Beware of false prophets who come in sheep’s clothing!

Beware of false prophets who come in sheep’s clothing!

Jesus gives a serious warning in his Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7:15-20. “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

There are important truths established by Jesus words in this paragraph. Believe it!

Truth and error exist. There is a right way and a wrong way. There are true teachers and false teachers. Believe it.

False teachers are deceptive. They look, act and sound like sheep even though they are wolves. We must be discerning and wise. We cannot be naïve or blind. Believe it.

You can distinguish a true teacher from a false teacher. Look at their fruit – what they produce: disciples of Christ or disciples of themselves, God’s service or self-service. The standard (God’s word) will help us successfully discern. Believe it.

A teacher cannot be both good and bad. A false teacher is not good. A little truth simply makes the lie believable! A bad tree does not produce good fruit. Believe it.

False teachers, like bad trees, will be destroyed. Not only are they self-serving and rebellious toward God, they are responsible for the destruction of others. Believe it.

While we cannot know or judge any man’s heart, we can know them by their fruit. We can see what they do and what they produce. Believe it.

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. (Matthew 7:13-14). Believe Jesus’ words.