Holy Boldness

those who claim to speak for God. They are “false prophets” disguised as sheep. They pretend to be weak and innocent but inwardly other motives are working. Jesus describes them as ravenous . The word means “greedy, full of robbery”. “Beware 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 thornbushes 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.” (Matthew 7:15-20) He gives the proper basis for the true evaluation of the prophets. Jesus stated, “You will know them by their fruit.” The test of the tree is the quality of the fruit that it bears. So the test of men and women is not their ability to speak persuasively or eloquently but the quality of their lives. A person’s life speaks louder than his or her words. Which is to say, what matters is the character and actions of a person’s life. By the way, a false prophet could be your next-door neighbor, your mother-in-law, or a fellow employee. Don’t subvert Jesus warning into a mere religious context. This warning relates to our whole lives and every context addresses the question of whom we allow to speak deeply into our lives. It is not meant to make us suspicious. It is only given exhort us to use discernment. Sometimes we just need to evaluate people’s input with common sense. When a person’s character has been deeply impacted by the will and purpose of God, you can hear it in the sound of their voice. I am not talking about “emotional speaking”. Lots of people are emotional but their words still originate from their flesh or their soul… but that is not the same as a word that comes from the dealings of God. The word that comes from within is a word that has had time to become integrated into a person’s life.

Anatomy of a wolf

Wolves in sheep’s clothing are those who come pretending to be one thing but they are really another. They are “peddlers of the word of God” (2 Corinthians 2:17) as Paul called them but not “stewards of the

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