Learn To Discern
I just read reports on COVID-19 from two different online newspapers. One article said everything is getting better. The other said everything is getting worse. Which is it? Do medical masks help us or hurt us? Are we better off inside or outside? Should we flatten the curve or destroy the curve? Is this virus super deadly, or not so much?
The question is, how do we know what is fake news and what is actual news? How do we tell if what we are hearing is fake or facts? That’s an important question. How can you tell if what someone is telling you the truth or propaganda? How can you tell if someone is on the up and up or lying? How do you know if someone is misguided, two-faced, deceitful or honest?
Recently I was talking with a hysterical family member who kept saying that she didn’t know if it was God’s will for her to stay married to her husband. She was a mess. “What is going on?” I asked. “Well my brother says…” she started in, “And my brother always tells me…” I had to stop her and ask, “Why are you listening to your brother?”
Josh was playing with his little brother Mickey when the younger boy asked whether he could fly like Superman. "Sure you can, Mickey," Josh said. "Just flap your arms really hard." So Mickey climbed up on the windowsill, started flapping like mad, jumped, then smashed into the ground just a few inches below. Horrified, their mother came screaming into the room and said, "What happened?" Josh replied, "I was just teaching Mickey not to believe everything he's told."
How can we tell who is telling us fake news, and who is telling us the truth? It is so confusing. To answer this confusion, let’s look at one of the most confusing passages in the Bible. King Solomon - who, outside of Jesus, was the wisest person who ever lived - tells us this in Proverbs chapter 26: “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.” Proverbs 26:4-5 (NIV)
That clears everything up, right? Are we supposed to answer a fool or not answer a fool? And what does this have to do with fake news? Stay with me. Let’s examine these two proverbs for some principles on discovering the difference between fake and facts:
1) Recognize differences in people. There are different types of people. Solomon implies that some people are fools. Some people spend their time spewing folly. Another implication is that some people are not fools. If you look at the book of Proverbs you see that Solomon suggest there are three types of people: Foolish people; Wise people; and Evil people. Jesus used other labels: Sheep, Shepherds, Wolves.
2) Treat different people differently. Wait a minute, aren’t we supposed to treat everyone equally? Sure, you love everyone, you respect everyone, and you want what’s best for everyone, but you don’t treat everyone the same. If you greet the Amazon delivery person the same way you greet your spouse, you will be in big trouble! Think about the different people in your life. Research suggests you will encounter somewhere between 500 and 2500 people this year, but you will spend around 40 percent of your time with 5 people. We need to treat different people differently. Solomon says you treat fools differently than you would treat wise people or evil people. He even implies that you don’t treat all fools the same. Some fools are to be treated with instruction. Let them know their foolishness. Other types of fools are not worth wasting our time, emotional energy or breath on trying to instruct them.
3) Learn to discern. The wise in heart are called discerning - Proverbs 16:21. A discerning person keeps wisdom in view, but a fool’s eyes wander to the ends of the earth - Proverbs 17:24. We must become discerning. Here is the dictionary definition:
Dis·cern·ing adjective having or showing good judgment. synonyms: discriminating, judicious, shrewd, clever, astute, intelligent, sharp, selective, sophisticated, tasteful, sensitive, perceptive, percipient, aware, knowing; informal: clueful.
The word “discern” is used fifteen times in the book of Proverbs. Discernment is clearness of mental sight. It’s the ability to see clearly enough to make tough calls. It’s an inner knowing. And discernment comes in three different ways. First, discernment is a personality trait. Have you ever taken the Myers/Briggs type indicator? One of the grids that tool uncovers is a discernment grid. Some folks are naturally a bit more discerning, a bit more intuitive than others. Second, discernment is a spiritual gift. 1 Corinthians 12:10 talks about the “gift of discernment.” Some people supernaturally have discernment. Third, discernment is a learned skill. We can get better insight! Paul prays in the book of Philippians that we would be more discerning. John encourages us to “discern the spirits” in 1 John and Proverbs tells us to grow in discernment. So even if it isn’t natural to us or supernatural to us we can develop it. Fourth, choose to grow in wisdom. They say, "Wisdom comes with age," but sometimes age comes alone. Here is the bad news: We are all born foolish. Some believe we are born good. They are right—we were made in the image of God. Some believe we were born with a bent toward evil. They are also right—we have a sin nature. Yet we were all born fools. Folly is bound up in the heart of a child - Proverbs 22:15 (NIV)
“I kept a diary right after I was born. Day 1: Tired from the move. Day 2: Everyone thinks I'm an idiot.” Steven Wright
We begin as fools, but we don’t have to stay there. May I suggest we start by studying the book of Proverbs? “My son, pay attention to my wisdom; listen carefully to my wise counsel. Then you will show discernment.” Proverbs 5:1-2 (NLT) Seth Godin adds:
“Go with your gut,’ is occasionally good advice. More often, though, it's an invitation to indulge in your fear or to avoid the hard work of understanding the nuance around us. Better advice is, ‘invest in making your gut smarter.’ The world is a lot more complex than our gut is likely to comprehend, at least without training. Train your gut, get better instincts.” Seth Godin
We desperately need to make growing in wisdom one of our goals for this crazy time. Here’s the good news - we can learn to discern!