Quote:
Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah
1. The commission is from God, therefore there is no way for a third party to test that.
2. The authority is from God. Again, not something that we can test.
3. The power of God. Again, not something we can test.
4. The Fruit. The one thing we can test, and I would equate that to the charge "to test the spirit". The fruit of the spirit is the test. This is more comprehensive test than simply testing the doctrine.
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1. is testable if for example God confirms the commission with other people - God told Ananias about Paul. The Spirit probably confirmed it to Peter and the others as well when they met Paul. Laying on of hands etc
Different tests are needed. Test of the spirit is to test if someone has the Spirit of God or not. This would apply if they are an unbeliever pretending to be an apostle. But what about a believer who passes the test of the spirit, claiming they are an apostle? Perhaps a believer who sincerely believes they are an apostle because others told them so or because that's what they wanted to be, or because they had some dream or vision.
For that the best test is the fruit of what did they accomplish. For this we can apply the test of the parable of the talents - how much did they accomplish with what they were given? Assuming they tried, of course.