1 John 4:6

Conversely, those who are getting to know God, understand the language of His messengers and listen to it. ἐκ τούτου, i.e, from their hearkening or not hearkening. Men's attitude to the message of the Incarnate Saviour ranks them on this side or on that on God's side or the world's. Of course St. John does not ignore St. Paul's ἀληθεύοντες ἐν ἀγάπῃ (Ephesians 4:15). The message may be the truth and be rejected, not because of the hearers' worldliness, but because it is wrongly delivered not graciously and winsomely. Cf. Rowland Hill's anecdote of the preaching barber who had made a wig for one of his hearers badly made and nearly double the usual price. When anything particularly profitable escaped the lips of the preacher, the hearer would observe to himself: “Excellent! This should touch my heart; but oh, the wig!” τῆς ἀληθείας see note on 1 John 1:8. τὸ πν. τῆς πλάνης, “the spirit that leadeth astray”.