BEWARE OF THE FALSE PROPHETS
Matthew 7:15-20
Our text is a part of the conclusion in the Sermon on the Mount. From verse 13, Jesus repeatedly points out two of the opposite things. For instance, in verses 13 and14 there are two gates, the narrow and the wide. Then there are two ways, the narrow and the broad. There are also two destinations, life and destruction, and two groups, the few and the many.
In our text tonight Jesus continues to point out two of the opposite kinds, namely there are two kinds of prophets, true and false; two types of identifications, sheep and wolves. Also there are two kinds of trees, the good and the bad, which produces two kinds of fruit, the good and the bad. Having commanded his disciples to enter the narrow gate and the narrow road, Jesus now commands his disciples to be alert for individuals who deceive people with false messages. And Jesus specifically identifies them as the false prophets. This evening I want to point out four important implications from this portion of Scripture and then I’ll conclude the message with several characteristics of the false prophets.
I. Be on the alert of the false prophets at all times.
I would like for you to notice several adjectival words in this section. Adjectival words are words that really modify the nouns. They help to describe or put specific emphasis on nouns, such as the false prophets, sheep’s clothing, ravenous wolves, and so on. Here the adjectival words serve to make clear distinctions, namely the false prophets from the true prophets. And this is a very important distinction to make.
The term prophets simply mean ones who speak for God. They are to explain and apply God’s truth to the lives of the people in their own day, as well as speak about the coming future, such as, the coming judgments of God.[1] The true prophets of God do not invent or reinvent messages. True prophets do not edit or reedit messages that are given. In other words, they don’t add or subtract the actual words or water-down the meanings. They simply deliver the exact message as it was intended by the originator, namely God himself. As one commentator writes, “A true prophet is God’s mouthpiece. He was commissioned by God and conveys God’s message to men.”[2]
However, like everything else in life, there are also counterfeits to something that is real and true. Here Jesus commands his disciples to be alert about the counterfeit prophets. He is not just warning about the false prophets but specifically commanding to be alert about them. I get this from the very first word from this section – beware. In Greek this verb is present active imperative, which is a continuous command to pay close attention to, be on guard, and be watchful, as oppose to casual or passively looking. In other words, be on the alert of the false prophets at all times. However, this does not mean you spend your energy and time looking for false prophets as if you’re a heretic hunter, but that your radar is always on so to speak.
The Bible repeatedly warns against individuals who pervert the gospel and teach erroneous doctrines. Due to time, let me make two biblical references. Would you please turn your Bible with me to Galatians, chapter 1?
Also, would you please turn your Bible with me to First John, chapter 4?
In his book The Integrity Crisis Warren Wiersbe writes: “The wrong kind of preachers have created the wrong kind of Christians by declaring the wrong kind of message, compelled by the wrong motives.”[3]
II. The false prophets are not always easy to detect initially.
The fact that Jesus begins with a command to be on alert clearly implies that the sheep are prone to fail to discern who the false prophets are. In fact the false prophets are not easy to detect initially because Jesus says they come in sheep’s clothing. That is outwardly they appear to be like one of the sheep. The false prophets are not easy to detect initially because they may talk like Christians, meaning, they may use similar vocabulary, similar theological terms, similar Christian clichés and so on. In fact, Second Corinthians 11:15 states that “even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.”
Also, notice the language “sheep’s clothing.” It simply means they are deceptive. They are sly, cunning, and they lie in order to fit in with the crowd of sheep. This clearly implies that in the gathering of Christians or in the assembly of a local church there are many false or counterfeit Christians. And when churches fail to discern who Christians are and who are not, the very life and mission of a church gets jeopardized.
III. The false prophets are purposeful.
The false prophets come not casually or passively, but intentionally. They are much as purposeful or purpose-driven as we are though radically different in its purpose.
Notice with me what Jesus says about these false prophets. He says that they come in sheep’s clothing. Notice it’s not the sheep that come to the flock of wolves, but wolves to the flock of sheep. For sheep to walk into the flock of wolves would be harmful, if not suicidal at best. The sheep would not and cannot do any good by walking into the flock of wolves; it only does the wolves well. If this is true in the natural world, why don’t people understand that the same principle also applies spiritually? Don’t you realize that as a sheep, you don’t walk into the flock of wolves? Or remain with the flock of wolves as if some good would come out? To me this reveals more about the professing sheep than the flock of wolves. In other words, if you haven’t been eaten alive by the flock of wolves, perhaps they don’t think of you as a sheep but one of them; hence this reveals more about the true nature of a professing sheep. It’s amazing how some professing Christians stay with a dying or dead church as if they have the power to change the church when they are surrounded by wolves.
