Beware of False Teachers

[Christsfreeservant]

“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits.” (Matthew 7:15-20 NASB1995)​

And this doesn’t apply only to false prophets and teachers and evangelists. But this applies to anyone who professes faith in Jesus Christ but who is false to the truth. This applies to anyone who gives lip service to the Lord but by their actions they deny him. They live for self and for self-pleasure and not for God according to his will and purpose for our lives. They chart their own life course instead of following the life course that God laid out for all of us to follow who profess faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior.

And this is not a claim to sinless perfection on the part of all who are following the Lord in his ways, according to his truth and righteousness. But it does teach us that to follow Jesus Christ, in truth, requires that we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and that we walk (in conduct, in practice) according to the Spirit and in walks of surrender to God in obedience to his commands. For if sin is what we practice, or if we live by the self-life, and not according to God’s will, we are not in relationship with our Lord.

But with regard to those who are preachers and teachers of The Word of the Lord, we should be those who are testing their words against the truth of the Scriptures, taught in the appropriate context. And context is critical, for many or most lies today are products of Scriptures taught outside their appropriate context which are then made to say what they do not say if taught in the right context. So we need to be students of the Scriptures who read them in context so that we can test the spirits to see if they are of God.

But it isn’t just by their words that we will know if they are of God or not of God, but it has to do with their practices, too. What is important to them? What do they value? Do they put tremendous value in the things of this world? Or do they place enormous value on the things of God, and of his word (taught in context)? What do they live by? By the patterns of this sinful world and by worldly culture? Or by the Word of God and his requirements of us who profess faith in the Lord and who claim Jesus as Lord of our lives?

But by what they teach we will know if they are of God or not if we are diligent about testing what they teach against the truth of the Scriptures taught in the right context. For by this we will know if they are wolves in sheep’s clothing, or if they are genuine followers of Jesus Christ who speak the truth and not the lies. Especially if they are not emphasizing the critical importance of putting sin to death, by the Spirit, and walks of obedience to our Lord, in holy living, they are not of God, but they are still of the flesh.

For Jesus Christ taught that to come to him we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin), and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and we walk in obedience to our Lord and to his commands, in his power, then we have eternal life with God. For not everyone who calls him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God (see Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23).

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 2:6-8; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]

Songs in the Night

An Original Work / December 18, 2013
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.” Acts 16:25 NIV ‘84

Lord, I praise You forevermore.
You, my Savior, I now adore.
Hope in heaven awaiting me,
Because You died at Calvary.

I have been forgiven,
And I’m bound for heaven.
Jesus set me free from
All my sin, I say.
I will praise Him always!

Lord, I love You for all You’ve done:
Overcame death, my vict’ry won!
Jesus saved me, and now I’m free!
I rejoice in His love for me.

I will walk in vict’ry!
My sin is but hist’ry!
I am free to please Him
With my life today.
I will love Him always!

Lord, I thank You for giving me
A new life bought at Calvary.
Loving Jesus, I meet with Him.
Tender mercies now flow within.

Lord, I am so thankful;
Through my Lord, I’m able
To sit at His table;
Fellowship with Him.
I will thank Him always!

Beware of False Teachers
An Original Work / June 9, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love