“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).
Long, long ago in my student days (shortly after the dinosaurs laid their last eggs), I wrote a paper on philosopher/educator John Dewey’s “Instrumentalism.” Dewey, as you may know, was the author of the aphorism, “Children learn to do by doing,” an idea that seems patently true.
A little-known fact, however, is that Dewey was a thorough-going relativist who believed that truth is subjective and becomes real only as we personally experience it. There are no absolute truths (and certainly no divine truths) to be discovered, only information to be gained through experimentation and experience. This was his world-view and the philosophy that, when followed in practice, contributed much to the progressive ideas that shaped modern education.
(I think similarly of Oprah and Dr. Phil, whose ethical mantras so quickly become ours. Where are these folks coming from? What are the premises that inform their thinking?)
My point is this: We must not, as gospel people, unthinkingly subscribe to the mottos and memes that are embraced by secular culture for they are often Trojan Horses for Satan’s most subtle lies.
We must “test the spirits to see if they are of God.” We must research the origins and philosophies underlying the slogans promoted by the world and test them against scripture, for “many false prophets have gone out into the world.” And as Paul would say, “we are not ignorant of Satan’s schemes” (2 Corinthians 2:11).
David Roper
9.15.20
