Trinity 8 August 2, 2020
Matthew 7:15-23
Uncomfortable Truths
v.15, 21 Beware false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves…Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Dear friends in Christ, don’t you just hate those awkward moments when someone speaks an uncomfortable truth? Like a little child who passes by a person in a wheel chair and loudly declares, "Mommy, that man doesn't have a leg!" Or, the doctor pointing out that your high blood pressure might have something to do with your being 50 pounds overweight and never exercising. Or, when your spouse points out that your actions do not match your words. These moments can cause us to cringe and flinch at the uncomfortable truth that another has spoken and we can react in very strong ways: from rushing past the man in the wheel chair, hoping no one heard, to frowning at our doctor, to arguing with our spouse -- even when we KNOW they are right.
Well, here in our text Jesus gives two statements at the conclusion of His lengthy Sermon on the Mount that take us by surprise. Throughout the sermon Jesus has been giving sound and in-depth moral instruction to His hearers. But now, as He draws to a close, He really drives home some uncomfortable truths. "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves." What's this, Jesus? False shepherds come among US? Are you sure you got that right? I mean we are Confessional Lutherans—devout Christians. We have world renowned seminaries. We have incredible procedures in place to vet men before they can enter the office of the holy ministry. Are you sure you didn't mean that these false shepherds come to heathens and non-Christians? Surely there aren't any among us!
No. Jesus says these false prophets--pseudo-prophets--come to YOU--you BELIEVERS. They come into your very midst and they are very hard to recognize for they come to you in sheep's clothing. By all appearances they are sheep. They walk like a sheep, they look like a sheep--same white wool--same general appearance. But, inwardly they are ravenous wolves. They end up harming and consuming the sheep. And they come into your midst!
So--if they look like sheep--if they appear to be your average, ordinary Christian--or even extraordinary Christian--how are we to recognize them? How are we to know? Jesus says, "You will recognize them by their fruits." OK. What does THAT mean? Does it mean that we will recognize them by their outward works? No. Again, they appear to be sheep--they walk and look like sheep--they do sheep-like things--they attend church--they do good deeds--they are kind and nice people. OK, but then how? How are we to know and recognize these wolves in sheep's clothing, if not by the fruit of their works?
Well, properly speaking, the fruit of the prophets is not their works, but what they prophesy--their preaching and teaching. They may walk and look like sheep in how they act, but they do not sound like sheep—they do not talk like sheep--they don't "Baabaa" like God's sheep do--speaking back to God what He has said in His Word. So, we will recognize them by whether what they preach and teach—what they say—is in keeping with God's Word or not. These false prophets will try to hurt and maim God's sheep by their lies an deceits--their false doctrine--showing their true natures as ravenous wolves--murderers of souls.
Some examples of prominent false prophets that may make us very uncomfortable are people like the late Billy Graham (who twisted God's Word to encourage people to make a decision for Jesus and to place their trust in that act rather than in Christ); or the Pope (who boldly declares that it is faith in Christ plus the Christian's good works that earns a place in heaven, rather than Christ's atoning death on the cross alone); or the Word faith pastor who berates a grandmother for not having enough faith after her grandchild dies, saying, "If only you had prayed harder and believed in Jesus more--then your grandchild would have lived." Or the self-proclaimed and newly appointed "apostle" of God who declared back in March that the Lord spoke to them directly saying the Coronavirus would be over before summer—yet the virus continues to spread. Beloved, these are ravenous wolves in sheep's clothing. And I am not saying we make a judgement on their personal salvation, but rather that we judge the content of their preaching and teaching and see it for what it is--damnable lies of the devil that lead to despair and hell.
This is why, dear friends, we must be about Christ and His Word and nothing else--not BLINDLY trust or follow our pastor or anyone else (now isn't THAT an uncomfortable thing for a pastor to say to his people!). As God's people--His sheep--we are to follow only Jesus and His Word in the Bible. All prophets--false and true--are to be judged by that standard. True prophets--true shepherds/sheep--will remain faithful to--abide in--and direct the sheep toward the Saviour of their souls--Christ and Him crucified. False prophets will describe and preach a Jesus different from the Bible--environmentalist Jesus--or life coach Jesus--or good teacher Jesus--any Jesus, but the One who took your place on the cross to satisfy the wrath of God for your sin. That's ONE uncomfortable truth in our text.
