of my soul, I want to live for you. Father, I ask that the truths of your word, the truths of the gospel would so penetrate our hearts, even the stoniest, hardest heart in this room, that at the end of it all, the cry of us all would be, lover of my soul, I want to live for you. Father, please do miracles this morning for your glory and for our good, we ask in Jesus' name, amen. Turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 7. Matthew chapter 7 and verse 15. The word of the Lord says this. You wear a 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 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 shall recognize them by their fruits." Last week, we looked at the words of our Lord telling us to beware. And the fact of the matter is the word beware is a frightening word. It creates something in us. Suspicion. As I talked about last week with the snake, if you think there's a snake nearby, you can't see, you're suspicious of every blade of grass and every leaf. Well, the Lord doesn't tell us to beware of snakes in the grass. He tells us to beware of false prophets who wear the clothing of sheep. So when we've been told to beware of false prophets, and we know that these false prophets are at the very crossroad of the narrow gate and the broad gate, and they're actually after luring you away off of the path that leads to life, that you might go on the path that leads to destruction while you are deceived to think you're still on the path that leads to life, the caution intensifies. when you've been made aware that the normal way of precaution and safety is not going to help you, because they don't sound like false prophets, they don't look like false prophets, they look and sound like Christian people, they can be anybody. Men and women who fellowship with you, children who play with your children, Galatians 2, 4, yet because of false brothers secretly brought in, who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus so that they might bring us into slavery. False brothers. They can even be among your leaders. Acts 20, 29, I know that after my departure, fierce wolves will come in among you." Here Paul is talking to the elders in Ephesus. "...not sparing the flock and from among your own selves." Among the council of the elders, among the leadership in Ephesus, Paul says, "...from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be alert Beware, remember that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish everyone with tears. That could make us all have been on edge. Why? Because now everyone's a suspect, right? Anyone can be these people. This can bring about an atmosphere of skepticism and speculation that is unhealthy. Some of you may remember, not because you were alive then, some of you were, but 1977 in New York City, David Berkowitz, better known as the son of Sam, terrorized the whole city. And why was it so terrifying? People had been killed before. What was it that was causing such paranoia and panic? He began murdering people and no one knew why. No one knew what he looked like. No one knew who he was. No one knew the pattern. It could be anybody. And the news began to throw out these pictures. This person said, oh, I think I saw him. I think I saw him. And all these pictures look different. And it was such a paranoia in New York City in 1977 that everyone was a suspect until one of their survivors, one of his survivors described And they had an accurate picture of this man. And now all the panic was able to be calmed and the focus was directed in one direction. This is what our Lord is doing. He's not just having us panic and paranoid and anybody can be it. So don't trust anybody. Don't listen to any teachers. Don't trust any preachers. Don't fellowship with anybody because anyone can be a false prophet after all. No, he's loving and wise and he gives us help. He gives us ways to recognize. He doesn't want anything to stand in the way of our unity, of our growth, of our holiness. God has no desire for his body to be divided. So our Lord doesn't stop at beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly a ravenous wolves. He goes on to say, you will recognize them. You will recognize them. There is a way to recognize them. Praise God, right? Amen. You will recognize them by their fruits. Without this one clue, they are unrecognizable. Without this one key, the door to their discovery remains locked. But our savior, the good shepherd who loves the sheep does not leave us unprotected in the midst of these ravenous wolves. He tells us how to recognize them by their fruits. Now, you all know from time to time, as we've been going through this sermon, I've had to address what the word of God does not mean before we can actually focus on what it does mean. And that's because scripture is often taken out of context or misunderstood. So fruit, you will recognize them by their fruit. Some have taken this to mean that the fruits of the false prophet are the followers of the false prophet. They're congregations, they're students, they're disciples, they're converts. And it makes sense, after all, they're laboring, they're working, they have fruit from their labor in the souls and lives of men and women. If they're wolves, if they're snakes, if they're worldly, if they're sensual, if they're lost, if they're proud, if they're arrogant, certainly we would find people just like them around them. 2 Timothy 4.3 tells us, for the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions and will turn away from listening to the truth. and wander