How to Discern a False Teacher / False Prophet
Pastor Brad Abley: Biblical Educator
Pastor’s Corner
Discerning a Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing!
Pastor Brad Writes…
How to Discern a False Teacher/False Prophet
What did Jesus mean when He warns in Mt. 7:15-17,
“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.”
I see too many Christians too easily impressed by authors who are impressive, “cool,” or popular. Perhaps they have friends who say, “Have you read this book?! You have to read it!”
While its contents may seem good, a careful study of what they’re advancing reveals they contain errors, or false doctrine. Many Christians don’t know Scripture well enough to spot these things, and consequently, they’re taken in by them. When this happens, the Church is weakened.
The same holds true for preachers on YouTube or podcasts. Of course, I’m generalizing; it’s likely most authors and most preachers are accurate. But still, we’re all called by God’s Word to be “Bereans” – to examine what we read or hear through the lens of sound doctrine.
William Barclay explains that shepherds wore sheep skin, with the fleece of the sheep underneath, so a false prophet could easily disguise himself as a true shepherd by wearing the same clothing.(1)
He also points out from Mt. 7:16 that
There was a certain thorn, the buckthorn, which had little black berries which closely resembled little grapes. "Or figs from thistles?" There was a certain thistle, which had a flower, which, at least at a distance, might well be taken for a fig.
The point is real, and relevant, and salutary. There may be a superficial resemblance between the true and the false prophet. The false prophet may wear the right clothes and use the right language; but you cannot sustain life with the berries of a buckthorn or the flowers of a thistle; and the life of the soul can never be sustained with the food which a false prophet offers. (2)
Barclay adds,
The basic fault of the false prophet is self-interest. The true shepherd cares for the flock more than he cares for his life; the wolf cares for nothing but to satisfy his own gluttony and his own greed. The false prophet is in the business of teaching, not for what he can give to others, but for what he can get to himself.[3]
The differences between true and false teachers are often initially subtle; false teachers have nuances in their teachings, but eventually, they cannot keep up their charades under careful scrutiny.
As for knowing them "by their fruits," a teaching called the Didache (“did-ah-k” was written about 100 A.D.) laid down the following to help determine those "fruits" -- especially when it came to money.
At their best the prophets were the inspiration of the Church, for they were men who had abandoned everything to serve God and the Church of God. But the office of prophet was singularly liable to abuse.
There were men who used it to gain prestige, and to impose on the generosity of local congregations, and so live a life of comfortable, and even pampered, idleness. Thus, the Didache warned that an alleged prophet (teacher of God’s Word) “shall remain one day, and, if necessary, another day also; but if he remain three days, he is a false prophet."
Moreover, "If he asks for money, he is a false prophet." In addition, "Every prophet that teaches the truth, if he does not do what he teaches, he is a false prophet."
The Didache continues:
If a prophet, claiming to speak in the Spirit, orders a table and a meal to be set before him he is a false prophet. "Whosoever shall say in the Spirit: Give me money or any other things, ye shall not hear him; but if he tells you to give in the matter of others who have need, let no one judge him."
If a wanderer comes to a congregation, and wishes to settle there, if he has a trade, "let him work and eat." If he has no trade, "consider in your wisdom how he may not live with you as a Christian in idleness.... But if he will not do this, he is a trafficker in Christ. Beware of such" (Didache chapters 11 and 12).
The point in all this is that the Church be familiar enough with teachers of God’s Word – examining their lives and their teaching carefully – to discern their character and the soundness (or lack thereof) of their teaching.
If or when Christians and churches heed historic wisdom, we could save ourselves a great deal of strife, scandal, and heartache. If James tells us, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment” (James 3:1), should we not heed his words now – before it’s too late!
[1] William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, vol. 1, The Daily Study Bible (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1958), 286.
[1] Ibid., 288.
Pastor’s Corner
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