True and False Prophets, False and True Disciples | Matthew 7:15-23

Good morning everyone. It's great to be together and under these wonderful, incredible graces

that our Heavenly Father has given us being His Word and prayer. And today we are going

to hear some very sobering words from the Lord Jesus. And so, as we approach the Word

of God this morning, let's come to the Author of Life and ask Him to help us understand

these words. Would you please pray with me? Lord Jesus, I'm reminded of when you said

some very sobering words in your ministry and many people couldn't handle what you had

to say and left. But Lord, there were those that remained because they knew that you have

the words of eternal life. Lord Jesus, this morning we ask for your ministry. We ask that

your Spirit would work in our hearts and minds and that we would see beyond a shadow of a

doubt that you indeed have the words of eternal life. Help us this morning in Jesus' name.

Amen. So church, since February we've been in the Book of Matthew and particularly since

April at the feet of Jesus with this famous sermon that He gave called the Sermon on the

Mount. And Jesus has been explaining to us, His disciples, about what it is to be part

of the Kingdom of Heaven. Now if you can cast your minds back to the very beginning, Jesus

started His entire sermon by explaining to us that those who enter the Kingdom of Heaven

are the poor in spirit. You might also remember that the original hearers of this sermon were

under the corrupt theology of works-based righteousness. Now if you've never heard that

phrase before, works-based righteousness, it simply means that they were taught that

one can enter the Kingdom of Heaven purely by what you do. That's right, it was taught

that God gave a law and that you are either saved or remain saved, if you were born into

a Jewish family that is, by your own obedience to the law. Now as you might remember, Jesus

had a few things to say about that. However, before He dug down and showed what had gone

so terribly wrong, He was very clear to say that the law was from God and that our obedience

to the law is vitally important. In fact, in no way, said Jesus, had He come to abolish

the law or the prophets. No, in fact, He hadn't come to abolish them, but He had come to fulfill

them. Going on to say that if your righteousness didn't surpass that of the Pharisees and the

teachers of the law, well you'd certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Now as you

might remember, what He meant by all of that was that He had come to give the fullest

expression of what the law was pointing to. And that wasn't to the outward righteousness

of people alone, like the Pharisees had taught the people. But the law was given to point

to the very heart of people, the very thing that motivates us in all we do and say. That's

what Jesus was hitting on in chapters five through to six. God gave the law, not so that

people would look at the law and then try to earn a place in the Kingdom. No, it was

given to expose that there is something drastically wrong with our hearts. In other words, even

though the outward actions might look pretty good to those around us, the heart might be

totally and utterly dead towards God. So Jesus explained that God looks at the heart as well

as the actions and it's as we understand that and look at our lives and judge our motivations

in light of the law that we quickly see that there is something drastically wrong. That

we are utterly compromised or as Jesus puts it, poor in spirit. So instead of casting

the law aside and saying, just do what you want, Jesus actually takes it to a totally

different level. Casting a new light on the law and in the doing on our understanding

of why the law was given. It was given to show us that we are poor in spirit so that

we might not look to our own works for justification before God, but that we might see our utter

depravity and go to God and plead for his mercy because there is nothing in and of ourselves

that merits a place in his Holy Kingdom. To put it plainly, the true disciples of Jesus

hear the word of God, believe the word of God, trust Jesus absolutely with all that

they are which ultimately leads them to obey the word of God with all that they do. And

it's those who are doing that which are blessed and are on the narrow way, says Jesus. And

I want to say something on that because that's what the disciples life is defined by, walking

on the narrow way. Now you might not have been with us when we looked at the two ways

to live a few weeks ago, but the point of our Lord was simple. There are two ways to

live, only two ways, the broad way which is the way of falsehood which leads to death

or the narrow way which we enter only by Christ, which leads to life and either you're

on the highway to hell or on the path to life. There is only two ways, only two types of

people, only two endpoints and what you do now with the words of Jesus determines your

eternity. But Jesus says, not everybody believes that message or will promote that truth even

though they really might seem to be part of the people of God. And we have to be aware

of this church so we don't get deceived or pulled away from the narrow path. That's why

Jesus speaks these incredibly sobering words to his people this morning. If you have your

Bibles, let's look at verse 15. Watch out for false prophets, they come to you in sheep's

clothing but inwardly they're ferocious wolves. What is Jesus saying here exactly? It's pretty

straightforward. He's saying that we must be on guard and be aware that not everyone

who comes to us in the name of Jesus really is of God. I want to explain what I mean by

that. As I've already pointed out this morning, there is only one way that leads to life and

that is the narrow way, the narrow path that we enter by the narrow gate and that is Jesus

