Looking at the world today and how deceit has taken over churches, it seems to me that when Jesus said, Beware Of False Prophets, many did not take Him seriously.
Day by day, it becomes so that there are more false prophets in this world than there are true Prophets. It is a thing of concern to me because, as more people get deceived, foreign objects are introduced into the congregation.
In this message, we will go back to the scriptures and examine the statements Jesus made concerning the false prophets He told us to be aware of.
Meanwhile, have you seen the message: My Sheep Hear My Voice, And I Know Them? Feel free to check it out.
What Does The Word ‘Beware’ Mean?
Firstly, let us look at the word Beware” and what it suggests to us in this case. When you see inscriptions like Beware of dogs, Beware of snakes, Beware of trains, and the like, what does it suggest to you? Danger ahead, right?
Beware is a warning word that calls for alertness over or towards something. It means to be cautious, on your guard, and watch out for dangers ahead.
When we see a statement such as, Beware of false prophets who come to you as wolves in sheep’s clothing, it suggests dangers with deceit.
Beware Of False Prophets Bible Verse
There are many places and events in the Bible where people were warned about false prophets. But in this message, we will focus our examination on a portion where Jesus said, Beware of False Prophets. That is Matthew 7:15.
In Matthew 7:15 WEB, Jesus said, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves.”
The book of Matthew, chapter 7, is one of the chapters where Jesus spoke about judging, prayer, what we call the golden rule, and the broad and narrow gate, to mention a few.
His teaching on false prophets showed up in verses 15 quoted above, and runs through the following verses to verse 27, where He concluded that session. As He was done teaching, verses 28 and 29 tell us that the people were amazed at His teaching because He taught authoritatively and not like the teachers of the law.
The question is, Were they paying attention to the things He said, or were they taken away by how He said them? Think about that for a moment.
Moving on, Matthew 7:15 opens up a critical aspect for every true believer to consider with vivid attention. That is important for our identification and association.
Who Is A False Prophet?
To understand the idea of false prophets, I must point out who a prophet is.
A prophet is generally known as someone who speaks on behalf of a god about present or future events.
In the scriptures, a prophet is seen as either a seer or a speaker of God. Such sees and speaks the word of God to the people through the spirit of God.
A False Prophet is a person who claims to be speaking from God when they are speaking from their personal dreams, the deceit of their hearts, or from other sources other than God.
A prophet of God can also be a teacher because, in speaking the mind of God concerning a thing, he teaches what is true. And a false prophet is also a false teacher because, in speaking what God did not instruct him to say, he teaches lies.
While both groups can see and hear, the distinction is in the authority with which they operate. One is of God, and the other is of anything other than God. Their messages do conflict, but the truth always prevails.
The prophet of God establishes the people in the word of God, while the false prophet takes their attention away from the truth of God’s word.
While there are many writings in the Old Testament against false prophets, let us see a portion where Jeremiah communicated the word of God against false prophets.
“I sent not these prophets, yet they ran: I didn’t speak to them, yet they prophesied.
But if they had stood in my council, then had they caused my people to hear my words, and had turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.
Am I a God at hand, says Yahweh, and not a God afar off?
Can any hide himself in secret places so that I shall not see him? says Yahweh. Don’t I fill heaven and earth? says Yahweh.
I have heard what the prophets have said, who prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed.
How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies, even the prophets of the deceit of their own heart?
who think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbor, as their fathers forgot my name for Baal.
The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream; and he who has my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the straw to the wheat? says Yahweh.
Isn’t my word like fire? says Yahweh; and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?
Therefore behold, I am against the prophets, says Yahweh, who steal my words everyone from his neighbor.
Behold, I am against the prophets, says Yahweh, who use their tongues, and say, He says.
Behold, I am against those who prophesy lying dreams, says Yahweh, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their vain boasting: yet I didn’t send them, nor commanded them; neither do they profit this people at all, says Yahweh.” Jeremiah 23:21–32 WEB.
Two points I want us to take from there about false prophets are:
- They come to the people in the name of God but gradually make them forget the name of God. (When you hear people make a statement like, “The god of my papa,” you should know that something is wrong somewhere. Do they know what the gods of their papas are?)
- The false prophets cause the people to err through their lies and vain boasting.
