We're going to continue in our study on the Sermon on the Mount today. Last week, we really talked about asking and receiving, and we saw how this really addresses the need for prayer, specifically powerful and persistent prayer in the life of the believer. And we also looked at the golden rule, and we talked about how it's so easy to compare ourselves with those around us and those other people, rather than comparing ourselves with the straight edge of the law of God and what God requires in His Word. And finally, we looked at the wide and narrow gate that we saw in verses 13 and 14. We said the wide gate was easy, and a lot of people would go through the wide gate. But the narrow gate, few would go through, and it's difficult, but it leads to eternal life. Well, Jesus continues along those lines today in our text. And so we're gonna be looking at Matthew 7, verses 15 through 23. If you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn there. Matthew 7, verses 15 through 23. The wear of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? So every healthy tree bears good fruit. but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, you will recognize them by their fruits. Not everyone who says to me Lord Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven but the one who does the will of my father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me Lord Lord did we not prophesy in your name and cast out demons in your name and do mighty works in your name. And then will I declare to them I never knew you depart from me. You workers of lawlessness. I want to look at this text today under two headings. The first is characteristics of false prophets, which we're going to see in verses 15 through 20. And then secondly, we'll look at an incorrect reliance on eternal life that we'll see in verses 21 through 23. But Jesus begins in verse 15 by first of all giving a warning And He's warning His new disciples and those who have gathered around or are hearing Him on the Sermon on the Mount on the Sea of Galilee, He's warning them against false prophets. Now remember, this comes right after speaking about the wide and narrow gate and the preceding verses. It's almost as if Jesus is saying, beware of the false prophets for they're going to tempt you to go down that wide path. They're going to misguide and mislead and trick you into thinking that the wide gate is the better gate. In Old Testament days, prophets were those who spoke for another, specifically for God. And there's numerous examples of prophets. Some were true prophets of the Lord. But there are also false prophets. We read, for example, in Deuteronomy 13 verses 1 through 4, if a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, let us go after other gods which you have not known and let us serve them, And you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice. And you shall serve him and hold fast to him. So the tendency was in the Old Testament these prophets would misguide people and mislead them and ultimately turn them away was their goal. from the Lord. We've seen certainly in our study in Jeremiah on Sunday mornings as Pastor Phillips has been preaching a lot about prophets. God tells Jeremiah, an appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land. The prophets prophesy falsely and the priests rule at their direction. My people love to have it so. But what will you do when the end comes? Jeremiah 5, 30 through 31. Jesus himself would even speak of false prophets later on in his earthly ministry before being crucified. He warned the disciples, see that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name saying, I am the Christ. And they will lead many astray, Matthew 24, 4 through 5. Well, false prophets were not only a big deal and a big problem in the Old Testament and during Jesus's early days and even later days of ministry, but false prophets continued to be an issue in the early church. Paul's last words to the Ephesian elders encouraged them to be on guard for those who would eventually attack the church. He predicted, I know that after my departure, fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. And then from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore, be alert. Acts 20, 29 through 31. Notice one of the primary motives of the false prophet in these biblical examples is to misguide the people. causing them to question God and who he is with the hopes of the people eventually turning away from God. Well, many of the people that were listening to Jesus there at the Sea of Galilee on that day as he gave this sermon were scribes and Pharisees, many of whom would have been considered to be false prophets. Instead of leading and caring for the flock of God, they were false shepherds and they led the people further away from God. and further away from His ways. So, we've seen how prophets have existed before the beginning of time, right? Well, in the Old Testament through the New Testament. But it begs the question that I'll just throw out to the class, are there false prophets today? I see a lot of this. There are false prophets today. There's a lot of false prophets today, unfortunately. The answer is yes. Many men and women are being used by Satan, even in the church, to draw Christians away from their Savior. I don't mention too many names in this regard usually in class, but I will mention one name today that's a pretty obvious example of a false prophet. And that man is Benny Hinn, who's a well-known pastor, associated with the prosperity gospel and also with faith healing. Benny Hinn believes that everyone, this is everyone, will be healed of their physical infirmities if they would only have faith. Then God will heal them through the means of a healer like himself. Of course, after you pay the money, right? So the process is this, you become, you call upon the name of the Lord, you pay me money and you'll be healed. While many people come forward at his crusades for healing, only those who have already experienced healing are showcased on the stage when he speaks to them and quote unquote, slaves them in the spirit. He's been known to say some outlandish things such as, if you come back and make that pledge, God will heal you tonight. Another statement that's blasphemous, God will not move unless I say it. Why? Because he has made us coworkers with him. He set