off into myths. These people are actually accumulating, they're stockpiling false teachers. They like having their itching ears scratched. Luke 6 tells us, he also told them a parable, verse 39, can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? A disciple is not above his teacher, But everyone, when he is fully trained, will be like his teacher. Well, this begins to bring questions. What if the man or the woman who led you to Christ was a false prophet? Does that mean that your Christianity is not true? After all, aren't you the fruit of this false teacher, of this false convert? You are fruit. And if this means the bad fruit is you, then does that mean that your Christianity is not genuine? What if your marriage was helped by a wolf in sheep's clothing? What if you were baptized by a heretic? Does that mean that your baptism is not real? Doesn't count? Need to do it again? What if you are a fruit on a false tree? Well, you can imagine the Overwhelming discouragement, a teaching like this in and of itself can produce and genuine believers. Let me comfort you with the word of God. What does scripture say? First Corinthians chapter three, verses five through nine. What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believe as the Lord assigned to each. I planted Apollos watered. but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything. Anything. But only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building. The seed of the gospel that goes into good soil is not my seed, it's God's seed. It's God's gospel. We as humans can plant them, we can preach them, we can water them, but only God can grow them. Only God can give life. So if you have life, it's because God has given you life. Whether that Message came from the lips of a false prophet or not if it was the true gospel and you believed it by faith in Christ You are truly his Only God can open the eyes of the blind only God can open the ears of the deaf only God can forgive sinners And if you are a Christian You were once blinded by your sin, but now you see the beauty and the glory of God. Why? Because of the man? Because of the vessel? Because of the servant? No, because God gave you sight to behold him. A Christian is born again, not by the power of man, but by the word of God. God. First Peter 1 23, since you have been born again, not a perishable seed, but an imperishable through the living and abiding word of God for all fleshes like grass and all its glory, like the flower of grass, the grass withers and the flower falls. But the word of the Lord remains forever. And this word is the good news that was preached to you. It was the Word of God through the Spirit of God that brought you to the Son of God that made you a child of God. And that person, that preacher, that pastor, that friend, whoever it was, the means was only a vessel used by God to do the will of God. He is sovereign and God knew that the one who was pointing you to his son was not genuine. Think of Judas, John 6, 64, but there are some of you, Jesus says, who do not believe. For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe and who it was who would betray him. And yet, did God not send out Judas along with the rest of the 12 to proclaim the gospel? Judas was armed with the true gospel and yet he himself was a wolf, was a snake, was a devil. People believe the gospel through the preaching of Judas. People have believed the gospel through the preachers who have truly been wolves throughout history. God is not surprised. He could have made it so that you were converted under the preaching of a true shepherd. But in his perfect wisdom, he chose for you to come in even while a wolf proclaimed Christ. Paul says in Philippians, some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill. The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. So rejoice, not that the one who led you to Christ is false, but that the Christ in whom you believed is true and saved you. Rejoice that even through the vessel and the lips of a false prophet, you came to the true and living God. What if you were baptized by a false prophet? Is your baptism false? Baptism is merely a symbol of the reality that happens because of the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. The baptism is not made true or pure because of the hands. False prophets have laid hands on true men of God who have gone on to endure to the end, while the one who laid hands on them fell away. It is the work of God, the power of God, by the Spirit of God. Another misunderstanding regarding the fruit here is the meaning behind the illustration. So I really want you to look with me at these words. 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. Some have thought what this clearly means is that apple trees do not grow oranges. A mango tree does not grow plums. We would all say, man, that's true. If you go to a grapevine, you're not going to find strawberries there. If you go to a pineapple field, you're not going to find cantaloupe. All you have to do, the teaching goes, is look at them. It's obvious. It's obvious to tell the difference between an orange tree and an apple tree, even from a distance. Red, orange. You can immediately see the difference between a cucumber and a carrot. But wouldn't that contradict the illustration that was just used? I mean, think with me, brothers and sisters. The wolf looks like a sheep. They're wearing the clothing of the sheep. The point is you cannot tell immediately, merely by hearing, by looking. on the outward appearance. Something