Matthew 7: Recognizing False Prophets by Their Fruit

Introduction

"Beware of false prophets." Pastor Hayden of Grace Baptist Church Watsonia, in the suburbs of Melbourne, takes on this "heavy topic" in his series on the Sermon on the Mount. The week before, the church had looked at the two gates, the two roads and the two destinations. That morning, Jesus gives another warning, just as serious.

The pastor admits that it sometimes feels as if we are living in the worst era in history: scandals in the church, false teaching on every corner of YouTube. Step back a little, he says, and it is nothing new. Every era of the church has had false teachers, sometimes worse than today's. That is exactly why the message is urgent: the church of every age needs to hear "beware of false prophets."

And this is not just the business of church leaders. "We can't say: Am I my brother's keeper? Because we are each other's keepers."

Outline of the Message

1. What Is a False Prophet?

Before you can beware of false prophets, you need to know who is being talked about. According to the pastor, many Christians have ignored this warning, and the church has split again and again because false teaching arose and was never dealt with.
Most members of the church are cessationists: they believe the office of prophet ended with the early church. The risk is then to conclude that this text no longer concerns us.
Yet the word "prophet" is not limited to someone who predicts the future or receives a revelation. In the broad sense, a prophet is God's spokesperson to his people, the one who brings the Word to others.
"Please don't call me a prophet," he adds. But when pastors bring the Word, they speak to the church on God's behalf. "Pastor Phil and I have a target on our backs as I preach this morning."
The idea is not unique to the New Testament. In Deuteronomy 13:1-4, even a prophet who performs a sign or a wonder must not be listened to if he says, "Let's go after other gods." It is the Lord who tests his people to find out whether they love him with all their heart.
Jeremiah (6:13-14 and the whole of chapter 23), Ezekiel (13 and 22) and Zechariah 11 show how much God hates false prophets. "And that's only scratching the surface."

2. Wolves Disguised as Shepherds, Destroying the Flock

False prophets hide in plain sight. They don't look like wolves ready to bite: they come "in sheep's clothing."
The pastor first understood it as them disguising themselves as sheep. The meaning is "much more sinister": the clothing is made from the sheep, from its wool or its skin. In Jesus' day, it was shepherds who wore such garments.
"False prophets don't pass themselves off as sheep. They pass themselves off as shepherds." And the word "pastor" literally means shepherd.
The scribes and Pharisees are the classic example: instead of caring for the people, they tied heavy burdens on their shoulders that the people could not carry.
Paul says it in 2 Corinthians 11:13-15: these false apostles disguise themselves as apostles of Christ, "and no wonder, for even Satan masquerades as an angel of light." As he left Ephesus, he also warned that wolves would come to attack the flock (Acts 20:28-32).
False prophets are not just mistaken, they are dangerous. Instead of leading people to the narrow gate, they say, "Let's take the wide road, it's so much easier."
The wolf is the natural enemy of the sheep. It looks for the one that lags behind or has wandered off the path. "That's why we can't be lone-ranger Christians."
"The fastest way to destroy a Christian is to isolate them." Someone who drifts away from the church for a while often ends up in dark and dangerous places. Gathering every week means staying close to the good Shepherd who feeds and protects.
The dogs and pigs of Matthew 7:6 are at least openly hostile. The wolf in sheep's clothing pretends to love you while trying to destroy you. Worse: some wolves don't even know they are wolves, they deceive themselves.
False prophets are so numerous partly because many people have "itching ears" (2 Timothy 4:3). "They want to be told nice things on the road to hell." The best protection is to love the truth, even when you don't like it.

3. Recognizing Them by Their Fruit

Jesus gives an ethical test rather than a doctrinal one. John, for his part, offers a doctrinal test: test the spirits and see whether they confess Jesus Christ come in the flesh (1 John 4:1-3).
The two go together. "Bad theology produces bad actions. When someone acts badly, if you pull the thread far enough, you will find bad theology." Behavior flows downstream from belief.
"I'm terrible at botany," the pastor admits. But an apple tree, he can recognize: it bears apples. Rotten fruit is spotted quickly, and if you have any doubt, one bite is enough. You don't try to repair a bad tree, you pull it out.
For shepherds, fruit is not measured by effectiveness, the number of conversions or the growth of the church. It is measured by how they act, how they handle God's Word and how they love God's people. "Unless James 3:1 terrifies you, you have no business in a pulpit," he tells those who aspire to pastoral ministry.
This fruit is not a facade of good behavior. The pastor tells the fable of the scorpion who asks the frog to carry him across the river. He promises not to sting, then stings the frog halfway across: "It's my nature." That is the nature of the false prophet: he can play the loving shepherd, but once he tastes blood, he tears apart.
Some false teachers are obvious: they deny the deity of Jesus, the Trinity or salvation by faith alone. The most dangerous are subtle. They say the right things in public, hide by omission what they don't believe, and speak the Christian language very well. A "Praise God!" can be sincere, but the pastor has also heard it used as a cover.

4. Those Who Trade in the Word

False prophets sell the Word for profit. There are the obvious cases, such as some televangelists who do nothing but ask for money. There are also the discreet forms: "You want to learn God's Word? I'll teach you. It'll just cost you money."
A document from the first or second century, the Didache, called them "Christ-merchants." "A brilliant word, but a horrible concept."
The pastor cites the indulgences of the Roman Catholic Church, through which people pay to receive a little grace and shorten their time in purgatory. He says they still exist today: "If that's not trading in God's grace, I don't know what is."
He also warns against closer-to-home abuses: churches that demand their members' bank statements to check their tithing, or pastors who want to approve every personal decision, even buying a house. "That's wrong."

