Text: Matthew 7:15-29   

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Amen.  “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.”  I heard this same illustration about wolves in sheep’s clothing on a radio commercial last week.  But the funny thing was, that the commercial wasn’t trying to make some scriptural explanation or point out what Jesus actually means here.  Instead, it simply borrowed a well known part of the Scriptures, altered its meaning, in a way almost secularizing it, to make some point about how to run a business.  While this misuse of the Scriptures happens all to often, and the real meaning of Jesus words about wolves and sheep are lost on myriads of listeners, there is still something very important and very specific that Jesus wants to tell us in this Gospel lesson.

Now before we can begin to fully understand Jesus’ words about wolves and sheep, those who prophesy in the name of the Lord, and the value of building on rock instead of sand, we need to look at the context in which Jesus speaks.  And the two verses that actually precede this passage help us to do this.  And they are this, “Enter by the narrow gate for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.  Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”  The words in our Gospel lesson this morning are a reflection upon this statement and are meant to partially answer this question, how does one avoid the wide gate that leads to destruction?

On the top of Jesus’ list of ways to avoid the wide gate seems to be a rather obvious suggestion that it’s important to be careful to whom you listen, especially when they are talking about God.  This makes sense, doesn’t it?  We know that it is through a hearing of the word, of the Gospel, that faith is created and sustained, and we certainly wouldn’t want to hear a false word about God that might create a false faith.  So Yes of course, Jesus’ words seem to make a lot of common sense here, and maybe this is why so many people know this passage because it just seems to make sense. 

But I think that Jesus is actually doing more here than giving us a general warning against the words of anyone who talks about God, although it is important to be able to discern what any neighbor might say.  In this passage, I along with many other commentators throughout history think that Jesus’ words about wolves in sheep’s clothing is specific reference to false pastors.  This is why Jesus starts out the passage by describing the wolves as “prophets”, that is, those who specifically speak on God’s behalf. 

The point Jesus is trying to make is that for those who want to walk on the narrow path that leads to eternal life, they need to be especially careful about listening to false pastors.  Again this may seem kind of obvious, but Jesus is being very serious.  Think about it for a moment, it’s by Pastors who preach the Gospel that Jesus comes personally to you and strengthens you in the faith.  And through those whom he has called, he promises to continually speak his word of forgiveness to you that you might be guided in the way of truth and avoid the way destruction.

So when Jesus says to you “beware of false prophets” he has a very good reason to do so.  For they come looking like sheep, but they are not.  The prophets Jesus is warning you against are not going to look like wolves.  If they did, they would be easy to avoid, and Jesus would have no reason to warn you.  And these false prophets are so dangerous because they can only be known by their fruits.  But even their fruit can be deceptive.

Listen to the defense of these false prophets in the words of Jesus and you will see what I mean, “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?”  In Jesus’ response, he never even denies that these false pastors were prophesying, casting out demons, and doing many wonders all the while invoking God’s name.  They do in fact come outwardly confessing that Jesus is Lord.  And they preach in his name and do many wonderful things that catch peoples’ attention.  But inwardly their fruit is poisonous to the soul and their hearts are far from the Lord.

Considering how dangerous these false prophets are, I can’t help but wonder why Jesus does not give a detailed list of what the fruit of these prophets looks like.  After all, it is the only way you can tell that they are false prophets.  But perhaps Jesus’ silence on this issue is the answer itself—that although these false prophets come in the name of Jesus, they actually distort the truth of Jesus in an untold number of ways.  In the end, these false prophets don’t want much to do with the pure Gospel of Jesus—they just want to sound like they do. 

Their Gospel is anything that points your eyes away from Jesus, all the while sounding as if it is the Gospel itself.  It may be that they point you to your own works and righteousness, to the mammon of the world that distracts you from the works and love of Jesus, or to less tangible things like power and glory in the eyes of men.  Oh how deadly these fruits are and how easy they are to eat.  And you all eat from the mouth of these false prophets from time to time diverting your eyes from Christ and running the risk of losing your souls.

But Jesus does not leave you at the mercy of these false prophets; he does not leave you alone to defend yourselves from the spiritual onslaught that takes place all around you.  Jesus promises you that there are some who do the will of his Father in heaven.  And what is this will but to hear the merciful voice of the true shepherd, the one who calls out to his people and gathers them in from the dangers that surround them. 

And he does this by sending out the real Gospel into the world.  A Gospel that says though you are a sinner Christ by his merciful death and resurrection has won you forgiveness.  You need not be justified by your own works and righteousness, for it is by grace through faith alone that you are saved.  And he gives this new life to you when this forgiveness and salvation is proclaimed to you and when you receive it tangibly in the Baptism and at the Lord’s Table.  Any by this Gospel and this Gospel alone he creates faith and trust in the hearts of his people always calling them back into the fold.

And this day, Jesus tells you that although you may encounter throughout your life a myriad of prophets who come falsely in His name and that it may be hard to resist their teachings.  Nonetheless, He is with you and there is no teaching, fruit, or storm of these false prophets, or disaster in this life which is too great for you to endure, because you are founded not upon the rotting fruit and shifting sand of the false prophets, but upon the promises of Christ.  Jesus has called you away from the teachings of darkness to be his people and though you will have trial and trouble and encounter wolves dressed as sheep, none of those things have dominion over you because they have been defeated by Christ and his words of promise do not disappoint.

In closing, this teaching of Jesus brings to mind an old philosophical question that comes up from time to time, and which I think is appropriate with this morning’s lesson.  It goes something like this: Is it possible for God to make a rock so big that he can’t move it?  The question is meant to be an unanswerable paradox.  If one says yes, it slights the omnipotence of God who should be able to do all things, and if one says no, it again slights God who should be able to do all things.  But this morning Jesus says that the answer is Yes.  Because God has in fact given you a rock so large that it cannot be moved.  And this rock is Christ upon whom you stand.  Given to you in your Baptism, confirmed in the Scriptures, and who calls out to you in the proclaimed word.

You may suffer from time to time, and wander off in the words of the false prophets, but great will not be your fall.  For salvation has been given to you, and it cannot be moved, no matter how great the desires or intentions of the false prophets.

In Jesus Name.

Amen.

Vicar Mark Taylor