else is needed. Is Jesus telling us in one breath, you can't tell who a false prophet is simply by looking at them because of the wool on the wolf, only to tell us in the very next verse, now you can tell merely by looking. Look at the obvious difference of these fruits. Then look at his words again. Argument two, are grapes gathered from thorn bushes or figs from thistles. We know he's talking about fruit. Good fruit, bad fruit. But thorns are not fruit, are they? Thistles, that's not a fruit. Someone say, well, the lost don't bear fruit. Well, yes, in the parable of the sower, the only one that was truly a Christian was the one who bore fruit. But in this illustration, There is a bad tree that does bear bad fruit. Both trees bear fruit. One is good, one is bad, and a thorn is not a fruit, no matter how you slice it. A thistle is not a fruit, no matter what you call it. So what is the point here? 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." In all of nature, we find things that are amazing. There are insects that look just like sticks. There are moths that look just like leaves. There are spiders that look just like flowers. There are owls that look like the bark of trees. There's a shark that looks like the ocean floor. It's amazing. There's a lizard called the leaf-tailed gecko that you have to Google it to see it. Utterly amazing. God has made creatures that look like other things. And some of these are disguised for hunting, others for protection. And among trees and among fruit, there are also lookalikes. Think of the mushroom. The most poisonous mushroom is called the death cap mushroom. The death cap doesn't taste remotely like death. Many people who are poisoned claim the mushroom was the most delicious they've ever eaten. In appearance, it doesn't scream deadly either. In fact, in its early button stage, it closely resembles immature, edible white mushrooms. There are poisonous berries that look like cherries. Blueberries and blackberries and more. There's a deadly fruit that resembles an apple. There's something called the Jerusalem cherry. that looks just like a cherry tomato. This is what Jesus is teaching us by the words about grapes, thorns, figs, and thistles. There are plants that look just like grapevines. For example, the moon seed has leaves that are almost identical to the grape leaf. The grape leaf has jagged edges, teeth-like, while the moon seed Looks exactly like it, but the edges are smooth. They have berries that look just like a cluster of grapes. They even have vines. So much resembles the grape vine. And without closer inspection, you would think that the cluster of this dark, juicy, purple berry was actually a cluster of grapes. And if you did happen to eat them, however, you would suffer agonizing pain, convulsions, and ultimately death. And there are many fruits like this. Nightshade, belladonna are two examples. And those are sweet. The one giveaway, thorns are growing along the stem. And without noticing the thorns and knowing grapes don't produce thorns, you would consume them. And the sweet juice of these poisonous plants would leave you in critical condition headed toward eternity. The fig tree, the fig tree blossoms with flowers before the fruit comes. And thistles also produce flowers and they look similar until you go to grab and then you're very much made aware this is not a fig tree because the puncture in your finger and the blood that flows from it make you aware this is not what I thought it was. There are look-alikes, just like wolves in sheep clothing, so the bad fruit here is not rotting fruit, it's poisonous fruit, it's It's deadly. It's sickness inducing. It's bitter. It's an imposter. It looks just like a grape. It looks just like a fig. But if you eat it, if you consume it, if you handle it, if you get comfortable with it, you immediately notice that this is a bad, diseased tree. This is a tree of death. So where's the safety? You have to have a knowledge of what a grapevine really looks like. And then upon coming into contact and inspecting this pretender, you would immediately recognize by its fruit, you don't gather thorns from grapevines because grapevines don't have thorns. Figs don't have thistles. Teaching is the good tree produced fruit that is edible that is healthy, that is useful and good. What is the good tree? The child of God, the Christian, the child of God believes the gospel of Christ and day by day looks more and more like Christ, just like a growing tree. While the bad tree produces fruit that looks edible, that appears healthy and useful, But in reality, it bears poisonous, noxious, bitter, worthless imitations of real fruit that has absolutely no purpose at all. And everything that consumes, even animals that consume fruit from this tree, destruction. So the false prophet, the false brother, the false sister produced fruit that looks good as well, but their fruit is actually death. and leads to damnation. So he's telling us, you're not gonna be able to notice this just by a glancery overview. You're not gonna be able to tell this from a distance. The same warning of the wolf and the sheep is the same warning of the grape and the thorn. You're gonna need to inspect more than the external. in order to recognize what is good fruit and what is bad, you need to go deeper than the surface, because on the surface, it all looks the same. And this is the contrast that we find all throughout our Bibles. Citizens of the kingdom of God, citizens of the kingdom of this world, children of the devil, children