things up that way. What does that mean? It means God, it means Benny Hinn is putting himself over God. If God doesn't move, unless he tells God to move, he's putting himself above God. So let me ask a few rhetorical questions just to make an obvious point. Is he making false claims? Yes. Is he leading people astray? Yes. and others are doing this too. This is the whole motive of false prophets, to speak heresy against God Himself and to lead people away from God for their own personal gain. So we've seen that false prophets not only existed back in biblical times but also exist today. If they exist today, then we've got to understand who they are. What do they look like? What is their appearance? How are they characterized? Well, notice in Matthew 7, 15, they are in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. In this way, if they're in sheep's clothing, almost has a connotation that they appear on the outside to be harmless. But on the inside, they are not. How many of y'all, if you're walking through a field and you see a sheep, would be scared? Not many of us, right? Unless you just really don't like animals at all. But most of us are not gonna be scared of a sheep. But how many of you, if you're walking through a field and you see a wolf, are gonna be scared? Yeah, most of us. That's how these false prophets are. They appear in sheep's clothing, but inwardly, they're like ravenous wolves. In Palestine, wolves were the natural known enemy of sheep. They roamed the hills and valleys looking out for the lone sheep that had wandered away from the others, that they might satisfy their fleshly desires. Well, false prophets, like wolves, are clever. and they're sneaky, and they're always looking for new victims. Reminds me of the passage in 1 Peter 5, 8, our adversary, the devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. That describes Satan, but the false prophets are doing the work of Satan. And so they're doing the same thing. They're seeking that which they can devour. Listen to this important quote by John MacArthur, false prophets do not deceive the flock by impersonating sheep, but by impersonating the shepherd. They don't impersonate the sheep, they impersonate the shepherd who wears sheep's clothing in the form of his wool garments. Just as the ancient false prophets often wore the garments of the true prophet, so false shepherds often disguise themselves as true shepherds. Satan's man goes under the guise of God's man, claiming to teach the truth in order to deceive, mislead, and if possible, destroy God's people. Well, false prophets today are often seen as charismatic and they always preach positive, feel-good messages that proclaim peace only and not judgment. It reminded me as I was driving the other day and I passed by a church I don't normally see, and there were three signs out front. that would not have at all coerced me to go to that church, but that was their goal. The three signs said this, progressive, inclusive, informal. So what are the messages going to be that come from that pulpit? It's all feel good, happy, encouraging stuff. You think they're going to preach on the doctrine of total depravity? You think they're going to preach on judgment? No. But that's how these false prophets are. It's all positive and encouraging. A.W. Pink writes, there's nothing in their preaching which searches the conscience and renders the empty professor uneasy, nothing which humbles and causes their hearers to mourn before God. but rather that which puffs up, makes them pleased with themselves and to rest content in a false assurance." Now, how many of us love to be encouraged? We do like to be encouraged, don't we? But there's times when we read the Word of God or we sit in the preaching the Word of God and you think, oh, woe is me. Who am I? And that's how it should be. There's times of conviction. There's times of mourning. There's times of even grieving over our sins. and there's times of being encouraged in the Lord as well. Well, since false prophets still exist today, it's important that we also know how to recognize them. How does Jesus say in this text today that we'll recognize them? Verse 16, they're fruits, right? They're fruits. You will recognize them by their fruits. Bad trees produce bad fruit and good trees produce good fruit. We're in the season of spring where flowers and trees and bushes are blooming and they're blossoming all around us. We love to see how God opens up the bud on the flower and brings forth beauty and life. And this is how our lives should be as things come to life in the spring. This is how our lives should be as Christians. that we're continually blooming and blooming more and more and more for the glory of God, but not so for the false prophet, for they will bear bad fruit that is not eternal fruit, ultimately will be judged and thrown into the lake of fire. Well, what is characteristic of a bad tree? When you see a bad tree, how do you know it's a bad tree? Well, it either doesn't have any leaves at all or it may have bad fruit on it. Lack of foliage is a giveaway that the tree is dying or dead. A few years ago, we planted two trees in our yard. And let me make it known I'm not a gardener at all. Let me just say that from the outset. But we planted two trees in the yard. Got them from the same place, same soil, same process, same mixture of stuff. And now years later, one looks great and is growing and is thriving and is green and is producing, and the other is dead and needs to be ripped out. But I keep thinking, well, maybe it's going to change. Well, it's not going to change, right? Because a bad tree can't bear good fruit. And so it is with the false prophets. If you see bare branches without leaves on one side of the tree, that part of the tree is dead. It could indicate even root damage. It could also mean that disease or pests have ensued. Dead leaves are a sign that something is obstructing the flow of proper nutrients in and through the root system and up the trunk of the tree. In like manner, false prophets are like bad trees. who they haven't given themselves to God's pruning in their lives. They are not firmly rooted without a true justification and therefore unable to produce sanctification or fruit in their lives. What do we mean by that? Well, let's contrast it with a believer who bears good fruit. Our root