Christ. However, we must be aware that there will be those who claim to be telling us how

to walk on the narrow way yet are actually out to lead us further and further down the

highway to hell. They're ferocious wolves, says Jesus. Now you might be here this morning

and thinking to yourself, how can that be? How could people be like that? How could we

be so deceived by them? Church, it's right there in our text, verse 15. These people

look, talk, act, smell and even look like us. That's what Jesus is getting at with this

sheep's clothing language. He's the shepherd, we are his sheep, his flock yet not everyone

who bleeps and ba-ba-do-ba-ba's truly is a sheep but actually an enemy of the sheep,

a wolf. In other words, not everyone in the visible church who confesses Christ and teaches

on behalf of God is truly part of his people, though they very much look the part. Sobering

stuff, would you agree? There's a few observations that I want you to have a think about as the

people of God. First, we are not to go on a wild goose chase and go heresy hunting.

This isn't Jesus telling us to take up the sport of witch hunting. That's not the point

of what he's driving here. We have to remember how Jesus started this whole section of his

sermon in chapter seven. We're all a work in progress. Sometimes we make mistakes, say

things we don't mean, get things wrong and we are to help and correct one another in

the Lord with an attitude of love and humility. We must never be quick to pull the heresy

card on a brother or sister when there's been a genuine mistake or blunder and there's repentance.

However, in saying that, this is a solemn warning that not everyone we come across in

the church, even Bible teachers, are actually a brother or sister in the Lord. And though

they might look like they know our shepherd, look like they have a personal relationship

with him and even claim to speak the things that he said, they're actually wolves who

have come to invade the flock and tear it apart by trying to lead God's people off the

narrow way. So Jesus says, my people, don't be ignorant of the schemes of the enemy. Not

one who claims to speak on behalf of God is really of him. Which leads me to my second

observation and it's this, Jesus warns that these people are ferocious. When I was younger

and looking for a room to rent, a friend of mine had a room and he told me that he was

going to be out for the day and that I could go and check the room out at his place. So

when I got there, I jumped the back fence to go and have a look around the house. However,

what my friend failed to mention was that he owned a huge German shepherd, which just

so happened to be waiting around the corner of the house. Without a word of a lie, it's

the closest I've ever come to meeting an early death. I still don't quite remember how I

was able to jump the fence that fateful day, though I was still left with horrible claw

marks on my back and legs. That dog was ferocious. It was out to kill me. I still slightly jump

when I knock on someone's front door and hear a large animal come bounding over. It goes

without saying, I am a massive fan of beware of dog signs. Jesus is doing something for

us here. He's saying, beware of dogs, of false prophets, false teachers who come in the name

of God because like wolves, they're ferocious, meaning they're untamed, savage and brutal

beasts. And there are all these things because they lead the flock of God astray. And that

is such a ferocious thing to do, to lead God's people astray because where does it all end

up? It all ends up in spiritual ruin and disaster, in death, says Jesus. Remember brothers and

sisters, Jesus doesn't say the ignorant get off scot-free. No, he says the blind lead

the blind and they both fall in a ditch. It is a ferocious thing to do, to come into the

flock of Jesus Christ and teach the sheep error to lead them off the narrow way. Some

of you here this morning might still bear claw marks from such ferocious teachers, which

means third, truth is so vitally important to our Lord. Now I say that because our Lord

wouldn't waste his time if getting his truth, believing his truth and practicing his truth

wasn't vitally important. That's why he's telling us be on guard against those who distort

what he's revealed, which means church what we believe and practice really matters in

the scheme of things. If it didn't, if ignorance of the gospel, heresy or other so-called faiths

were pleasing to our father, then Jesus, he just wouldn't warn us. God's revelation and

the truth it reveals has always mattered to our God. There has only been one way and that

is Jesus. However, as we read through the pages of the Bible, there has always been

people who have claimed to speak on behalf of God, who have come into the flock to try

to devour it and take it off course. That's the warning in all of this. God has revealed

the truth to the world. He's done it through his prophets and apostles and ultimately in

the Lord Jesus Christ and he has what he wants us to have in our Bibles. Yet we must be aware

some will try to take those wonderful revealed truths and teach them in a false way as to

lead us to ruin. And because he cares for us, because Jesus loves us, he says, beware

of dogs. So how do we identify these ferocious beasts? Jesus tells us, buy their fruit, you

will recognise them. Verse 16, buy their fruit. Our Lord goes on to explain what he means

by that. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Likewise, every

good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad

fruit and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is

cut down, thrown into the fire. Thus by their fruit, you recognise them. It's interesting

what's happening here. Jesus has changed metaphor, hasn't he? I want you to notice that he's

changed from sheep to wolves to trees and fruit. From the sheep's clothing, which a

wolf can wear to the fruit, which a tree must bear. And this is so incredibly comforting.

