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Matthew 7:13-27—Fruit of the Spirit
Ye Shall Know Them By Their Fruit Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them.—Matthew 7:15,16{1} Wade Austin To understand these words we must combine Luke’s account with Matthew’s: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher. Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruits you will recognize them.” (Luke 6:39,40; Matthew 7:15,16). Jesus spoke of blind men, ferocious wolves, and fruit. Only by examining the full account do we learn that Jesus used these three metaphors to teach his disciples that they had a responsibility to identify false teachers. In the first metaphor Jesus spoke of blind men attempting to lead other blind men. Next he likened false prophets to ravening wolves in sheep’s clothing. Finally, he likened the false prophets to corrupt trees that not only bear poisonous fruit, they cannot bear good fruit and must be cut down and burned. Jesus wanted his disciples to know that they should be on the alert for corrupt teachers because the student “will be like his teacher.” By examining the teacher’s fruit it can be determined if he is a false prophet, a ravening wolf, and a corrupt fruit tree. Fruit denotes character. Both Jesus and the apostles used fruit as an indication of spiritual maturity. Jesus made it clear that one’s eternal destiny depends upon doing the will of God. No one that bears evil fruit can do God’s will, even though they may claim they have taught in his name and done great works. The consequence will be his pronouncement, “I never knew you. Depart from me, ye that work iniquity” (Matthew 7:23, KJV). Jesus taught that the student of such teachers should beware because the student will become like his teacher. The apostle Paul taught that our Lord ordained that we have teachers. He wrote: “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; but speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: from whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:11-16, KJV). These verses instruct us that we need teachers. They explicitly inform us that the responsibility of teachers is to edify the body such that we, the body, can edify one another in love. Love is the ultimate fruit of the spirit and teachers that do not have this fruit cannot cultivate it in their pupils. Paul taught us the wonderful characteristics of this loveliest of all fruits when he wrote: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8). Teachers who boast of their great works, seek to glorify themselves; their proud and haughty attitude reveals that their fruit is corrupt. They cannot edify the body because their real mission is to edify themselves. They eventually manifest impatience, jealousy, anger, and rudeness in their attempt to maintain control over the flock they profess to shelter. In the end, they devour the flock by corrupting the spirit of their followers and making them like themselves. They divide the flock to draw disciples unto themselves instead of drawing them to God. Jesus contrasted these teachers and their followers with the true sheep when he declared: “The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one” (John 10:25-30). Teachers that cause a schism in the body, who endeavor to snatch the flock out of God’s hand, cannot be said to edify one another in love, nor can they effectively encourage the body to edify itself in love. James wrote about the root cause of divisive behavior and divisive teaching and he taught us the awesome responsibility born by teachers when he wrote: “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly” (James 3:1). Then he contrasted spiritual wisdom with earthly wisdom: “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such ‘wisdom’ does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice” (James 3:13-16). James calls the wisdom that does not edify “unspiritual.” Teachers possessing “unspiritual” wisdom do not build up, they tear down. Like a wolf that tears at the flesh of its prey they destroy the very flock they profess to protect. Teachers possessing spiritual wisdom do build up the body. James describes the character of spiritual wisdom as first pure. Some might be inclined to include a litany of doctrines that must be professed and taught for one to be pure, but the context of James’ words focuses on the behavior or evidence of spiritual fruit of a person, not a list of Scriptural interpretations as the indicator of spiritual wisdom. Before a teacher can teach love he must love, and before he can love he must root all bitterness, envy, and strife out of his own heart. What should we do if we see our teachers, and by extension our leaders, magnify themselves and not God? What should our course be if they declare by their actions or words, “I am the boss (of the local church, or publishing house, or convention); if you do not like what I am doing then you can leave?” Such behavior does not edify. It divides. It is corrupt fruit and it reveals a corrupt tree. In time God will cut it down. But what should we do? Paul counseled: “I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them” (Romans 16:17). This advice requires grave self-examination of ourselves to insure that we ourselves do not promote division. We must look deep within our hearts and assure ourselves that we “love one another with a pure heart fervently” (1 Peter 1:22, KJV). If we find a pure heart, let us look to see whether or not we possess the other fruits of spiritual wisdom identified by James when he wrote: “The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness” (James 3:17,18). If we see these fruits in ourselves, we can rest assured that we are not following teachers and leaders possessed of a contrary spirit. We can be confident and take comfort in the precious prayer, “May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen” (Hebrews 13:20,21).
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