system is good and strong, and our root system is based upon what? The finished work of Christ. So we could say our root system is our justification. And then what shows that we have a good root system is the fruit that that tree produces, right? Our sanctification, if you will. Not so for the false prophet. They haven't even been justified. They have a shallow root system, not a deep root system. So they can't possibly bear good, beautiful fruit without a strong root system. Listen to what Jesus says in John 15, 1 through 2. I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, He takes away. And every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes. Why? That it might bear more fruit. How many of y'all have gone through the pruning process by God? It hurts and it's painful and it's a struggle, but the goal is that we will produce bigger and better and more plentiful fruit for the glory of God. The unbeliever and the false prophet did not allow God to prune him. Instead, he ignores God's instructions. And even more than that, he tells others to do the same, ignore God's instructions, the result of which is a dying tree with bad fruit, which is a stench in the nostrils of God. Listen to how discerning we need to be, though. William Barclay in this quote, there was a certain thorn the buckthorn which had little black berries which closely resembled little grapes. There was a certain thistle which had a flower which at least at a distance might well have been 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." You get that? The life of a soul can never be sustained with the food that a false prophet offers. The real test of any teaching, he concludes, is this, does it strengthen a man to bear the burdens of life and to walk in the way wherein he ought to go." It's kind of like the litmus test with teaching. As you hear me teach, ask this question, is it strengthening me to bear the burdens of life, pointing me to Christ, walking in His ways? As you hear preaching, ask the same questions. As we hear teaching and preaching, we've got to pay attention to this, making sure it is good for our souls, making sure it is ultimately directing us toward a savior and not toward any man. Now, I want to point out one part of verse 18. We've already talked about a bad tree cannot bear good fruit, but what about a healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit? We can't skip over that. It's an encouragement for the believer especially for those that may struggle with assurance of salvation. If you're wondering, am I truly a Christian or am I like that diseased tree, take stock of your sanctification. Do you see fruits of the Spirit in your life? Though imperfect, are you gradually growing good fruits? You see, all true believers can't help but bear good fruit. They will bear good fruit because they are in the Lord and have the indwelling Holy Spirit working as a foreman, if you will, in the fruit factory of our lives. Jesus says we cannot bear bad fruit as a healthy tree, that is, as a believer. And as we grow in sanctification, our lives will be more and more characterized by good fruit. I hope this is encouraging for all of you. Even as parents in the room, what do we look for with regeneration in our children? We look for fruits, right? We look for fruits of repentance. Are they sorry for sin? Are they grieved over their sin? And are they showing forth fruits that prove that they are a Christian? What about in our own lives? We should be looking for the same things. When I sin, am I really grievous? We're gonna be looking at Psalm 51 in the sermon. And do we realize that every sin is an offense toward God and we're going to Him. recognizing that we have sinned and fallen short. But as believers, we have the hope of the Holy Spirit that indwells us, that is growing us and making us more and more holy. Let's spend...we don't have much time. I want to get a little bit of table discussion in, so let me give about two to three minutes. just to kind of start this percolating. Two questions on your handout. One, what are some examples of good fruit seen in the life of a Christian? Secondly, do you struggle with Jesus' statement that a healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit? Consider that. Round your tables for about two minutes and then we'll conclude with our next section of verses. All right, let's close out our discussion time. We'll get back together. I know it wasn't much time to consider it, but ideas started percolating, right, at least. So even think through that in the coming week. You know, as Christians, our lives should be bearing fruit. What does that fruit look like? Well, after warning against false prophets, Jesus then turns His attention to eternity. Notice in Matthew 7, 21 through 23, He does that. He talks about eternity. Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. Well, let's talk about that section of verses. In the context of the preceding verses, we can interpret this as follows. People that represent bad trees producing bad fruit may think that they deserve to have eternal life in heaven. They think they're safe and maybe they've got a ticket in the gate, so to speak, that God will declare to them He never knew them. However, people that represent good trees producing good fruit will be welcomed into heaven by the grace of God and through the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit working in that person's life. Well, these are verses for all of us to consider. Do we personally know the saving grace of our Lord and Savior or are we merely going through the motions deceiving ourselves and deceiving others around us? Diedrich Bonhoeffer would speak of cheap grace, which he describes as preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ living and incarnate. Well, that's no grace at all, is it? Grace without the cross, grace without Jesus, This is cheap grace and not really grace at all. Several years ago, A.W. Pink wrote, and so even more pervasive today, never were there so many millions of nominal Christians on earth as there are today. And never was there such a small percentage of real ones. We seriously doubt whether there has ever been a time in the history of this Christian era where there was such multitudes of deceived souls within the churches who verily believe that all is well with their souls when