I intentionally use that analogy to point out that there are two radically different natures, namely sheep don’t kill and eat wolves, but vice versa. The nature of wolves is to kill and destroy. That is why they come to the sheep, not other way around. That is why Jesus qualifies these wolves as the ravenous or salvage wolves. Their nature is not to casually hangout with sheep, but to devour whatever they can. They are the instruments of the devil as 1 Peter 5:8 states, “Be sober, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” Conversely, the nature of sheep is not carnivorous. All that is to say the false prophets are intentional or purposeful about coming into the flock of sheep to kill and destroy.
IV. Although the false prophets are not always easy to detect initially, their true identity will eventually show.
I get this from verse 16. Notice the verb tense here – i.e., you will know them. In Greek this verb is future middle indicative, which means you may not know that such people are the false prophets initially, immediately, or that they are blatantly obvious, but it may take time – that is, you will know them. In fact, the same verb is found in verse 20, “You will know them.” They both are indicatives, which speak of certainty. That means though it may take time for the false prophets to reveal his true identity, nonetheless you will certainly know them.
The question is how? How can you know them? Jesus immediately answers that question in the same sentence – you will know them by their fruits. The idea is you recognize someone by his/her actions.[4] For instance, you know a plumber by his plumbing. You know a painter by his painting. You know a surfer by his surfing. In the same way, you know a teacher by his teaching. And you know a preacher by his preaching. In other words, you will know the false teachers and preachers by their false teaching and preaching.
Jesus says in verse 17, “So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.” In Greek the verb to bear is in present active indicative, which has the idea of continuous bearing. The same verb is also applied to bad tree. Hence good tree will continually bear good fruits, whereas bad tree will continually bear bad fruits.
In the NT fruit generally refers to visible, recognizable, outward manifestations. They are visible symptoms, indications, and reflections of what is truly going on internally. If the internal system is false, their fruit will be erroneous, faulty, and problematic. However, if the internal system is based on the truth, their fruit will have convictions for righteousness, purity, and truth. Fruit only indicates the true nature of inside. Charles Spurgeon said, “Every man produces according to his nature; he cannot do otherwise.”[5]
So what considers bad fruits and good fruits? The easiest way to answer that question is based on the context. Based on the context of this sermon by Jesus, if anyone is teaching anything that is contrary to what he had said thus far would be considered a false prophet. For instance, if someone teaches that you can enter the kingdom of heaven without you begging to God for the gift of repentance and saving faith, that person is a false prophet because that clearly contradicts to what Jesus says back in 5:3. Also, if someone teaches that you can enter the kingdom of heaven without being holy, that person is a false prophet because that contradicts what Jesus says back in 5:8. Hence bad fruits are anything that is contrary to what Jesus says thus far in his sermon, which means then bad fruits include rejections to repentance and righteous works. In fact, in verse 19 the verb is present active participle, which is better translated as “Every tree that is not continuously bearing good fruit is cut down and thrown in the fire.”
Conversely, good fruits are anything that continuously doing what Jesus says thus far in his teaching. All that is to say, though the false prophets are not always easy to detect initially, their true identity will eventually show by their teachings. This is why it is so critical to be in a church where the word of God is rightly preached and rightly taught in a regular basis because truth matters. Biblical Christianity has to do first and foremost with biblical truths. It is God’s truth that will set people free from sin, darkness, errors, blindness, death, and judgment. It is God’s job to cut and burn the false prophets, but it is our job to know them. Charles Spurgeon said, “This knowledge is to save us from coming under the shadow or influence of false teachers. Who wants to build his nest upon a tree is soon to be cut down?”[6] In other words, why would anyone sit under false teachings by false teachers?
Let me conclude this message by raising this vital question: What are the characteristics of the false prophets?
First of all, the false prophets putdown absolute truths. The false prophets despise truths. The false prophets tend to suggest more of the ideas that the Bible has errors since it was written by men, hence for them the idea that Scripture is infallible and inerrant is overrated. You’ll hardly get a sense that Scripture alone is authoritative, Scripture alone is sufficient, and Scripture alone is the word of God.
If the absolute truths are not denied, it is at best minimized. And one of the ways in which Scripture is minimized or to have a low-view of Scripture is to be an integrationist. An integrationist is someone who believes that you need more than “just the Bible.” Do you think like that or talk like that – i.e., “just the Bible”? Be very careful when you refer to the Bible that way. The Bible does not merely contain the word of God; it is the word of God! An integrationist believes that you need the Bible plus something, for instance, the Bible plus psychology and the Bible plus psychotherapy for better marriage and better relationships. The Bible plus traditions, the Bible plus cultural relevance, the Bible plus what have you. In churches today people have more confidence in psychologists than pastors, and psychology than theology. This is largely due to influences from people who generally have a low-view of Scripture. Generally when someone has a tendency to deny absolute truths they embrace pluralism and hold to an inclusive view of the gospel and salvation.