And I say that because although we may indeed mistake a wolf for a sheep, well, you can't

mistake a tree with its fruit. In other words, from a certain perspective, false proclaimers

can look like the real deal. And yes, even their fruit may appear genuine for a time,

but their real nature can't be hidden forever. Sooner or later, that wolf that lies under

that cute fluffy woolly jumper will be seen for who they are. And Jesus says the day of

judgment will finalise the difference with fire. Thus Jesus repeats his initial phrase

to drive home what we are to look for, and that is the fruit of all those who claim that

they speak on behalf of God. So what Jesus wants us to see here is that the type of tree

will determine the type of fruit that you can expect. Now one of the things that Jesus's

original audience knew very well was that grapes grew on grapevines. That's even a no-brainer

for us, right? However, in the ancient world, they didn't use to put grapevines on those

wire things like you see at Margaret River. They grew them on the ground, and so from

afar, they kind of looked like thorn bushes. They had fruit. The thorn bushes had little

berries. It was only when you got close that you could tell the difference in the character

of the tree. And that goes for the thistle bush as well, whose flower from a distance

could be mistaken for a fig. Or that to say, anyone could tell the difference what you

had picked come dinner time. It's as the old saying goes, it might be good from afar,

but it's far from good. So we might ask here, what on earth is this fruit that we're meant

to be looking for? Well, I'm going to give you three different things for your consideration.

But three different angles of this fruit that we need to look for in those who claim to

be speaking on behalf of God. First of all, there's the fruits of their doctrine. When

we talk about sin, we instantly think in moral terms. But God also hates theological sin,

which is when someone purposely takes what God has said and twists it to itch the word,

to itch the ears of people's ears. So we have to ask when we hear the word proclaimed, is

it in accordance with this revealed truth? Is it sound doctrine, which is to be received

and believed as the church has worked it out through the years? In other words, is it orthodox

or are they claiming to reveal some new truth, which no one has ever heard before? We must

be very, very, very careful when a new teaching is presented to the church. In the 16th century,

the reformers were accused of this very thing by the church in Rome. However, using the

word of God, they defended themselves by showing that their teaching was not an introduction

of something new, but the recovery of something old, namely the original gospel of Christ

and his apostles. It was actually from God's very word that they showed that many teachers

in the church through the years had taken the church off course and into error with

its traditions. Hence why the reformers would cry out, cling to the word of God, because

it's as you cling to God's truth that you can recognise what is right, what is wrong.

In other words, according to Lord Jesus Christ, false proclaimers, they will come. And it

doesn't matter how sincere they are, it doesn't matter how apparently successful they are,

they will be condemned if they don't speak in accordance with what God has revealed to

his saints once and for all. Second, they'll be the fruit of their life. Now this is to

do with their character, because it's as I said before, the true disciples of Jesus

hear the word of God, believe the word of God, trust Jesus absolutely with all that

they are, which ultimately leads them to obey the word of God in all that they do. To put

it plainly, if someone speaks the word of truth, look at their life. Will they be a

perfect person? Absolutely not. We talked about this last week when we ordained Andy,

our deacon, and we looked at the qualifications. So when they do fall into error, when they

do make mistakes, and people will make mistakes, the God-given humility in them will cause

them to repent with where they've gone wrong and cling to Christ as their all. That's

what God causes his true children to do. He grows the fruit of the Spirit in the elect.

We see this in Galatians 5. So we might say here the fruit of the tree is directly referring

to the condition of all of our lives before God, yet we can take comfort in this. The

false teacher will eventually show that they have no fruit of the Spirit because they don't

privately believe what they publicly proclaim. Third, and this is for your consideration,

what is the fruit of their fruit? What do I mean by that? Quite simply, what is the

fruit of the life of their hearers and their followers? That's not to say that the teacher

is responsible for the salvation of those that might listen to them. No, what I'm referring

to here is those who are influenced by that person's teaching. What is the effect that

it's having on them and that church? Are they hearing the word proclaimed which promotes

godliness and holiness or are they being encouraged to take what Jesus says with a pinch of salt,

to second guess the word of God, to live in any which way that they want because God is

a God of love and he doesn't do all that Old Testament stuff anymore.