in fact the wrath of God abideth on them." And we know of no single thing, he goes on, better calculated to undeceive them than a full and faithful exposition of these closing verses of the Lord's Sermon on the Mount. It's a sober statement and it's sadly accurate in our culture. But as we consider these verses, let's look at two key areas that people may be relying upon to have eternal life. First, some will have a true false confidence. Perhaps they know the Bible, even know biblical doctrine, but they're relying upon what they know rather than what is in their heart. Remember, even the demons believe and shudder, James 2.19. One can know Scripture, but unless he calls upon the Lord to be saved, he will be cast into hell. This was a case with Martin Luther, who was so concerned for his soul that he left professional training to be an attorney and enter the monastery. And while there, Luther studied much and was ordained into priesthood and earned a doctorate degree in theology. He would have answered in the affirmative to many important questions, including, do you believe in the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ? He would have said, yes. Do you believe that Jesus died on the cross and he died for your sins? Yes. Do you believe Jesus is coming back to judge the world? He would have said yes. But as James Montgomery Boyce would point out, at that point in his life, he really did not know the Lord personally. Luther, at that point in his life, he would say Jesus was God, but not his God. Jesus was Lord, but not his Lord. Jesus was Savior, but not his Savior. Of course, we know what happened. The Lord woke him up, and the Holy Spirit began that great regeneration of his heart, and he opened himself and saw the errors of his ways, and he saw the errors of the Catholic church and turned from them. Well, does this describe someone you know? Or does it describe you giving the right answers? but being far away from God. Seeing God as God and Lord and Savior, but not your personal Savior. Remember, the Sermon on the Mount was for Christians. So Jesus, even in teaching us how to pray the Lord's Prayer, says He is our Heavenly Father. Only the Christian can say that. The unbeliever can say maybe He's your Heavenly Father, but He's not mine. Have you said He's mine? Have you said He's mine? Well, secondly, while some will have a false confidence in their salvation, others will rely upon their good works. Paul writes, for by grace you have been saved through faith. This is not your own doing. It is the gift of God, not a result of work, so that no man may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2, 8 through 10. This means that it is possible and it does exist where people will be members of the church, baptized members of the church, maybe even serving on the mission field. maybe even serving as an officer in the church and never really know the Lord Jesus. It's certainly the case for the false prophets who believed they were doing a great work when in essence they were doing their own works apart from the saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our works cannot save. You can't be good enough. We must rest upon Him alone for salvation. But as Christians, let us not stop there. Let us do the good works that He's already prepared in advance for us to do, that we might bear good fruit and good soil on a good tree that will be pleasing to our heavenly Father. Is this you? Is it me? Think about your own salvation. It's always important when we come to verses like this. And in a larger church, we can't assume that everyone that sits here week in and week out are Christians. And I'm not saying if you are a Christian to doubt it. I'm just saying take stock in it and think about it. It's always good to do that from time to time. To the unbeliever, either one relying on false confidence and or works. God will say, I never knew you'd apart from me, you workers of lawlessness, Matthew 7, 23. But if you're unsettled in your soul, and maybe someone will listen to this later that's not even at this church, if you're unsettled in your soul and have conviction to move from a works righteousness to a true fruit bearing righteousness given to you by the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary, make today Make today that you seek the Lord, repenting of sin and accepting the free gifts of grace through salvation. However, to the true, repentant, genuine Christian who has consecrated his life to the Lord Jesus and is living in daily dependence upon his grace and who has been faithful to the end, not perfectly, that's us, not perfectly, but are we striving to be faithful, then we will hear these words. Oh, may we hear these words. Well done, good and faithful servant. You've been faithful over a little. I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master. Matthew 25, 23. How can we enter into the joy of our master? Not by being prideful, by being humble. Lord, I don't know why you did this for me, but you did. I don't know why you sent Jesus to die for me, but you did. Help me by the power of the Holy Spirit to live for you. Dear ones, may this describe each and every one of us. May the Lord find us faithful to Him in this life. We'll be tempted at times to go toward the wide path. May we not go down it. Do not go down the wide path, the one that was touted by the scribes and the Pharisees. No, that leads ultimately to destruction. No, dear ones, may we, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, by the help of the Holy Spirit, by the grace of God, may we stay on that narrow path, living for God, healthy trees, bearing good fruit, That's a testimony to what the Lord is doing in our lives, that we will one day have that eternal reward. Let's pray. God in heaven, thank you, Lord, for the communion of saints. Thank you for each one that's here. And we pray simply as we think about these words and we contemplate them today and perhaps even in the days to come, would you meet each one according to our need? And may we, Lord, may we strive. Yes, may we rest upon you for salvation, but may us, strive, Lord, to holiness. May we strive to do good things, not so that we will be recognized, but those good works that You've already prepared for us to do, that You and You alone may receive the glory and the honor and the praise. In Jesus' name, amen.