Christians Are Fruit Inspectors
Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits....Every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad trees bears evil fruit. Matt. 7:15-17, RSV.
Jesus had both eyes open. He knew that His church would have problems, that there would be leaders who looked impressive and could preach captivatingly well, but who would take advantage of the naïve and gullible.
As a result, near the close of His inaugural sermon on kingdom principles He supplied us with two forceful illustrations of the need to keep both of our eyes open. In the process, He tells us that we will actually need to judge others in terms of the fruit of their work.
All the way through the Bible we find both true and false prophets, true and false teachers and preachers. The lesson for us is that not all who claim to be from God with a message from Him are actually what they pretend to be. Some religious teachers, Jesus notes, actually look like sheep on the outside, but inwardly are like ravenous wolves who desire to feed upon the flock of God.
The two creatures make a nice contrast. Sheep are among the most harmless of animals, whereas wolves have the reputation of being ruthless and bloodthirsty. Now, it is not difficult to distinguish a wolf from a sheep. But that's not the problem. The situation Jesus is describing is one in which the wolves arrive at church masquerading as sheep. That is, while they claim to speak for Jesus, they are actually under the employ of the devil.
Here is a problem that arises because of the subtlety of the situation. They are inwardly wolves. To all outward appearances, such men and women are God's servants. And where accepted as such, they prey upon the souls and pocketbooks of the believers.
That brings us to Jesus' second illustration, the one about trees and fruit. A law in nature tells us that you don't get coconuts off of poison ivy plants. Nature is consistent and predictable. So are people. If you give them enough time and space, their true character will show through in the fruits of their lives and teachings--either for good or evil. Jesus' point is that we need to keep our eyes open.
Help us, Father, to have a spirit of discernment as we seek to hear Your voice.
Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits....Every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad trees bears evil fruit. Matt. 7:15-17, RSV.
Jesus had both eyes open. He knew that His church would have problems, that there would be leaders who looked impressive and could preach captivatingly well, but who would take advantage of the naïve and gullible.
As a result, near the close of His inaugural sermon on kingdom principles He supplied us with two forceful illustrations of the need to keep both of our eyes open. In the process, He tells us that we will actually need to judge others in terms of the fruit of their work.
All the way through the Bible we find both true and false prophets, true and false teachers and preachers. The lesson for us is that not all who claim to be from God with a message from Him are actually what they pretend to be. Some religious teachers, Jesus notes, actually look like sheep on the outside, but inwardly are like ravenous wolves who desire to feed upon the flock of God.
The two creatures make a nice contrast. Sheep are among the most harmless of animals, whereas wolves have the reputation of being ruthless and bloodthirsty. Now, it is not difficult to distinguish a wolf from a sheep. But that's not the problem. The situation Jesus is describing is one in which the wolves arrive at church masquerading as sheep. That is, while they claim to speak for Jesus, they are actually under the employ of the devil.
Here is a problem that arises because of the subtlety of the situation. They are inwardly wolves. To all outward appearances, such men and women are God's servants. And where accepted as such, they prey upon the souls and pocketbooks of the believers.
That brings us to Jesus' second illustration, the one about trees and fruit. A law in nature tells us that you don't get coconuts off of poison ivy plants. Nature is consistent and predictable. So are people. If you give them enough time and space, their true character will show through in the fruits of their lives and teachings--either for good or evil. Jesus' point is that we need to keep our eyes open.
Help us, Father, to have a spirit of discernment as we seek to hear Your voice.
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