Well Grace Church, we really have to be aware of these things because this is happening

in real time. I met with a pastor this week who's grieving because his denomination is

compromising on such vital issues like God's definition of marriage, of what is a man and

what is a woman and even on the protection of a little baby's life in the womb of its

mum. He's grieving because he's seeing the fruit of teachers who see the word of God

as man's definition of God and not God defining himself to man. And because they are so grievously

compromised, they're teaching people such incredible error in the name of Jesus and

he knows, he knows that if people eat and drink the fruit of that poison, well we know

the end result. Church, if we are to know the counterfeit, we must first understand the

genuine. Let's take an everyday example of that. We see them do it in banks. To see and

recognise fake money, bankers spend their lives studying the real thing. And so I want

to put it out to you, do you know your Bible? Do you know your Bible? Have you studied the

word of God? Do you love the word of God? Do you know why Grace Christian Church holds

to the creeds and confessions? Well I want to challenge you this morning, make it your

business to study the truth, to know the truth, to love the truth. The God of the universe

has revealed himself through his word. And so as his children, let's get equipped, let's

get grounded in the things that he's given us. Because there are people who will challenge

you to eat their fruit and to leave the narrow way. There's a very real and present danger.

That's why Jesus says, twice by their fruit you'll know them. By their fruit they might

look the part, they might sound the part, they might even make you feel great about

yourself. But is it in line with what God has revealed? Are they living what they're

preaching? What is the fruit of their hearers? Brothers and sisters, if someone is following

Christ, if someone knows Christ and loves him, they will bear fruit. They will always

bear fruit. It might not be visible straight away, but they always will bear fruit because

the spirit always bears fruit in his people. The way of Christ's people is always fruitful.

And his people will always remain faithful because of the work of the Holy Spirit in

their lives. So Jesus says, my people, be careful, beware of wolves. But simultaneously

he encourages us that we have something to look for. He's given us a way for us to discern

those who would speak on God's behalf if they are leading us on the narrow way or attempting

to get us on the highway to hell. Now, before we look at what else Jesus has to say to us

this morning, I want to address the elephant in the room. And that's my own position as

teaching elder and pastor. Church, this is why the Bible talks about

eldership in plural, because the truth is too important to be entrusted into the hands

of one person. That is why we hold to the plurality of eldership. And I thank God for

the way that he set that up with such mutual accountability because we want to protect

the people of God from false teaching. Brothers and sisters, I will have to give an account

for the words that I have taught you. The Lord's blood purchased people, that's who

you are. And so if I should speak out of line with the Word of God, I want to have brothers

who would point that out and help me to see where I've gone wrong. So I might repent because

this is serious eternal business that we are involved in.

Your elders are committed to protect the flock from false teaching. No one is above the Word

of God and no one is above the accountability that he has set up in his church. Incredibly

sobering stuff. We must be aware of the wolves so that we're not deceived by their ferocious

intent. But our Lord teaches us about another deception, one that's just as deadly. And

that's a deception that can be in and of ourselves. Read with me in verses 21 through to 23.

Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the

one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day,

Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and drive out demons and perform many miracles?

Then I'll tell them plainly, I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers. Incredibly,

sobering words. Only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven will enter

it. Now we began our time this morning by pointing out the erroneous doctrine of workspace

righteousness that the Pharisees promoted. So we mustn't take this as Jesus saying that

you are saved by your own obedience to the law. We know that that's not what he's saying

because of what chapters five and six went on to show us. So what is Jesus saying here?

Well, he's saying that we must take care that our verbal profession of faith is accompanied

by practical obedience in our lives. I'll say that again. Jesus is saying that we must

take care that our verbal profession of faith is accompanied by practical obedience in our

lives. I want to be very careful here because it's at this point that some can take the

gospel and twist it into something that it's not. So I'm going to be very careful here.

We do not earn our salvation by our works, but our salvation is accompanied by works.

We do not earn our salvation by works, but our salvation is always accompanied by works.

What do I mean by that? Well, it goes back to the fruit language that Jesus has used

throughout this passage this morning. Church, if there is a profession of faith in Jesus,

yet the fruit doesn't match the tree, then there is something altogether wrong. We've

applied it to the proclaimers of God's word, but this is now being applied to all of us

in this room. Not everyone who says, Lord, Lord, which is a verbal and public profession

of trust and faith in Jesus will enter the kingdom of heaven. Why? Because some deny

God privately in their lives by rejecting what he's told us to do. My dear brothers

and sisters, this is frightening stuff to think that we can confess Jesus in such a

public, orthodox way, yet not possess God's saving love. And Jesus even says that there

will be people that are phenomenal miracle workers, that they'll point to those things

as evidence that God was really with them. But what does Jesus say? I never knew you.

