note also that in this verse, in this context we have the article “ho” before confess. To me, this gives it something of that divine importance, meaning, in my mind, we are confessing to God, of God, or with God.
Perhaps I am looking in the wrong place. Perhaps we are conflating two very different things. Let’s look at the word for “spirit” in the 1 John passage.
Greek Strong’s Number: 4151
Greek Word: πνεῦμα
Transliteration: pneuma
Phonetic Pronunciation: pnyoo’-mah
Root: from <G4154>
Cross Reference: TDNT - 6:332,876
Part of Speech: n n
Vine’s Words: Breath, Breathe, Spirit, Wind
Usage Notes:
English Words used in KJV:
Spirit 111
(Holy) Ghost 89
Spirit (of God) 13
Spirit (of the Lord) 5
(My) Spirit 3
Spirit (of truth) 3
Spirit (of Christ) 2
human (spirit) 49
(evil) spirit 47
spirit (general) 26
spirit 8
(Jesus’ own) spirit 6
(Jesus’ own) ghost 2
miscellaneous translations 21
[Total Count: 385]
from <G4154> (pneo); a current of air, i.e. breath (blast) or a breeze; by analogy or figurative a spirit, i.e. (human) the rational soul, (by implicaiton) vital principle, mental disposition, etc., or (superhuman) an angel, dæmon, or (divine) God, Christ’s spirit, the Holy Spirit:- ghost, life, spirit (-ual, -ually), mind. Compare <G5590> (psuche).
James Strong, “Πνεῦμα,” Strong’s Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary (WORDsearch, 2020).
Now, let’s look at the word used for demon or spirit from the Matthew, Mark, and Luke passages. In the King James Version the word there is a combined “possessed with devils” represented by the following word.
Greek Strong’s Number: 1139
Greek Word: δαιμονίζομαι
Transliteration: daimonizomai
Phonetic Pronunciation: dahee-mon-id’-zom-ahee
Root: middle voice from <G1142>
Cross Reference: TDNT - 2:19,137
Part of Speech: v
Vine’s Words: Demon, Demoniac, Possess, Possession
Usage Notes:
English Words used in KJV:
possessed with devils 4
possessed with the devil 3
of the devils 2
vexed with a devil 1
possessed with a devil 1
have a devil 1
[Total Count: 13]
middle from <G1142> (daimon); to be exercised by a dæmon:- have a (be vexed with, be possessed with) devil (-s).
James Strong, “Δαιμονίζομαι,” Strong’s Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary (WORDsearch, 2020).
Matthew would seem to indicate we have misidentified and are wrongly comparing spirits to devils. However, we don’t escape the problem with Mark. In Mark’s passage in verse 2, he uses the same Greek word, pneuma used in 1 John. Let’s see what Luke uses.
Greek Strong’s Number: 1140
Greek Word: δαιμόνιον
Transliteration: daimonion
Phonetic Pronunciation: dahee-mon’-ee-on
Root: neuter of a derivative of <G1142>
Cross Reference: TDNT - 2:1,137
Part of Speech: n n
Vine’s Words: Demon, Demoniac
Usage Notes:
English Words used in KJV:
devil 59
god 1
[Total Count: 60]
neuter of a derivative of <G1142> (daimon); a dæmonic being; by extensive a deity:- devil, god.
James Strong, “Δαιμόνιον,” Strong’s Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary (WORDsearch, 2020).
Luke uses still another word, but this again suggests we are conflating dissimilar things between spirits and devils or demons. Mark and 1 John do not give us the opportunity to simply blame a confusion of types on the comparison and move on. Let’s go back to 1 John and look at that passage again.
1Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
2By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God;
3and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.
1 John 4:1–3 (NASB95)
The 1 John passage doesn’t dispute there are two types of spirits, those from God and those of the world from the antichrist. The trouble we get into is that bit about confessing, which, from the Greek word, has the agreement of covenant. Ah, here we go.
The act of confessing Jesus is the act of placing oneself under authority in covenant. Recall a covenant is a promise made by both sides to keep the agreement whether the other side does or not. By definition, the spirits of the antichrist are not in covenant with God. Thus, they can recognize the authority, source, and power of Jesus Christ, but they do not agree to be bound by that authority. In fact, they are specifically rebelling against Him. This means that while Jesus is God made flesh and has the power over all creation, He is exercising it as force inflicted upon those spirits that do not enter into covenant with Him. In the case of those who do follow Jesus, when that power is exercised upon us, it is discipline, instruction, or teaching in the form of imparting wisdom through His knowledge of what is true.
12“How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations!
13“But you said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly In the recesses of the north.
14‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’
15“Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, To the recesses of the pit.
16“Those who see you will gaze at you, They will ponder over you, saying, ‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble, Who shook kingdoms,
17Who made the world like a wilderness And overthrew its cities, Who did not allow his prisoners to go home?’
Isaiah 14:12–17 (NASB95)
Satan, the Devil, and his minions are not on the side of God.
7And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war,
8and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven.
9And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
Revelation 12:7–9 (NASB95)
There are two sides, two camps in all of creation. The camp that is with God and the camp that is against God. God has entered into covenant with us through Jesus Christ and none other. There is no other way into God’s camp in Heaven but through His Son, Jesus. We must enter into covenant through confession that we understand and believe in His Son or we stand in the other camp. There is no middle ground in this. We are given intelligence and discernment to study His Word and learn how to pick out the spirits that are on His side and those who side with Satan and the Antichrist. It is an important skill we should cultivate and exercise to a high level. To do otherwise is to risk being lukewarm, and that is something I do not wish to be.
14“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this:
15‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot.
16‘So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.
17‘Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked,
18I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.
19‘Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.
20‘Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.
21‘He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.
22‘He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ ”
Revelation 3:14–22 (NASB95)