By their fruit you will recognize them

By their fruit you will recognize them

Scripture:

“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. Matthew 7:15-20

Observation:

In this passage, our Lord Jesus gives us a stern warning to watch out for false prophets. The Lord does not say “watch out in case false prophets come”, he says “watch out for them”. It is a given that there are false prophets and they are here among us on earth. What are their characteristics? Firstly, they come in sheep’s clothing. They give the appearance of innocence and purity on the outside. The warning for us time and again is not to judge from the outward appearance.

The truth is inwardly, they are ferocious wolves. In other parts of Scripture, Jesus likens Himself to be the good Shepherd, and those who follow Him to be His sheep. These false prophets who come in sheep’s clothing would claim to be fellow sheep like us, also following the good Shepherd, but in reality their intention is to lead us astray to follow another. The false prophets appear the same as us, but they are different.

How do we recognize them? Our Lord tells us to watch for what fruit they bear in themselves, and those who follow them. What is the meaning of this fruit the Lord speaks of? John the Baptist famously declared “produce fruit in keeping with repentance”, and examples of those who took his word to heart included tax collectors who charged no more than they ought and soldiers to be content with their pay and not extort others. There was an inward change leading to righteous outward behavior.

In Ephesians 5:9 Paul speaks of the fruit of the light, consisting in all goodness, righteousness and truth, and in Galatians, the fruit of the Spirit is described as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. The mark of most cults actually sees the leader dominating the congregation, threatening them with loss of salvation if they do not follow his teachings. Instead of peace, there is fear, instead of gentleness, there is manipulation and domination.

Application:

The best defense against influence by false prophets is for us ourselves to produce the fruit of righteousness in Christ. Jesus said “I am the vine, you are the branches, and that those who remain in Him will grow good fruit”. We need that strong relationship with our Lord Jesus, seeking His guidance and fellowship daily, that will naturally enable us to bear forth good fruit. Are we seeking goodness, righteousness and truth in our lives? Are we trusting the Lord to develop this fruit of the light in us? Meditate on the fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Ask the Holy Spirit to develop in us each characteristic in greater and greater fullness as we trust the Lord. As we ourselves bear good fruit, we too will have increasingly keen spiritual discernment to sense false prophets and false teachings that we need to reject.

Prayer:

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for Your warnings and Your teachings which are carefully made for our instruction and Christian living. Give me spiritual eyes of wisdom O Lord, that will teach me to steer away quickly from false prophets and erroneous teaching. Teach me Lord and help me remain always in You, as branches in the vine. Teach me Your ways, Lord Jesus, that I might bear good fruit that blesses others. Precious Holy Spirit, let Your fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control become more and more evident in my life. In Jesus name, Amen.