Secondly, the false prophets promise false assurance. Would you please turn your Bible with me to Jeremiah 23? I want to draw your attention from verse 9 to verse 32. Due to time I’m not going to comment much but simply read this portion of Scripture.
Among many things the false prophets were guilty of saying things that God did not say, namely giving false assurances to their listeners. Just like the false prophets in Jeremiah 23, the false prophets continue to proclaim today “Peace, peace” when there is no peace. Like the people in the OT we have people and churches in our own backyard who believe that all is well with God because of they cannot let go of one of the two common heresies of today, namely easy-believism or legalism. Easy-believism says “God loves everybody so why would he judge anybody or send anyone to hell?” On the other hand, legalism says “I’m OK with God because I’ve gone to church all my life, or I’m attending church now, or I’ve been baptized, I’ve been confirmed, I did this, I did that, I keep all the Ten Commandments” and etc.
Although both views are heretical, easy-believism is what is largely dominating in this part of the country. Easy-believism gives false hope and false assurances that everything is OK with God. The false prophets rarely disturb and condemn any guilty conscience. Martyn Lloyd-Jones said, “The false prophet is always a very comforting preacher. As you listen to him he always gives you the impression that there is not very much wrong… He never makes anyone tremble.”[7]
Lastly, the false prophets present shallow doctrines. Or in many cases there is emptiness of biblical doctrines. If you know of anyone whom you suspect is sitting under a false prophet or attending an assembly of wolves in sheep’s clothing you need to help that person to raise some eye-opening questions. For example:
1. Does he or the church preach the final judgment of God and the eternal destiny of the lost?
2. In preaching and teaching is there emphasis on the sinfulness of sin and the total inability of man? James Montgomery Boice said, “True teaching involves the realities of man’s depravity and sin, God’s wrath and coming judgment, the need for repentance, and the answer to man’s sin in Christ’s vicarious atonement. Any teaching that omits these elements is erroneous.”[8]
3. Does he preach the substitutionary nature of Christ’s death? The false prophets do mention about Christ’s death (after all, they’re not stupid) but it’s not enough to simply mention it. Ask him whether he believes that the death of Christ was sufficient and effective? Meaning, for whom did he die? Did he die for everyone? If so, then the death of Christ cannot be sufficient and effective since there are many who clearly deny him. That implies then his death is not sufficient and effective in saving everyone since not everyone believes and submits to the lordship of Christ. Then for whom is the death of Christ sufficient and effective? All that is to say, to deal with topics like this requires depth and maturity in doctrinal understanding.
4. Is there emphasis in biblical repentance? Listen how Martyn Lloyd-Jones defines biblical repentance:
Repentance means that you realize that you are a guilty, vile sinner in the presence of God, that you deserve the wrath and punishment of God, that you are hell-bound. It means that you begin to realize that this thing called sin is in you, that you long to get rid of it, and that you turn your back on it in every shape and form. You renounce the world whatever the cost, the world in its mind and outlook as well as its practice, and you deny yourself, and take up the cross and go after Christ. Your nearest and dearest, and the whole world, may call you a fool, or say you have religious mania. You may have to suffer financially, but it makes no difference. That is repentance.[9]
5. Is there emphasis on personal and corporate holiness and sanctification in preaching and teaching? To quote Lloyd-Jones again, “Holiness is a matter of working out what we claim to believe; therefore failure in practice does suggest a failure truly to understand the doctrine, and is an indication that there is something essentially and fundamentally wrong with one’s view of the Christian life.”[10]
6. Finally, what kind of God does the preacher or the church portray?
The best antidote to false prophets and false teachings is sound doctrine. Spurgeon said, “Sound teaching is the best protection from the heresies which ravage right and left among us.” That is why a well-instructed congregation is much less susceptible to false teachings and the false prophets. In fact that is one of the signs of a healthy church – to possess an ability to discern what is true from errors. It is my prayer and hopefully yours to beg of God to allow us as a church to grow healthy for his glory! Amen? Amen.
[1] Sinclair B. Ferguson, The Sermon on the Mount (Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1997), 166.
[4] Walter Bauer, F. Wilbur Gingrich and Frederick W. Danker, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1979), 405.
[7] D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1993), 2:244-45.