5. Three Signs That Emerge Over Time

You don't recognize a false prophet in a day. "Someone can pretend for a while, but he can't pretend forever."
His character and motives. We can't read hearts, but things eventually come to the surface: money, prestige, power, recognition, popularity, personal glory, pride, lies.
The pastor adds a nuance: "If I have a moment of pride, does that make me a wolf?" It is a lasting pattern that should worry us. We have to walk a tightrope: being a people of grace, without letting grace keep us from removing a false teacher. John the Baptist was already using Jesus' words against the Pharisees and Sadducees: "Produce fruit worthy of repentance" (Matthew 3:7-10).
His theology. It often gives itself away by what he avoids saying. The false shepherd doesn't want to teach hard truths or call people to flee from sin. That is one of the reasons why Pastor Phil and he preach expository sermons, verse by verse. He admits, however, that a skilled wolf can do that too: it is his actions that will betray him.
Those he attracts. A legalistic shepherd attracts people who want to earn heaven by their works. The one who rejects God's law attracts people who want a soft Christianity, "a little bit of Jesus in your life," with no cost. The one who preaches "name it and claim it" attracts people who want God's blessings without the trials, "a full wallet and not God himself."
Don't let a likable, charismatic or learned teacher escape these questions just because he is pleasant.

6. What to Do About a False Shepherd?

First, remember his end. "Every tree that doesn't grow good fruit is cut down, and thrown into the fire" (Matthew 7:19). Unless God converts him by his grace, the false shepherd will end up where the wide road leads. Revelation 20:10 shows the false prophet thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur.
Next, think like God. Under the old covenant, the false prophet was to be put to death (Deuteronomy 13:5). "Let me finish my thought: I'm not saying we are going to stone people." The church does not live in the theocracy of Israel. But our hearts must take this sin as seriously as a capital crime.
The pastor recalls Pastor Phil's two messages about spiritual abuse, about a year earlier. Think about what you feel when you hear about sexual abuse: revulsion, disgust, anger. "That's what we should feel in the face of spiritual abuse." Without minimizing other forms of abuse, he describes it as the worst, because the one who abuses claims to represent God.
It is heartbreaking to see people who have hardened their hearts against God because of what a false prophet says and does behind a pulpit, and who will never listen to a Christian again.

7. The Responsibility of the Whole Church

"Beware" means: keep your distance, spot them and avoid them, don't listen to them.
Church members carry a great responsibility: not letting a false prophet into the pulpit, testing every man who aspires to be a shepherd and, if he is exposed after one year, two years or ten years, removing him from that office. This is one of the reasons the church is congregational: it is not the two pastors who alone appoint the leaders, it is the whole assembly that chooses and confirms them.
Non-members also have a responsibility, a lesser one: not to endorse a false prophet, whether by his teaching or by his practice. The pastor invites those who consider this church their own to become members, so as to be part of this "protective net."
A false teacher has a disproportionate impact. Churches collapse because of him, and Christ can remove the lampstand of a church that keeps him in place (Revelation 2:5).
Finally, attach yourself to good shepherds, those who care for your soul, tell you the hard truths, bring you back to the Word and lead you to Christ. "Not a witch hunt," but vigilance on the part of the whole church.

Key Takeaways

In the broad sense, a prophet is God's spokesperson to his people: Jesus' warning also applies to pastors and teachers today.
The false prophet does not disguise himself as a sheep but as a shepherd. He hides in plain sight and looks for isolated sheep.
You recognize him by his fruit: his character, what he avoids teaching and those he attracts. Time always ends up revealing him.
God takes false prophets very seriously. Spiritual abuse is all the more serious because the one who abuses claims to speak in God's name.
Vigilance is not reserved for leaders: every member of the church is the keeper of their brothers and sisters.

Personal Application

Do you love the truth even when it disturbs you, or do you look for teachers who tell you what you want to hear?
Are you isolating yourself from the church, the place where wolves find the sheep that lag behind?
When you evaluate a teacher, do you look at his charisma and success, or at how he handles the Word and loves people?
If you attend a church regularly without being a member, what is holding you back from taking your share in protecting the flock?
How can you concretely encourage the faithful shepherds who care for your soul?

Verses Cited

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a false prophet according to Matthew 7:15?

For Pastor Hayden, a prophet is not only someone who announces the future. In the broad sense, a prophet is God's spokesperson to his people, the one who brings the Word to others. Jesus' warning therefore also applies today to teachers and pastors, starting with those who preach in the church.

What does "in sheep's clothing" mean?

The clothing is made from the sheep: wool or skin. In Jesus' day, it was shepherds who wore this kind of garment. The false prophet therefore does not pass himself off as a sheep: he passes himself off as a shepherd, the one who is supposed to care for the flock.

How do you recognize a false prophet by his fruit?

Jesus gives a test of character. Fruit is not effectiveness or the number of conversions, but the way someone acts, handles God's Word and loves God's people. Over time, the false shepherd gives himself away through his motives, through what he avoids teaching and through the kind of people he attracts.