I remember some years ago, I was in a church service where a guest minister was preaching and talking about lands that were handed over to him free of charge, the price of his dressing worth millions in the Nigerian currency, a house he built worth a lot of money, and a lot of other things he had achieved.
I and my brother, who attended the service, was taken away by those things he concluded were ‘the grace of God’. But what caught my attention was when he instructed people who wanted to access his kind of grace to come out and sow a certain amount of money.
It was the year 2000 and something (I cannot say exactly what year), but he asked the people to sow an amount of money equal to that year. (For instance, since that year was 2000 and something, he told them to bring two hundred and something thousand in naira.)
The minister continued saying persuasive things about himself, that people went out in their numbers. And gradually, he dropped down to a certain amount, and my friend even went out. I knew that he did not have that money with him but made a commitment to pay on the date the minister agreed.
I was a little skeptical about it, but if at all he mentioned an amount of money that I could afford then, I would have gone out too.
Based on the amount people were to pay, they were grouped into different segments and instructed on how they were going to meet with the minister.
Did God orchestrate such an event? Some people would say yes, but if you look closely, the people’s attention was taken from God and placed on the ‘man of God’ who deceived them, thereby making them err.
I have seen a lot of things like that, and each time I compare the people who bought the lies with the ministers who lied to them that the grace of God could be bought with money, I always conclude that it was not about the well-being of the people. Instead, it was about enriching the church’s account and the minister’s pocket. It is a now-known money-making strategy.
When Jesus sent His disciples out in Matthew 10:16, He told them, “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
But when He warned against false prophets, He made it clear that they would come in sheep’s clothing. But actually, they are wolves who have come to devour the people. They are like the thief who come to steal, kill, and destroy, but they pretend to be the life and light carriers. That is how deceptive false prophets can be.
The following things Jesus said are what we will see and discuss in the next section as the analogy of false prophets. However, take this question: Can a prophet of God tell a lie?
The Analogy Of False Prophets
“By their fruits you will know them. Do you gather grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles?
Even so, every good tree produces good fruit; but the corrupt tree produces evil fruit.
A good tree can’t produce evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree produce good fruit.
Every tree that doesn’t grow good fruit is cut down, and thrown into the fire.
Therefore by their fruits you will know them.” Matthew 7:16–20 WEB.
Let me say that when Jesus warned against false prophets in Matthew 7:15, He described them as those who appear like His only to deceive and devour the people.
In verse 16 of the same chapter, He mentioned how to identify them. That is by their fruits. The plurality of the word ‘fruit’ can refer to the things they say, do, and both.
We know that fruits are food we can eat, but Jesus’ usage of fruits concerning man, as seen in Matthew 12:33–37, points to what comes out of a man rather than what a man takes in.
I would say that what a man takes in is the seed that will take root, germinate, and bear fruit. The fruits we bear are identical to the seed which is in us. Therefore, people are like the soil and trees at the same time.
Jesus then gave the analogy of false prophets as thorns and thistles.
Now, thorns and thistles are plants that seemingly have bad attributes, like sharp points, and cannot produce grapes and figs, which are edible and good for the body. Although thorns and thistles do produce fruits, they are not generally edible.
The point is that generally edible fruits like grapes and figs cannot come from thorns and thistles. In the same way, good fruits cannot come from corrupt trees.
The prophets of God will produce good fruits, but false prophets will produce corrupt fruits. False prophets may pretend to be producers of good fruits by acting like the prophets of God, but over time, their true nature will begin to reveal itself.
The corrupt fruits produced by false prophets will show in both the things they say and do because what they say is an act equal to what they do. The same goes for the prophets that are from God.
One thing is sure: when a tree is known for not bringing forth good fruits, it will be cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore, falsehood will not last.
A guest preacher came to minister at a church I attended years ago. After preaching his message, he said the Holy Spirit just told him that a certain number of people were to give a hundred and some thousands of naira.
He persuaded the people, and after some time, a few people went out, but they were not up to the numbers he mentioned. After a while, I remember he decided to reduce the amount before a few more people joined. I asked myself, Did the Holy Spirit instruct that man to do what he did?
Well, when I put that event under the test of scriptural scrutiny, I can only say that the Holy Spirit did not ask for their money. Where did it come from? See the pattern with the first event I highlighted.
