Discernment, what is it and do you have it?

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.  1 John 4:1

What is discernment and do you have it?  

1. 1.

   the ability to judge well.

   "He had an astonishing lack of discernment"
   
2. 2.

   (in Christian contexts) perception in the absence of judgment with a view to obtaining spiritual direction and understanding.

   
   

   "without providing for a time of healing and discernment, there will be no hope of living through this present moment without a shattering of our common life"

I think the Christian definition above is complicated.  Discernment is when God's Holy Spirit speaks to your heart and tells you something is right or wrong, and the key is the absence of judgment. 

A new person shows up at work and we may feel that something is off about this person. Without judgement, but with the kindness that comes with Christian maturity, we use wisdom from God to make sure they are not leading people in the wrong direction. Everyone else seems to really like them and trust their direction. We don't know them,  we haven't worked with them, we just met them but for some reason we feel that something is wrong. If we shared our feeling with others they would  look at us like we were crazy but a few months later, it is clear that this person is not someone who should be followed.  Similar situations may happen to us all the time.  This is discernment.  

Kindness in the bible is about becoming softer and warmer as human beings as we mature in our walk with God. Having this fruit is undeniably necessary when we have the gift of discernment otherwise our witness for Christ can be damaged. 

The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. 1 Corinthians 2:14

Without judgment which equals kindness, we should always seek spiritual direction and understanding and then the spirit within us hears from the Holy Spirit.  We need to pray about and listen to the Holy Spirit. 

Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.  John 7:24

I believe we all have discernment to a certain degree.  Some people listen to the Holy Spirit more strongly, some don't, and some have been given a special gift.  

The more we listen to the Holy Spirit, the better we will be at discerning good from evil and right from wrong. The closer we draw to God and the more time we spend reading His word, the more discernment we will acquire.  

Discernment is something that Christians can develop over time through practice and prayer but we must be careful not to jump into something with both feet just because we "feel" it. Not every feeling is discernment and it is often not something we want to share until we have spoken to God and made sure we are correct in His leading.  God would never have us share anything without kindness. 

But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.  Hebrews 5:14

Discernment is not talked about much in churches and the reason is unknown.  It is very important and is spoken of in the Bible many times.  It is a great tool for us as Christians that will lead us where God wants us to go.  It also protects us from being taken in by false teachings and people leading us astray.  

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

As a gift from the Holy Spirit, discernment is available to all Christians.  We just need to ask for it and prayerfully consider all of our 'gut' reactions to make sure they are from God.  We are taught not to judge but in the case of discernment, we should be, as the Christian definition above, looking for spiritual directions and understanding.  

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. James 1:5

And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ. Philippians 1:9.10