of God, the seed of the woman, the seed of the serpent, the sheep, the goat, the wheat, the tares, the living, the dead, the seeing, the blind, the lovers of God, the haters of God, the wise virgins, the foolish virgins, the good soil, the rocky soil, the thorny soil, those on the narrow path, those on the wide, broad way, the good tree with good fruit, The bad tree with bad fruit. This is all throughout our Bibles. So, think of fruit. When we think of fruit, immediately we notice two aspects, and there are two aspects to understanding this recognition. There is the seed, in fact, that's how you know a fruit versus a vegetable, right? A fruit are seed-bearing vegetation. They have to have a seed in order for it to be a fruit. But it's not just a seed. There's also pulp, there's skin, there's juice. So if you will look at it like this, that the seed is the doctrine of the person, the belief of the person, the teaching. And the pulp and the juice and the skin is the character and the life. And these two are inseparable. The good fruit must contain Both. Right doctrine, right living. They're inseparable. Or as J.C. Reilly said, sound doctrine, holy living are the marks of true prophets. So let's look at first these seeds, the doctrine. Now, you have heard many times. I'm not interested in theology, doctrine, I just want to love Jesus. Doctrine doesn't matter. No creed but Christ. I just want to worship Jesus. We must not say such things. Doctrine is absolutely essential to our salvation, to recognizing the bad from the good, the false from the true. I was in a conversation recently, I was telling my wife about it, where a man said, the doctrine of the Trinity is really not that important. It doesn't have anything to do with salvation. This was a professing Christian in a leadership role. The doctrine of the Trinity, the nature of God doesn't matter? My question to him was, He said, look, all you need is just to believe in Jesus. I said, which Jesus? The Jesus of the Mormons who say that the devil and Jesus are brothers? The Jesus of the Jehovah's Witness who says that Jesus is the Archangel Michael and the created being? The Jesus of the Gnostics who say that Christ did not come in the flesh? Which Jesus? Does it matter? It is absolutely essential what Jesus we believe in. If you don't have the right Christ, you don't have the right gospel. And if you don't have the right gospel, you don't have salvation and you will die in your sins. Is this important? This is absolutely important. This is essential. This is foundational. We are saved by a message and a message that is filled with truth and doctrine and theology. It's called the gospel. John 3.16 is filled with doctrine and theology. God, begin with Him. So love the world. Why is that news? Because the world was in sin. And whoever believes in Him, it's not by works, it's by faith, will not perish. There's a judgment that's coming. There is eternal life and eternal destruction. And there's a salvation that is kept, as we heard earlier, that you will have eternal life. It matters. It is at the very core, at the very bottom. This is the beginning. The seed of the good fruit is the doctrine. The seed of the bad fruit is the doctrine. It matters. What we believe matters. What we believe about God matters. What we believe about ourselves matters. What we believe about the Word of God matters. What we believe about Christ and salvation and eternity and works and life and death and all of it, it matters. It matters. It's essential. Luke 6, 43, Jesus says, For no good tree bears bad fruit. Nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of the evil treasure produces evil. Four, out of the abundance of the heart, his mouth speaks. What he believes about Christ comes out of his mouth. What he believes about the Bible comes out of her mouth. It's all there. It matters what you believe. So either you have good seeds, good doctrine, what the Bible calls sound doctrine, sound teaching, or you have error. Either your beliefs are informed by the word of God or they're not. Either you believe the truth or you believe lies. But here's where the wolf in sheep's clothing is dangerous because the heretic flat out says, Jesus didn't die on a cross. Jesus isn't God. We hold them at arm's length. But the false prophet, he would never say such things. Do you want to go to heaven? He believes in heaven. Do you want a better marriage? Are you feeling empty? Say these words after me. And after you repeat these words, God will fix your life, he'll clean your life up, he'll give you all that you ever wanted. And what is missing in all of this? Where is God? Where's Christ? Where's the cross? Where's the blood? Where's atonement? Where's forgiveness? Where's sin? Where's repentance? But it sounds good. Take some good, mix in lies, mix it up and feed it to the people. Oh, that looks like a beautiful grape. Take a bite. Poison. All good news without any bad news, nothing offensive, nothing that will cause a lost man to really be upset. It's all human effort. But there's another part to this recognition. And that is the life of the prophet. The life of the professing Christian. The life of the one who says, I am a believer. And there is no divorcing the doctrine from the life. The seed produces the Pope. The seed is essential to Christianity. You cannot become a believer if you have a wrong Christ, right? But brothers and sisters, please hear me as clearly as can possibly be heard. If that's all you have, you are in great danger. Certainly, we can point to the Kenneth Copelands of the world, call him a wolf with his health, wealth, prosperity gospel. We can easily point out the Joel Osteens and the T.D. Jakes and the Creflo Dollars and Benny Hens and Joyce Myers, and we, again, multiply names. And they're easy to identify their false prophet status because they've actually made false prophecies or they teach this health, wealth, God is just a means to an end. And we'd be right to do so, to say, stay away from them. They have bad doctrine and bad lives. But is it just them? Because we know all too well people who have great doctrine, proper teaching, biblical knowledge, sound theology, and yet the fruit of their lives is bad. This is why Paul told Timothy, keep a close watch on yourself, your life, and on the teaching, your doctrine, the seed, and the fruit. