“Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are out to rip you off in some way or other. Don’t be impressed with charisma; look for character. Who preachers are is the main thing, not what they say. A genuine leader will never exploit your emotions or your pocketbook. These diseased trees with their bad apples are going to be chopped down and burned.” Matthew 7:13:29 (The Msg)
We have a neighbor whose orange tree is usually over our fence and full of beautiful oranges that fall to the ground. Unfortunately, the tree isn’t deeply watered, or cared for properly so the fruit doesn’t taste good. The fruit looks good on the outside, but it isn’t sweet or juicy on the inside.
In the same way, we have always had false or fake preachers. You can identify false prophets or deceitful people by their actions and the results of their lives, often referred to as “fruits,” just as you can tell a good tree from a bad one by the fruit it produces; good people will produce good deeds and positive outcomes, while bad people will produce negative consequences.
The first thing to notice about false prophets is that they may look like you. They may sound legitimate and they may even use all the right lingo. In other words, they know how to look the part. Many times, this is why they are so deceptive they make themselves appear to look like other sheep. They may look harmless, but they are extremely dangerous.
They may preach only what you and others want to hear. Wherever there is truth there will be error. Wherever people are teaching sound doctrine there will be people teaching false doctrine.
Satan’s greatest ambassadors are not pimps, politicians, or power brokers, but pastors. His priests do not peddle a different religion, but a deadly perversion of the true one. His troops do not make a full-out frontal assault but work as agents, sneaking into the opposing army. Satan’s tactics are studied, clever, predictable, and effective.
2 Timothy 2:15 says, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” We can’t know the truth if we don’t study scripture, and ask the Holy Spirit for discernment to recognize fake fruit when we see it.
Deb Hill
Exec. Assistant