DISCIPLES INDEED
MATTHEW 7:15-20
Key verse: v. 16, “Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?”
Introduction:
“Ye are my disciples indeed,” or “in fact; in reality; in truth; truly” (used for emphasis, to confirm and amplify a previous statement). —Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary.
The Scriptures teach that a person is known by his or her fruits, i.e., by what they do.
“There are men of great gifts who are “false prophets” These affect the look, language, and spirit of God’s people, while really they long to devour souls, even as wolves thirst for the blood of sheep.” —C. H. Spurgeon.
I. YE SHALL RECOGNIZE THEM BY THEIR FRUITS
A. You shall know FULLY which are CORRUPT [decayed, rotten], v. 17; Matthew 12:33, “Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.”
B. A man’s works are the “TONGUE of his heart,” Matthew 12:34-35, O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. 35 A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.
II. EVERY GOOD TREE
A. A good tree brings forth GOOD fruit, v. 17; Psalms 1:3, “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”
B. A good tree CANNOT bring forth evil fruit, v. 18; John 3:9-10, “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. 10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.”
III. A CORRUPT TREE
A. A corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit, a spiritual principle based on a law in the natural world, Jude 12, “These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;”
1. Beware of these wolves, v. 15; Philippians 3:2, “Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.”
a. Paul turns this term around and applies it to the Judaisers, Matthew 15:26, “But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs.”
b. The evil workers or “deceitful workers,” 2 Corinthians 11:13, “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.”
2. They come to us as prophets, with every outward commendation, “which come to you in sheep’s clothing,” v. 15; Mark 12:38, “And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces,”
a. They are sanctimonious, making a hypocritical show of religious devotion, piety, righteousness, Matthew 6:2, “Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.”
b. They are hypocritical, John 10:1, 10, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber 10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
3. They are very Balaams, willing to curse those they pretend to bless, Numbers 22:12, “And God said unto Balaam, Thou shalt not go with them; thou shalt not curse the people: for they are blessed.”
B. This tree will be cut down and burned, v. 19; Deuteronomy 13:5, “And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the LORD thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee.”
1. The axe is already laid at the root of the tree, Matthew 3:10, “And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.”
2. The false prophet is cursed of God, Matthew 21:19, “And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away.”
CONCLUSION
v. 20, “Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.”
Their teaching, their living, and their effect upon our minds will be a sure test to us. Every doctrine and *doctrinaire may thus be tried. If we gather grapes of them, they are not thorns: if they produce nothing but thistle-down, they are not fig-trees. Some object to this practical method of test, but wise Christians will carry it with them as the ultimate touchstone. What is the effect of modern theology upon the spirituality, the prayerfulness, the holiness of the people? Has it any good effect?
*Doctrinaire is a person who tries to apply some doctrine or theory without sufficient regard for practical considerations; an impractical theorist.