I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers. All this to say, Jesus is pointing out that

there will be people that will genuinely look like disciples, but because their lives did

not reflect the reality of the grace of the gospel, they will be rejected. It's a terrifying

thing to think about this morning. But church, my goal isn't actually to confuse you in any

sense, nor is it to frighten you. My goal is to invite and urge all of us, and I want

you to hear that, all of us, including me, to consider the words of our Lord this morning.

I can't think of anything more seriously to consider more seriously this morning. These

are the words of our Lord to us, his disciples. And he's saying we must take care that our

verbal profession of faith is accompanied by practical obedience in our lives. False

teachers won't teach you that. They'll lean one way or the other. They'll say it's all

grace and that you need no obedience, while others will give you a message that it's all

by what you do and God kind of tax it on the end. And that's what I want us to consider

here. The connection between our profession of faith and our obedience with our lives

because they have to go together. You see, salvation is always by grace. It's all by

grace. We are saved by grace through faith. We've seen that through the weeks in the Sermon

on the Mount. There is no works that we can do to earn our place in the kingdom of heaven.

We are all together compromised. The law reveals that. And thus, if we can't earn a spot in

the kingdom, it must be by grace that we are saved. We've seen it by the law. We are shown

that we are poor in spirit. But then by grace, we are invited by Jesus to confess our sin

to our Father in heaven. And it's as we do that, as we go to God in that position of

humility through Christ, we will be blessed. It is all by grace. But in saying that, obedience

to God's word will be the fruit of a changed life. Church, hear me loud and clear this

morning. The Bible teaches that we are saved by grace alone, through faith, through grace

alone, through faith alone, by Christ alone. But that supernatural grace that is shown

will always lead Christ's flock to love our God and his narrow path above the world's

wide way. That's what the Spirit of God does in his people. He reveals Christ as our true

shepherd and the saviour of his sheep and will follow him where he leads, doing what

he commands because his commands aren't burdensome to us. And so true faith is always accompanied

by a change of life that follows and strives to obey our God with all that we are. Will

we get it perfect? No. But this is the wonder and love and mercy and grace of our God. We

can come to him time and time and time and time and time again. Forgive us of our sin.

In Christ the beloved, we are forgiven. Before we pray, I just want to end by saying this.

Jesus is the saviour and the lord of his people. He can save because he is God. He has in himself

the power to save. He can save because he is a man and bears as a substitute for humanity

the punishment due to us. He can save because after he died for our sins, he rose showing

that he has power over the last enemy, death. And so hear this this morning. Jesus will

save anyone who has done anything who comes to him. However, it's got to be on his terms.

What are they? First, we need to admit our need for salvation. Second, we must confess

and trust him as our saviour. Third, we must follow him as a lord. This turning from the

broad and wide way requires us to lay aside the old life that seems so very safe, so very

much under our control. Church, we're being reminded of something here this morning and

it's this. Jesus saves us all by grace. By grace, in and of ourselves, we cannot save

ourselves. But that said, if we come before Jesus, trusting in our own works, no matter

how amazing they might seem to us or even to other people, we will find on that day

when we meet him face to face, we have nothing. So if you would say, yes, I'm looking at my

own righteousness, my own works to justify myself before God, then today is the day to

turn to Jesus. It's never too late. It's never too late to come to a saviour who delights

in saving sinners. You may have been in church for 10 minutes or 10 years, but hear this.

We have a shepherd who delights in saving his precious sheep. So as we end, I want to

ask you this morning to reflect. And if you see it, if you see a mere verbal profession,

confess it to our heavenly father and ask him to help you look to Christ and that through

the spirit, you might walk on the narrow way. Might these words of our Lord Jesus be a comfort

to you this morning? Ask and it will be given to you. Seek and you will find. Knock and

the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives the one who seeks finds

and the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if a son asks for bread, will

give him a stone or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake. If you then, though

you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your

father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him. Ask him church. Let's pray. Father,

we thank you for your word. We thank you for the Lord Jesus Christ. And we thank you for

the spirit who is at work in and among your people. Father, we ask that you would change

our lives. Father, we would ask that you would help us to turn from the way that we are going.

Father, would you keep us on the narrow way? God, I ask that this pulpit would be protected

from false teachers. Father, would you please protect your people from the wolves? Would

you give us discernment? But Lord, would you please also give us a great love and a leading

of the spirit in how to deal with these things? We ask Father, that we wouldn't drift today

and put our minds on our works, but that you by your spirit would cause our minds, our

eyes to be lifted to heaven to the Lord Jesus Christ. Keep us for the sake of Jesus and

for your glory. Amen.