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers. There are too many who think as long as the teaching is good, all is good. Paul Walsher tells that story of when he went to that church and he preached, and they were so helped by his preaching. They said, we want you to be our pastor. He said, you don't know me. You don't know if I love my wife. You don't know how I treat my children. You're impressed by a sermon? For many, the only question that seems to be asked is, can he preach? Is he 1689? Is he continuationist? Is he cessationist? Is he reformed? What's his view on the end times? Is this important? Of course, brethren, there is more to fruit trees than the seeds. And too many have been trusted because they have sound preaching, they write good books, they know what certain words mean, they can articulate church history, apologetics, hermeneutics, eschatology, stamps of approval. Some of you may have been reading the news lately. Tom Chantry, a Reformed Baptist pastor convicted on nine counts of abuse and molestation of boys and girls this month. Stephen Bratton, a Reformed Baptist pastor convicted of assaulting his own family member for years, and the news articles continue to pour in. The Houston Chronicle and the San Antonio Express News work together to uncover over the past two decades some three 680 Southern Baptist leaders and volunteers have been accused of sexual misconduct. You say, well, that's the SBC. That's those denominations. 412 allegations of abuse across nearly 200 churches and institutions, which by definition exist apart from denominational affiliations. More than 130 of them have been found guilty of rape, kidnapping, sexual assault, and a litany of other crimes, with most victims being children and teens. Dozens abusive pastors had multiple victims. One raped 11 girls in his congregation, and several had abused children as young as seven years old. That says nothing of the sins of greed, violence, adultery, racism, idolatry. What is this proving? Just because someone holds to sound doctrine, has great theology, went to seminary, preaches the Bible accurately, serves a position of ministry, doesn't mean they're not a false prophet. They have good words. The seed is intact, but what's surrounding it? But their lives are false, deceptive, and vile. These people who are doing these things are not Christian. They're wolves devouring helpless sheep, vulnerable sheep, abusing these people. Second Timothy 3, 5 warns us that they have the appearance of godliness, but deny its power. Avoid such people, for among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdenless sins, and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. They know the truth, but they never arrive at the saving knowledge of it. They have the theology, they have the doctrine, they're able to preach, they're able to put the arguments together, but they never arrive at the reality of that knowledge saving them because they don't know Christ. They preached Christ, but they didn't love Christ. They knew the truth, but they didn't know Jesus. And Jesus said to the crowds, to his disciples, the scribes and the Pharisees, sit on Moses' seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you. They're teaching, but not the works they do, for they preach, but do not practice. This is one way the bad tree bears bad fruit. But there is another way which aligns more closely to the illustration, and it's the subtlety. Remember, the Pharisees were not blatantly wicked men, outwardly. Everyone agrees the outside of the cup was washed clean. They would cross land and sea for one convert. They were evangelistic. They made people keep their oaths. They would tithe the smallest herb. What was said of them? Clean the outside of the cup, whitewash tombs. They build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous. How you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish. Remember the two men that stood. One a Pharisee, one a tax collector. Jesus told the story. Two men went up into the temple to pray. One a Pharisee, the other a tax collector. The Pharisee standing by himself prayed thus, God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I get. And the commentators agreed. This man wasn't lying. He really did these things. What was the problem? Inwardly, ravenous wolves. Martin Lloyd-Jones said, a man may speak in the right way. He may apparently live in the right way. And yet, according to our Lord, he may be a false prophet the whole time. He may be assuming the appearance of the Christian life without really being a Christian. But we all know that the Pharisees were false prophets. And throughout history, there have been many who were morally upright, the gentlemen