The Demands of the Kingdom, VII
Central thought: By their fruits you shall know them.
Text: Matthew 7:15-29
Rounding up His sermon on the mount, the Lord Jesus cautioned about false prophets.
He gave us vivid descriptions of their activities and how to identify them: emphasizing that their outward appearance is a far cry from their inward disposition. Our Lord Jesus is more concerned about our walk than our talk. Thus He exposed those who sounded religious but had no personal relationship with Him.
He also posited that we should build our faith on a solid foundation by hearing and obeying God’s word. Unless and until we put the word of God into practice by allowing it to bear on our lives and character, it will not benefit us. We would then be including ourselves among the ‘fools’ in the text, who build their lives on sand without any solid foundation. All these and many more is the focus of this study.
1. How can we know false prophets and what is their end? Matthew 7:16-23; 1 Thessalonians 5:21; 1 John 4:1
Our Lord Jesus said that false prophets come in sheep’s clothing while inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You can identify them by their life style. You will know them by the way they live and not by their talk, claim or attire.
Just as trees are consistent in bearing fruits of their kind (good tree bearing good fruit bearing, and bad tree bearing bat fruit); so do true prophets consistently exhibit holiness and righteousness, while false prophets consistently exhibit impurity and unrighteousness.
Their teachings may look reasonable, harmless as sheep, but in the end they prove dangerous and destructive. It is even possible for them to perform miracles and claim to be using the name of Jesus in doing so, yet they are not known by the Lord, Matthew 7:23.
Performance of miracles, signs and wonders are good but are not sufficient evidence of divine approval of the “miracle worker”. False prophets are often motivated by money, fame and power. They have the talk but not the walk. They minimize Christ and exalt self.
Some of these false prophets put undue emphasis on the use of candles, holy water, handkerchiefs, olive oil, sand, slat, stones, photographs and other material things. Others invoke fallen angels, lay emphasis on dreams, visions and prophesy rather than the word of God.
They often pronounce blessings on the disobedient to the word of God, but hardly preach repentance from sin.
Some of them may have started very well, but along the line pride and selfishness overtook them. They fall away from faith and start serving other gods including their own belly. Others may have never been genuine Christians at all. They are just there planted by the devil, using devilish power, their eloquence and charisma to deceive.
The end of all false prophets and their followers is eternal destruction. On the judgment day, these false prophets will roll out their credentials before God. They would claim to have used the name of the Lord to prophesy, cast out devils and perform many wonderful works. However, they would be disappointed when the Lord will say, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity”, Matthew 7:23. They would be cast into hell.
2. Identify some reasons for the caution about false prophets? Matthew 7:15, 2 Corinthians 11:13-14; Romans 16:18
False prophets, false pastors, false teachers, false apostles and messengers of Satan abound. The Lord foresaw a dangerous trap that could swallow up some sincere Christians and gave a serious warning to His followers.
Yet many elect of God have been deceived and lured away from Christian faith by these false prophets. Thus we cannot afford to brush aside or play down on the warnings from the mouth of our Lord Jesus Christ about their activities.
All serious minded Christians who want to make it to the end must study and take note of the guideposts given by our Lord on how to identify these false prophets. There is a need to be cautious because their pretenses are very fair and plausible. They may pretend to be sheep, appear innocent, harmless, humble, caring and to be everything good, but inwardly are ravening wolves.
With their pretentious life, they gain access into the gathering of the sheep to tear and devour them. Paul called them grievous wolves, Acts 20:29, and people that serve their own belly, Philippians 3:19.
Like Satan masquerading as angel of light, these false prophets claim that they are apostles but they are not, Revelation 2:2. They may be smooth-talking and Bible quoting preachers with charisma; may appear unto men righteous, proclaim high moral standards, but their lives behind the closed doors depict everything but righteousness and holiness. We must not be unsuspecting. We must look well and carefully examine every teaching and life style of anyone claiming to be a prophet of God. We must prove all things, 1 Thessalonians 5:12, try every spirit whether it is of God, 1 John 4.
You can examine very closely their character, motives, level of reliance on scripture, integrity and the fruit of the bearer.
3. Who is a wise builder and what does he build upon? Matthew 7:24-25; 1 Corinthians 3:11; Isaiah 28:16
The foundation of a building is its starting point. It is the basis upon which the entire building stands. It bears the weight of the building. If the foundation is not strong, the building will collapse. Scripturally speaking, all who hear the word of God are building either on a rocky foundation or on a sandy foundation. A wise builder is the one that builds his house upon a rocky foundation. This rock is Jesus; for the scripture says that “for other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Christ Jesus, 1 Corinthians 3:11.
A wise builder is the one that builds his life upon Jesus Christ. He is the man that has accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and personal Savior and continuously obeys His word without reservation. Such a man treasures and practices every word and instruction that comes from God. Any time you hear or study God’s word, you are automatically building. It all depends on what you do with the word.
4. Who is a foolish builder and what does he build upon? Matthew 7:26-28 What do both the wise and the foolish builders have in common?
The foolish builder is the one that erects his structure on a sandy foundation; such a foundation is very shallow and cannot stand the test of flood. Any foundation outside Christ is on sandy foundation. Such a man hears the word of God and refuses to obey it.
By not obeying the word of God after hearing, the man is building on a sandy foundation. The building may look beautiful on the surface, but will just collapse when the flood comes.
A foolish builder had the privilege of hearing God’s word, but he brushed it aside. What will come upon him is sudden destruction and calamity without remedy. Both the wise and the foolish are builders. They all have the privilege of hearing the word of God. Their buildings were subjected to the same test. The rain, flood and wind came upon the buildings. All who hear God’s word face the same trial, persecution and temptation!
5. What do rain, flood and wind as used in our text represent? Matthew 7:25
The solidness of a building depends on the foundation, the roof and the wall. The paint and other decorations in the building are cosmetic.
The rain, flood and wind are forces of nature that can try our physical house. Any time you hear the word of god you should expect the rain, flood, and wind. These are trials, persecution and temptation that test the level of our obedience, and submission to the word of God.
Daily living application:
In concluding the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord Jesus stressed the need for His followers to obey His word. As you hear these sayings of Christ, you have automatically started building your house, your life. However, only those who hear and obey the word of God will be able to stand the trials, the winds, storms and rains that will inevitably come because of the word. For Jesus said whosoever hears this saying of mine and does it is wise. This principle must become our lifestyle if we must walk with God and advance in the things of the Spirit. Be a “wise builder” and not a “foolish builder”!
Memory verse
Matthew 7:22 – “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”