The other uncomfortable truth is that we are often faithless and follow these false prophets who speak the lies we so desperately want to hear and believe, but that come from the devil. Our sinful hearts actually crave the rotten fruit of the false prophets. Meaning that we, too, are false sheep--bad trees--paying lip service to God in Christ at times, but who bear no evidence in doctrine and life. We are so very BAD at being GOOD Christians. Our lives abound with examples of this truth--simply look in your heart and see. You say you believe in forgiveness for all through faith in Christ, but harbour hatred and murder in your heart against your neighbour who has wronged you (even after they apologized). You say that stealing is wrong in the Bible, but you steal music and movies from the internet. You say Jesus is the only way to heaven, but stay silent whenever someone brings up their own personal spirituality, which is clearly in opposition to Scripture.
So, then, where does this leave us before God? Are we simply to wait in despair and hear the dread words from our Lord Jesus, "I never knew you, depart from me, you workers of lawlessness?" Talk about your uncomfortable truth!
No indeed! For Christ advocates for you and carries your sins to the cross. He is your active shepherd--the one and only True Prophet--who defends you from false prophets and their evil teachings--who defends you even from yourself. For the cross of Jesus is that good tree that bears good fruit--to forgive you with the body and blood of Christ and work true repentance and faith in your heart that then leads to good works and deeds. The good fruit of Christ's cross gives you forgiveness and salvation, which in turn transforms you from a bad tree into a good tree--all by His grace and mercy. You cannot now, as a good tree, do anything BUT produce Good Fruit. In faith toward Christ ALL of your works are made good in the sight of God--purified by the blood of Jesus. Again, this is not license TO sin, but rather freedom FROM sin.
Thanks be to God that He is ever faithful toward us. He calls us to repentance through His Word of truth by sending us true and faithful undershepherds to lead and to guide us. The Lord God delivers us from despair and death through the blood of Jesus shed on the cross. This is what it means "to do the will of my Father who is in heaven." Led by the Holy Spirit, you repent of your sin and believe in Christ Jesus to forgive your sin. Our God is faithful and true--our hope of salvation is entirely outside of us--and is found only in the good fruit of the cross of Jesus. What a blessed, comfortable, Truth--that is for you and me and all people. You are His sheep—and He is your beloved Good Shepherd. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Matthew 7:15-23
Uncomfortable Truths
v.15, 21 Beware false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves…Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Dear friends in Christ, don’t you just hate those awkward moments when someone speaks an uncomfortable truth? Like a little child who passes by a person in a wheel chair and loudly declares, "Mommy, that man doesn't have a leg!" Or, the doctor pointing out that your high blood pressure might have something to do with your being 50 pounds overweight and never exercising. Or, when your spouse points out that your actions do not match your words. These moments can cause us to cringe and flinch at the uncomfortable truth that another has spoken and we can react in very strong ways: from rushing past the man in the wheel chair, hoping no one heard, to frowning at our doctor, to arguing with our spouse -- even when we KNOW they are right.
Well, here in our text Jesus gives two statements at the conclusion of His lengthy Sermon on the Mount that take us by surprise. Throughout the sermon Jesus has been giving sound and in-depth moral instruction to His hearers. But now, as He draws to a close, He really drives home some uncomfortable truths. "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves." What's this, Jesus? False shepherds come among US? Are you sure you got that right? I mean we are Confessional Lutherans—devout Christians. We have world renowned seminaries. We have incredible procedures in place to vet men before they can enter the office of the holy ministry. Are you sure you didn't mean that these false shepherds come to heathens and non-Christians? Surely there aren't any among us!
No. Jesus says these false prophets--pseudo-prophets--come to YOU--you BELIEVERS. They come into your very midst and they are very hard to recognize for they come to you in sheep's clothing. By all appearances they are sheep. They walk like a sheep, they look like a sheep--same white wool--same general appearance. But, inwardly they are ravenous wolves. They end up harming and consuming the sheep. And they come into your midst!
So--if they look like sheep--if they appear to be your average, ordinary Christian--or even extraordinary Christian--how are we to recognize them? How are we to know? Jesus says, "You will recognize them by their fruits." OK. What does THAT mean? Does it mean that we will recognize them by their outward works? No. Again, they appear to be sheep--they walk and look like sheep--they do sheep-like things--they attend church--they do good deeds--they are kind and nice people. OK, but then how? How are we to know and recognize these wolves in sheep's clothing, if not by the fruit of their works?