Don’t Be Deceived: You Will Know Them By Their Fruits
After Jesus said in the same way you can identify a tree by its fruit, you can identify them by their fruits, he continued, saying:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Many will tell me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many mighty works?’
Then I will tell them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you who work iniquity.’” Matthew 7:21–23 WEB.
Three things we can see there about false prophets are as follows:
- They can prophesy in the name of Jesus.
- They may cast out demons.
- They will perform mighty works.
Interestingly, the same thing applies to the true prophets of God. But if the false prophets do not do those things, how will they be able to deceive many people?
I have told you two events I witnessed with my own eyes; now let me show you one from the scriptures.
In Acts chapter 8, where Brother Philip went to the city of Samaria to proclaim Christ, the scripture says:
“The multitudes listened with one accord to the things that were spoken by Philip, when they heard and saw the signs which he did.
For unclean spirits came out of many of those who had them. They came out, crying with a loud voice. Many who had been paralyzed and lame were healed.
There was great joy in that city.
But there was a certain man, Simon by name, who used to practice sorcery in the city, and amazed the people of Samaria, making himself out to be some great one,
to whom they all listened, from the least to the greatest, saying, ‘This man is that great power of God.’
They listened to him, because for a long time he had amazed them with his sorceries.
But when they believed Philip preaching good news concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
Simon himself also believed. Being baptized, he continued with Philip. Seeing signs and great miracles occurring, he was amazed.
Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them,
who, when they had come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit;
for as yet he had fallen on none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of Christ Jesus.
Then they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
Now when Simon saw that the Holy Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money,
saying, “Give me also this power, that whomever I lay my hands on may receive the Holy Spirit.”
But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!
You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart isn’t right before God.
Repent therefore of this, your wickedness, and ask God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.
For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.”
Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that none of the things which you have spoken happen to me.” The Acts 8:6–24 WEB.
Simon the sorcerer is known as the figure who first suggested the idea of paying some ‘men of God’ for something that God gives free of charge. To help us understand his persona, let me summarize his portion into five main points.
- He was a sorcerer in disguise who amazed the people of Samaria with his mighty works.
- The deceit was so great that the people described him as ‘that great power of God’.
- But when Philip showed up with the good news of God’s kingdom, with signs and wonders, Simon saw something greater than him and decided to join Philip. (Brother Luke said that he believed and got baptized in water. So the man called ‘that great power of God’ started following Philip to see the signs and great miracles that occurred. That was his interest.)
- But when Peter and John showed up, prayed, and laid hands on the people, they received the Holy Spirit. Simon also saw that one and went on to offer the Apostles some money for the ability to do likeness. But Peter rebuked him greatly! He made him understand that he did not partake of the spirit because his heart was not right with God.
- When Peter told him to change his mind from evil and pray to God, he responded that Peter should rather pray to God for him.
You can see how a false prophet who deceived a great multitude came into the church and identified with a prophet of God. He followed the processes that were acceptable before men, but God saw that his heart was evil.
Interestingly, he looked forward to offering money to the Prophets of God for power. It reminds me of ministers who lay hands on people, give them their handkerchiefs, and other stuff they call ‘point of contact’ for a certain amount of money. What has really been going on?
Well, when Brother Peter showed up, he revealed that Simon was a man full of envy and in a bondage of iniquity. And Jesus had already said that on that day He would say to them, “I never knew you. Depart from me, you who work iniquity.”
We have come quite a long way on this topic, but let me tell you something about false prophets. They will dress in suits and tie, with a big Bible, and come to the pulpit. All they really want is your purse, your pocket, and your portion.
They will make you think they are for you and tell you amazing things like your name, phone number, the road to your village, and others. They will cause people to fall and roll on the floor. Ask yourselves, to what earn? To deceive you!
As soon as they have you on their remote, they will begin to control you to do their bidding. Christ is not their focus, but if they have to mention Jesus to achieve their aims, they will do it.
Take it or leave it, no true prophet of God will ask for your permission to prophecy. What is ‘Can I prophecy?’ Which prophet of God ever asked that? Think.
The only way to not be deceived is to believe and take seriously the things Jesus said, which we examined in this message. Don’t be deceived; rather, beware of false prophets who come to you as wolves but in sheep’s clothing. They are like MTN everywhere you go.