of the Victorian era, women who had scruples and manners who would never dare go into that den of iniquity. They would never utter profane words. And no, we won't touch that. We don't taste that. We don't go there. We live in a very upright and moral and law-abiding way. It looks very good. The law keeper, the praying person, the Bible reader, the faster, the honest, nice guy. When you think of Joel Osteen, you don't think of this sensual wolf trying to pull women away into back rooms. He's the nice guy, smiling, probably give you his parking spot. Friendly and kind and generous. Good stuff. I was in a discussion about T.D. Jakes recently, and the man I was talking to was defending him, even though this man does not hold to the doctrine of the Trinity and preaches a gospel that is prosperity. And he said, but they have programs there where people get out of debt and they help people find homes and they help the homeless. It's good stuff. I said that. Yeah, that's that's good. Great stuff. Philanthropists would donate money to build orphanages. Teenagers go on mission trips to impoverished parts of the world. All of it looks good. But when we inspect the fruit, we must ask, why does it grow? What is the seed inside of it made of? Why the smile? What motivates the gift? What is the cause of the purity and singleness and faithfulness in marriage? What's behind it all? What is the reason? What happened? Has God done a work? Has God opened the eyes of that boy? Has God raised that girl from the dead? Is that why? Are we seeing life? Are we hearing a heartbeat of a redeemed soul? Or is this someone who is living ethically, morally? They have conservative values, family values. This is a Judeo Christian nation and we want to hold to those foundational principles of our founding fathers and we want to live up to that. People reach a certain age and they say, you know what, I need to stop all this clubbing and all this getting drunk. I need to settle down. I need to get a wife. You know, I need to get serious about my life. I should start going back to church. What is behind all of that? Is this a supernatural work that they have beheld God, they've been saved, they've been born again, they've been redeemed? Or are they saying, you know, I'm getting too old for this. I need to turn over a new leaf. It's a fear of consequences. If I keep doing this, I'm gonna lose my wife. If I keep doing this, I'm gonna lose my job. If I keep doing this, I'm gonna lose my freedom. If I keep doing this, I'm gonna lose my mind. But what is the motivation? Self. It's all me. It's all me, myself, and I, and all of it's being driven by this, but nothing supernatural has happened. It looks like Christian life because there's honesty, and there's friendliness, and there's kindness, and there's generosity, and there's even Bible reading, and there's prayer, and there's all this, but you look behind it, you ask, you inspect, you see what is really behind all of this, and is someone just turning over a new leaf? It's someone who's just been brought up, hey, I'm a Cottmanelle. And Cottmanelles, they work hard, and they take care of their family, and they come home, and that's what we do. And so that's what I do, and my children, is that it? Is that all? Some people are married to Christian people, and they say, well, I can't do what we used to do, so I guess I need to start doing this. Some people have Christian children and the children make them feel bad, so they say, okay, I guess I need to clean my life up. Have you been washed by the blood of the lamb and that's why you do what you do? Or is it just social norms Is it the new birth or something else? Because they can look similar. They can sound similar. You know, alcohol anonymous is Alcohol Anonymous and Narcotic Anonymous and all these anonymous groups, people stop doing certain things that are vices and habits and terrible things and they don't go back to them for the rest of their lives, but it has absolutely nothing to do with the gospel. It has nothing to do with Christ. It has nothing to do with the word of God. It's not because the spirit of God has changed them from within and they are completely consumed and changed by that. There's no transformation. It is totally the arm of the flesh. Some trust in horses, some in chariots, because horses and chariots do win battles. We will trust in the name of the Lord. The entire Man, the entire woman has been transformed by the truth of what they believe. And now the seed of doctrine becomes surrounded by deeds and behaviors and life. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning for God's seed abides in him. And he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. The Spirit of God supernaturally changes the sinner so that even when sin does happen, as 1 John says, Beloved, I write these things to you so that you do not sin, but if anyone does sin, but the seed of God remains so you can't keep going because that rod we heard about in the first hour, that rod of discipline, the conviction, the love for God, he's going to be gnawing on you and gnawing on you. Oh, David, What did he say? Because I kept quiet, because I didn't confess my sin. Oh, the hand of the Lord was heavy upon me. My bones were wasting away. I had no joy. But the one who does it merely for the sake of exterior moralism, there's none of that. 2nd Peter Chapter 2 Verse 20 What am I doing here I'm trying to give you this contrast of the good tree and the bad tree the good fruit and the bad fruit and what is the true Contrast and