Watchout For WOLVES: Keys To Discerning Authentic Ministries & Evaluating Doctrinal Trends

4. The Spirit moves as He wills (John 3:8; 1 Cor. 12:11).

5. The Spirit guides and impels the church (Acts 9:31; 13:4).

Winds Used Symbolically of Doctrine or Teachings In addition to the wind being used symbolically to refer to the Holy Spirit, winds are also used to describe doctrines or teachings that circulate through the church world. We have cited Paul’s word from Ephesians 4:14 -15 before, but this is how it reads from the Berkeley Version. As a result, we should no longer be babes, swung back and forth and carried around with every changing whiff of teaching that sprints from human cunning and ingenuity for devising error; but, lovingly attached to truth, we should grow up in every way toward Him who is the Head — Christ. When these winds of doctrine are in balance and in harmony with the truth of the Scriptures, they can be refreshing and they are necessary for movement in the church. However, it they come to us out of sync with the Scriptures or they come in a way that is extreme and imbalanced, they can be destructive and damaging to the local church and the people that are in the church. James makes reference to double minded people who can be like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind (Jam.1:6). The word “tossed” that he used in this passage means “agitated or tossed f irst from one side and then from another.” Unfortunately, that is the state of many believers who are feeding on truth and error at the same time.

P ositive and the Potential Negative Effects of Winds?

There are three main types of flow described in the Bible — wind, water and rain. All of these can be positive or negative forces depending upon intensity, source and how they are controlled.

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