Well, properly speaking, the fruit of the prophets is not their works, but what they prophesy--their preaching and teaching. They may walk and look like sheep in how they act, but they do not sound like sheep—they do not talk like sheep--they don't "Baabaa" like God's sheep do--speaking back to God what He has said in His Word. So, we will recognize them by whether what they preach and teach—what they say—is in keeping with God's Word or not. These false prophets will try to hurt and maim God's sheep by their lies an deceits--their false doctrine--showing their true natures as ravenous wolves--murderers of souls.
Some examples of prominent false prophets that may make us very uncomfortable are people like the late Billy Graham (who twisted God's Word to encourage people to make a decision for Jesus and to place their trust in that act rather than in Christ); or the Pope (who boldly declares that it is faith in Christ plus the Christian's good works that earns a place in heaven, rather than Christ's atoning death on the cross alone); or the Word faith pastor who berates a grandmother for not having enough faith after her grandchild dies, saying, "If only you had prayed harder and believed in Jesus more--then your grandchild would have lived." Or the self-proclaimed and newly appointed "apostle" of God who declared back in March that the Lord spoke to them directly saying the Coronavirus would be over before summer—yet the virus continues to spread. Beloved, these are ravenous wolves in sheep's clothing. And I am not saying we make a judgement on their personal salvation, but rather that we judge the content of their preaching and teaching and see it for what it is--damnable lies of the devil that lead to despair and hell.
This is why, dear friends, we must be about Christ and His Word and nothing else--not BLINDLY trust or follow our pastor or anyone else (now isn't THAT an uncomfortable thing for a pastor to say to his people!). As God's people--His sheep--we are to follow only Jesus and His Word in the Bible. All prophets--false and true--are to be judged by that standard. True prophets--true shepherds/sheep--will remain faithful to--abide in--and direct the sheep toward the Saviour of their souls--Christ and Him crucified. False prophets will describe and preach a Jesus different from the Bible--environmentalist Jesus--or life coach Jesus--or good teacher Jesus--any Jesus, but the One who took your place on the cross to satisfy the wrath of God for your sin. That's ONE uncomfortable truth in our text.
The other uncomfortable truth is that we are often faithless and follow these false prophets who speak the lies we so desperately want to hear and believe, but that come from the devil. Our sinful hearts actually crave the rotten fruit of the false prophets. Meaning that we, too, are false sheep--bad trees--paying lip service to God in Christ at times, but who bear no evidence in doctrine and life. We are so very BAD at being GOOD Christians. Our lives abound with examples of this truth--simply look in your heart and see. You say you believe in forgiveness for all through faith in Christ, but harbour hatred and murder in your heart against your neighbour who has wronged you (even after they apologized). You say that stealing is wrong in the Bible, but you steal music and movies from the internet. You say Jesus is the only way to heaven, but stay silent whenever someone brings up their own personal spirituality, which is clearly in opposition to Scripture.
So, then, where does this leave us before God? Are we simply to wait in despair and hear the dread words from our Lord Jesus, "I never knew you, depart from me, you workers of lawlessness?" Talk about your uncomfortable truth!
No indeed! For Christ advocates for you and carries your sins to the cross. He is your active shepherd--the one and only True Prophet--who defends you from false prophets and their evil teachings--who defends you even from yourself. For the cross of Jesus is that good tree that bears good fruit--to forgive you with the body and blood of Christ and work true repentance and faith in your heart that then leads to good works and deeds. The good fruit of Christ's cross gives you forgiveness and salvation, which in turn transforms you from a bad tree into a good tree--all by His grace and mercy. You cannot now, as a good tree, do anything BUT produce Good Fruit. In faith toward Christ ALL of your works are made good in the sight of God--purified by the blood of Jesus. Again, this is not license TO sin, but rather freedom FROM sin.
Thanks be to God that He is ever faithful toward us. He calls us to repentance through His Word of truth by sending us true and faithful undershepherds to lead and to guide us. The Lord God delivers us from despair and death through the blood of Jesus shed on the cross. This is what it means "to do the will of my Father who is in heaven." Led by the Holy Spirit, you repent of your sin and believe in Christ Jesus to forgive your sin. Our God is faithful and true--our hope of salvation is entirely outside of us--and is found only in the good fruit of the cross of Jesus. What a blessed, comfortable, Truth--that is for you and me and all people. You are His sheep—and He is your beloved Good Shepherd. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.