it's more than just what it looks like 2 Peter 2, verse 20, for if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world, that's the new King James, yours probably says defilements. It's the same words, the same idea, the defilements, the pollution of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome. The latter end is worse for them than the beginning, for it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than having known it to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them, but it has happened to them according to the true proverb, a dog returns to his own vomit and a sow or a pig having washed to her wallowing in the mire. The pig washed, but it's still a pig. The nature has not changed. Likewise, men women may wash the pollution of habits and practices and vices, but the filth and corruption of their minds and hearts and soul remain. So is it regeneration or is it just morality? Have you been born again or are you just behaving according to the norms expected of you? Children, growing up in a Christian home, beware of this, because there are laws and commandments and expectations for all Christian growing up in Christian homes. And it's possible to start conforming yourself to the standards of the home and thinking that that means something has happened to you. And I would point you to the cross of Jesus Christ and the empty tomb and say, is that why? What is driving your behavior? Some people stop doing things, other people start doing things. But why? Why? Why the reformation of life? Romans 14 says, whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. Jesus has already told us that there are people who will serve and give to those in need, Matthew 6, 2. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you as the hypocrite do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly I say to you, they have received their reward. So they are giving, they are serving, they're conducting themselves with all of this, but why? That they may be seen, that they may be applauded, that they may be congratulated. It's all motivated by self and not by God. Matthew 6, 5, and when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray. In the synagogues and at the street corners, Christians love to stand and pray too. What's the difference between these two? One doesn't, why? That they may be seen, that they may be applauded, that they may be congratulated, that they may be, wow, you are a praying man. You are a praying woman, but the child of God, why does the child of God pray? Because God loved me. I don't deserve for him to love me. Why does the child of God give and serve? Because he's worthy to be loved. What is their motivation? What is mine? What is yours? Is it for the sake of others watching? Is it for the purpose of pride and love for self? That's not a good tree or good fruit. The good tree bears good fruit. The cry of the heart of the true Christian is, Lord, let your name be made holy in my own heart first, in my family, in my church, in my city, in my state, in my country, in this world. Lord, let earth be like heaven in the way that you are adored and worshiped and glorified. The good tree is consumed with the truth of God's holiness, with the love of God, and the beauty of God, that God would have mercy on us, because we know what we are, right? You know what you deserve. You know that you are totally unworthy to approach Him. And yet God loved you. God cast His mercy upon you. God so secretly sacrificed His Son on your behalf. Jesus shed His blood. It matters. And that's why you do all you do. That's why you are kind. That's why you are gentle. That's why you are self-controlled. That's why you are loving. That's why you come to the meetings. It's for God. The reality of the wrath of God removed from your soul never gets dulled. We sang it. Once your enemy now seated at your table, that means something for the false prophet Those are words. That's just a song to sing. You like the melody. But for the true Christian, the good tree that bears good fruit, the reality that He loved you. I read a quote from R.C. Sproul. He said, the greatest miracle is to be convinced that God loves me, knowing everything about me. rocks the heart and soul of the good tree. That drives us. Martin Lloyd-Jones, again, this is worth quoting, I believe, the man who really believes in the holiness of God, who knows his own sinfulness and the blackness of his own heart, the man who believes in the judgment of God the possibility of hell and torment, the man who really believes that he himself is so vile and helpless that nothing but the coming of the Son of God from heaven to earth and his going to the bitter shame and agony and cruelty of the cross could ever save him and reconcile him to God. This man is going to show all that in his whole personality. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. So what is that fruit? It's the poverty of spirit. The false prophet preaches, but God is king, and the king is wealthy. You're royalty. Don't talk about this poverty of spirit. You're beating too hard on yourself. Lack is without, and God has no lack. So raise your head. You are royalty. but the good tree that cannot bear bad fruit holds out hands of a beggar and spawns. Yes, sir, God is the king and he has made me his child and I have not earned it. I was naked and he clothed me with the robes of righteousness. I was a rebel and the king had mercy on me. I am empty of anything good to add to him. I am poor of spirit. Why mourn over sin? You know what the false prophet says? Why are you mourning? You're forgiven. Jesus already died. He paid for your sins. There's nothing to mourn about. But the good tree has no choice but to respond because he can't bear bad fruit. He died for me and I still fail him. I mourn because he's worthy of my perfect obedience and I don't give it to him. He's worthy to be honored and respected and I don't treat him as he deserves to be treated and I mourn over that. And you can't make me stop mourning no matter what you say or how hard you try because the worthiness of my God is ever before my eyes and I don't give him what he's worthy of and I mourn over that. And we look at this world filled with people who take the name of Christ and drag it through the mud. And we don't look down on them because we see a log in our own eye and we say, I've done that. So we mourn. The good tree cannot bear bad fruit because God's seed abides in him. And we hunger and thirst after righteousness, but the false prophet only hungers and thirsts after self-advancement. But for the child of God, it's Christ. It's always Christ. When I came to you brothers, I did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling. And my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the spirit and of power so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men. but in the power of God. Even the failures of the Christian. That's the good fruit to respond with repentance, to respond with humility, to respond with a dependence upon the Lord for apart from him, we can do nothing. It's all for God, for the good tree, the good fruit, the life. the seed, it's all God word, it's all Christ, it's all Him, it's His glory, it's His honor, it's His adoration, it's His majesty, it's all for Him, it's all about Him, our lives, our death, our time, our energy, our money, our minds, our family, our treasure, our hopes, our dream, our all, and all is Christ, and Him, and Him, and we want His name to be made holy, we want His will to be done, we want His kingdom to come, That is the good tree that bears the good fruit. But the false prophet, it's always about self. The glory for self, the kingdom of self, the service of self, and it's all here. It's this world. Let me let me end with this. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, you will recognize them by their fruits. Every tree that does not bear good fruit. Every tree. There is no exception to this. Here's some comforting news. The imagery is fruit, and fruit takes time to grow. Fruit is brought about not overnight, but over time. And a healthy tree may have times and seasons where growth is slow. A healthy tree may have times of drought or insect infestation, but the tree that has been planted by the Lord will be cultivated by the Lord and it will grow and it will be pruned and it will be shaped and the manure will be put around it and it will be helped and it will grow and it will produce fruit because it is by the power of God. His divine power has granted to us everything that pertains to life and godliness. There are plants that have not been planted by the Father. Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. And the nature of a person always comes out. The good tree will produce real fruit. And in your Christian life, if you look and you say, but I've seen times in my life when I failed, times in my life when I would say that was bad fruit, but it was still grapes. The grape tree can never bear the moon seed fruit. The fig tree can never bear the thistle flower. And while there will be failures and falls, it's upward you climb. You're ascending the hill of the Lord. You're falling forward. You climb the hill of difficulty. Here comes worldly wise men around the corner. Not too long. You find times when you get off of the path, but you're always headed toward the celestial city. Your eyes are always on Jesus. But if that is not you, then there is only one end for such a person. Those who are not good trees, destruction is coming. He says that you will be cut down and thrown into the fire. What a terrible sentence is this against Christless pastors, Christless hearers. Every tree that produces no good fruit is to be now cut down. So what are you? Are you a good tree? Are you bearing good fruit? Have you been following Jesus in some moralistic way alone? Or have you beheld the King of glory? Has he changed everything about you? The good news is this, God is able to change you. He is able to save you no matter how far you have gone, no matter how long you have borne this bad fruit. He still transforms sinners to children of God. But the time is short. The day of judgment is approaching and the axe is at the root and the fires of hell are lit and the lake of fire awaits and the books will be opened and you will be judged for all that is done if you are not in Christ. But today is the day of mercy. Today is the day of salvation. Father, thank you. Thank you that even though these grapes and these false grapes look similar, there is a way we can recognize. And that recognition is love for you. It's all about you. Father, I pray that there will be none here who are pretenders, imposters, phonies and fakes. Wolves and sheep clothing among us, but may we be truly and genuinely yours and Lord where there's failure May it be a getting up and eyes upon you where there are faults. May they be confessed to you May there be repentance genuine and true may there be fruit and keeping with repentance Jesus name we pray May the Lord keep you bless you he is able save to the uttermost