This morning as I read through The Lectionary, I encountered these verses. I am familiar with each particular sentence, but I have not thought of them together. When I do contemplate them as a set of thoughts closely connected, I experience new insights.
Time will allow for only a brief note.
The passage connects the concept of “testing everything” with the concept of “not quenching the Spirit.”
It is very intriguing. One might consider that testing something could be a form of quenching the Spirit or despising the prophecy. But it is possible not to despise the supernatural while at the same time engage in the testing of the same.
Now, this requires an understanding of what it means to test. The scripture is not clear on the epistemology of this process. But I must, in the future, contemplate the implications. I think it lays out a reasonable blueprint for integrating the supernatural into the natural. Indeed, I think the distinctions between natural and supernatural are artificial. But I am looking for balance.
These verses offer balance.
