Matthew 7:15-16 - False Prophets

My Step with God
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My SOAP study seems relevant at the moment.

Discernment helps to avoid Deception, Matthew 7:15-16

True and False Prophets

15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?

Author Matthew (also called Levi), the former tax collector who became Jesus’ disciple, is the author.

The date Matthew was probably written in the late 50s or early 60s A.D.

The purpose of this Gospel is to show that Jesus is the Messiah, that he has the right to the throne of David as Israel’s true King. Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham that his descendants would be a blessing to all the world (1:1; Gen. 12:1–3)…

Observation

Matthew 7:15-16 Jesus calls believers to be aware of, take heed, and guard against false prophets who come in sheep’s clothing, appearing righteous but inwardly corrupt. Jesus describes false prophets as ravenous wolves who operate by self-promotion or deceit and cause great spiritual harm to the sheep. [ 2 Cor 11:4; 2 Cor 11:13]

They come in sheep’s clothing, but are pretend ministers of Christ, stating God has given them special revelation leading people away from the truth of the Gospel. (2 Cor 11:4) False Prophets come as a foreteller of future events, or as a teacher of doctrines. They will perform great signs and wonders to lead many astray… [Matt 24:24]

Matthew 17:6 Jesus states we recognise false prophets because of the fruit they produce and be cautious of those who claim to speak in the name of God but do not bear the fruits of righteousness and true faith. [cf: Matthew 7:21-23]

This involves discernment in evaluating the true nature of individuals, particularly spiritual leaders. In the biblical context, “fruit” often symbolizes the visible outcomes of one’s actions and character.

The concept is rooted in the Old Testament, where fruitfulness is associated with righteousness and obedience to God (Psalm 1:3, Jeremiah 17:7-8). Jesus uses this metaphor to teach that genuine faith and character are evidenced by one’s actions and lifestyle. The imagery of fruit is also connected to the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23, which includes love, joy, peace, and other virtues.

Jesus is warning against false prophets who may appear righteous and holy on the outside but are actually deceitful and ungodly

Father, thank you for reminding me that spiritual discernment comes from You. Help me to read Your Word and seek You in prayer to guard my heart from being deceived by false prophets. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Hi @karen4,

This is a great reflection, thank you for encouraging me with it.

As I read through it, it came to mind that often we seek to recognize false teachers only by their appearance:

  • Do they look like a preacher?
  • Do they sound like a preacher?
  • Do they act (on stage) like a preacher?

But we need to know people by their character. And that requires relationship.

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Thanks for sharing this rich devotion @karen4. You mention several important characteristics of false prophets. Just wanted to share how I have seen these play out in the past.

  • Self-promotion and deceit: Self-promotion and deceit seem to go hand in hand. Self-promotion may appear as exuding confidence in meeting a real need. Deceit may take the form of name dropping of famous preachers or hiding controversial beliefs and weaknesses in the initial stages of connection.
  • Foretelleing of future events and teaching of new doctrines: They may add new rules that go beyond what’s written in the bible and develop new teaching on hard to understand topics such as eschatology, that many Christians struggle to refute. The signs of a false prophet often draw attention to self rather than God.
  • Fruits of righteousness: It can be difficult to discern the fruits because we may not have enough access to their lives. Lack of love and humility are probably the best indicators of a false prophet.

Amen to your prayer! Thank you.

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Hi @karen4, thank you for sharing your SOAP study!

The Old Testament roots of the metaphor and the connection with the fruit of the Spirit I found really helpful. Showing that this fruitfulness is grounded in trusting in the Lord and delighting in him and results in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness provides practical things we can look for as we seek to know them by their fruit.

It reminds me of how Paul defends his ministry in 2 Cor, both in the results of his ministry in Corinth (2 Cor 3:1-5) and in the character of his life:

2 Cor 6:3 We put no stumbling block in anyone’s path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. 4 Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; 5 in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; 6 in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; 7 in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; 8 through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; 9 known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; 10 sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

His reliance on the Lord and the fruits of the Spirit were clear in his life, even if he was perhaps not as eloquent as the false apostles who were leading the Corinthians astray.

Seeing this fruit can be hard sometimes though, since as @Carson pointed out, it “requires relationship,” and as @lakshmi said, “we may not have enough access to their lives.”

So that got me wondering about how to practice this discernment well in places where we aren’t able to see these fruits as well.

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Thank you all so much for your great encouragement.

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