So, I had posted briefly that there are no gray areas in the spiritual realm: everything is either of God or it isn’t.

This is so simple it becomes complex.  (And, yes, I’m still speaking rationally, just outside the visible box.  We must pragmatically articulate the invisible realm because it exists—one day it will even be visible!)

We know that something is of God if it lines up to the attributes of His nature, and if it doesn’t line up to that standard (even if it’s just minutely off) than it is not of God (or ‘evil’).  This is in the spiritual realm.

As humans we intersect the spiritual realm, whether or not we’re cognizant of it.  We think we come up with our own ideas (and to a certain extent we do), but more often our thoughts are coming from the unseen spiritual realm.  When we repeat or believe something we hear from God (through the Holy Spirit) it’s called prophecy or truth.  When we repeat or believe what we’re hearing in the demonic realm, it’s evil.  Engaging evil thoughts (or acting on them) is sin.  It’s not the hearing of the demonic realm that is sin, but the entering in by believing and thinking on those things.

It’s very important that we recognize good and evil (God and not-God) as occurring on the spiritual level first, because the fruit (the outward ‘doing’ of the good or evil) is totally dependent on the seed itself.  (A good seed blossoms into good fruit and vice versa.)

So, if my actions are an overflowing of the Lord’s love within me, I am doing ‘good’.  If the motivation of my actions is not aligned with the full nature of God, I am doing ‘evil’ and entering into sin.  And it really is that simple.

This is why 1 Cor 13 says that without a foundation of love (God), nothing we do matters—even if we’re feeding the poor, or acting in spiritual gifts, or engaging in other seemingly good activities.  God is love, and everything must be filtered through Him.

In another post I’ll discuss the large variety of choices and experiences we can have within the ‘God’ and ‘not-God’ realms.  There are no gray areas in the spiritual realm, but since we have God-given freedom and creativity, there are multiple manifestations of how we use the gifts and wisdom He gives us—I wouldn’t say this is a ‘gray area’ so much as a colorful spectrum of opportunities.