Dear saints, our Gospel lesson this morning is from the closing moments of our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount. In it, he has recounted the life of a Christian. A Christian is blessed; is salt and light; sees God’s Law in both spirit and letter and desires to keep it; is righteous not for his own sake, but on account of Christ. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shows us who we are as the Father’s child and instructs us how to live as such.
In this section, we are called to attention: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits.” False prophets, false doctrine, and false worship have been around since virtually the beginning. From self-righteous Cain to Ham’s despising of Noah to the many false prophets in Israel and Judah, extending into the early Church and medieval Church, even through today. Indeed, wherever the pure proclamation of the Gospel is found, so also are found those who oppose it.
It is surely no accident that this is how our Lord begins to wrap up the Sermon on the Mount. For two-and-a-half chapters, he has expounded and explained true, pure doctrine. He has equipped his disciples and all those listening to hear and discern what the truth is. And he wraps this up by telling you to, “Beware!”
Teachers indeed are to teach, and shepherds are to lead. But our Lord’s words here do not lead us to conclude that hearers are simply to listen, or sheep are only to follow. Rather, we are instructed to observe and listen, but then to consider what we hear and see based on what God’s Word gives us as the truth. No one should base their faith simply on what they hear a man say or do. In this way, we fight against being deceived. Though the false teacher is held accountable for those he misleads, those who are misled are still condemned. Whether the doctrine you believe is true or false is a matter of life and death.
In this section, we see how important it is to know and be certain of what true doctrine is. If it is your job to judge what you hear and see, you must know what is true. You must know what God’s Word says and teaches. Thus, we see why the daily and diligent study of Scripture is imperative. It is necessary in order to recognize truth from falsehood. You have the Scriptures. You have the writings, and today, recordings, of orthodox teachers. You have the confessions of the Lutheran Church. They are yours to read and know.
And if you are unsure where to start, might I suggest you return to the ‘textbook’ of your Confirmation: The Small Catechism. In it, you will find what is necessary for you to know not only for your salvation but also for the testing of doctrine. Think of the chief parts: The first tells you how to know true, God-pleasing works. The second true, saving faith. The third true prayer. The fourth, fifth, and sixth the true Sacraments and the power of the Church. The Table of Duties shows true Christian conduct in your various callings and stations of life.
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.” In our day there are many wolves. Some are easy to spot. They don’t even pretend to be sheep. They revile the True God. They show disdain for his Word, even claiming it to be fraudulent or full of error. They embrace the teachings, feelings, and philosophies of the world. There are entire church bodies, some even donning the name Lutheran, who are wolves in wolves’ clothing.
But these are not who we are warned about today. It is good to know about them and their false teaching, but they are not the subject here. We are being warned here about people who look and even act like sheep. About people who seem, and surely think, they know and trust the Scriptures and Jesus. They are sure they preach the truth.
The false teachers we are warned of today put on the look of sheep. They will walk and talk like a true teacher. Much of what they teach and believe may well be correct, orthodox teaching. But the error of these false teachers results in all they do being tainted. As our Lord says, “You will recognize them by their fruits…. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.”
Take, for example, the teachers we hear the prophet Jeremiah warn about. These were not Baal worshipping pagans. They weren’t trying to lead the people away from the Lord. They didn’t preach that our God wasn’t real or powerful. They were sure they were hearing from God and preaching what he wanted them to proclaim. But their proclamation gave false comfort and false hope.
The Lord had sent many prophets to Israel and Judah. Their message was some variation of, “Repent or perish.” God’s people had been led away from him and true worship by wicked kings. Idols and false gods had been brought in alongside, if not in place of the worship of the Lord God. Altars and high places were built to these pagan deities. It wasn’t that the people of Israel and Judah weren’t spiritual or religious. It was that their spiritual and religious devotion was not directed toward solely the Lord.
But the people didn’t want to hear that message. They didn’t want to admit what they were doing was wrong. They didn’t want to change their beliefs and practices. In Judah, they pointed to the Temple and thought they were protected from evil because the Lord’s Temple was there and that was where he dwelled. They believed he wouldn’t let anything happen to the city where he dwelt. Furthermore, they could point to real evil. The Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Egyptians. They were really the bad people.
The message of these false prophets was well received. The people believed them rather than God’s true prophets. The fruit of this preaching was destruction. It wasn’t the pious way they talked or the seemingly righteous deeds that mattered. What mattered was that their doctrine, their fruit, was evil. If a teacher does not teach what is right, he is a false teacher. His fruit, even when he has good things to say, is poisoned. You should not listen to such teachers.
The teacher sent by God is also known by his doctrine. He teaches that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation. He teaches that our deeds, no matter how good they are in the eyes of man, are worthless without faith in Christ. That our deeds, while good and serve others, earn or merit us nothing, as our righteousness and salvation come only from Christ redeeming us in his life and in his death on the cross. A teacher truly called by God preaches Jesus Christ. He proclaims that it is only Christ who was made of God to wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. As St. Paul tells the Corinthians, he did not come to them with lofty speech or wisdom, but he had decided to know nothing among [them] except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
Today we are called to beware of false teachers. In turn, we study and ensure our teachers are true shepherds of God’s sheep. We strive to hear pure doctrine, which creates good trees and good fruit. We pray that in us we see the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. We pray that both those who teach falsely and those who listen to them would hear the Truth, that the Spirit would convict them of their error, and that they would in turn trust in Christ as their Savior. That God, in His mercy, would turn these diseased trees bearing rotten, evil fruit into good trees bearing righteous, good fruit. Just as he has done in each of us. Amen.
Rev. Brent Keller
Peace Lutheran Church
Alcester, SD
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