You’ve Got to Be Careful!

2nd Sunday after Pentecost, 6/18/17


Matthew 7:15-29

You’ve Got to Be Careful!
I. Careful to listen only to the truth
II. Careful to believe only the truth


We live in an age when you’ve got to be careful. We’re not absolutely safe no matter where we are, even inside our own homes. We look the doors, not only when we’re gone, but even when we’re home.

When driving through high-crime areas, we make sure the doors of our vehicles are locked. We don’t want to be the victims of robbery.

Every time a child is abducted, parents remind their children about what to do to stay safe. Don’t talk to strangers. Make sure you stay close to your parents or another adult you know.

Last week’s shooting of a congressman reminds us that, even with security officers present and armed, you’re not safe. People can become incensed by what you say or by your political position and resort to deadly violence.

It’s unfortunate that we have to be careful all the time, but, unless you do, you could get hurt or worse.

You would think that, as evil as our world is, the church would be a haven, a place where you could go and not be afraid to let your guard down. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. Not physically and not spiritually either. And even if you are physically safe in church, there are spiritual dangers. And those dangers come from false prophets.

Our text this morning is from the end of Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount. You might think that Jesus ended that sermon on a positive note. But Matthew informs us that simply wasn’t the case. Instead, Jesus closed it with a warning against false prophets. He sent the people away with this message, “You’ve got to be careful!” In a world that scoffs at the idea that divine truth even exists and in a Christian world in which all too many deny the truth of the very word of God, Jesus’ words of warning are acutely appropriate for us. He warns us as his children, “You’ve got to be careful!’ Let’s investigate what he means this morning.

Part I.

Jesus opens our text with what appears to be a rather simple command. “Watch out for false prophets.” But when you think about that command, a few questions might arise in your mind such as, “What’s a false prophet?” and “How do you recognize a false prophet?” Let’s answer those questions in order. What’s a false prophet? Actually, the answer is rather simple. A prophet is simply someone who proclaims a message. In a religious context, that would mean a prophet speaks a message about God. It might concern the future, but more likely it concerns that present or the past. Simply stated, a prophet speaks for God and about God.

And since he is a false prophet, what he speaks is false. It’s not true. That’s not to say that all of what he or she says is false. Why do I say that? Because Jesus states, “They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.” False prophets are deceptive. The words they speak are not all false. That wouldn’t be deceptive to you and me. Jesus doesn’t have to warn me about listening to a Muslim cleric. I know that what he says is false. But if an outwardly Christian person mixes the truth with error, I might easily be misled.

Unfortunately, they don’t wear tags around their necks stating, “Beware! I’m a false prophet.” So, how do you recognize a false prophet? Jesus says, “By their fruit you will know them.” He goes on to relate how you can expect to find certain kinds of fruit from certain kinds of trees. You can also expect a certain kind of fruit from a false prophet. But in looking for such fruit, don’t be deceived! You’ve got to be careful! Remember, they look like a sheep but they’re really wolves. A false prophet who lives an openly unchristian life is not a threat to my faith. I can plainly see that he says one thing but lives another. So what does Jesus mean by looking at his fruit? He means, “Look at what he’s teaching.” His fruit must be his teaching. If it’s not true, then to that extent it’s false.

In fact, Jesus warns us not to be misled even when most of what they’re saying and doing looks like the truth. He said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus says that some of them will even do miracles using his name. Don’t be deceived! You’ve got to be careful! Much of what they say and do might be true. But even if they perform miracles, watch out! You’ve got to be careful—careful to listen to the truth.

Have you ever heard of a deal that sounded too good to be true? Probably just last week. You hear or see them all the time. The bold print catches your eye with an unbelievable offer, but then you read the fine print which contains all the terms and exclusions, and you realize that you almost got duped by a bad deal.

Don’t get duped by false prophets! I had a seminary professor who told our class, “No false prophet ever woke up in the morning and said to himself, ‘I think I’ll preach false doctrine today.’” Most of them, if not all of them, really believe that what they are teaching is God’s truth. What they say sounds good, sounds reasonable, sounds beneficial. But it’s not true according to what God says in his word. They have allowed their faulty reasoning or their sinful flesh to convince them that something which is false—something which is contrary to God’s word—is actually the truth. Jesus says, “Watch out!” You’ve got to be careful to listen only to the truth. The central truth of the Bible is that Jesus is our Savior from sin. By his life and death Jesus did everything necessary to save us. We do nothing. And because we love our Savior dearly, we also love the truth of his word. So don’t assume something is true just because some fine sounding Christian said it. Ask yourself, “What does God say?” You’ve got to be careful—careful to listen to the truth.

Part II.

But just listening to the truth isn’t enough. Plenty of people have listened to the truth, even more than once, but for one reason or another, they don’t put it into practice. So be careful—careful to believe the truth.

The writer James once wrote, “I will show you my faith by what I do.” James was talking about doing things that Christians do. When Christians obey God’s will, they show that their hearts are full of faith.

In our text Jesus talks about putting our faith into practice. He says that such a person “is like a man who built his house on the rock.” Jesus is speaking on a much deeper level, a much more encompassing level, than James. Jesus is talking about our entire lives. He wants us to put our faith into action by building our entire lives on the central truth of Scripture. What is that truth? The central truth of Scripture is that God declares me holy because of what Jesus has done for me. I have forgiveness for all my sins, full and free. I am saved by grace, not by works. The person who hears the truth about Jesus should be careful to build his or her life on that truth.

But how do I do that practically? What does it mean for you and me to build our lives on the truth about Jesus? Well, if my salvation is free, if it’s solely by God’s grace, if I can do nothing to get forgiveness or heaven, then I build my life on Jesus when I shun all thoughts of self-righteousness. How can I possibly think that I deserve better in life when I believe that I deserve hell but God gives me heaven?

Building my life on the rock also means that I ward off all feelings of guilt or doing something out of guilt. The truth about Jesus is that he suffered and died for my sins. My sins are gone as far as the east is from the west. My God has washed my sins away and has cleansed me. When I build on the truth about Jesus, there is no guilt. I am free to live for my God in love, not fear.

Building my life on the rock also means that I live each day in peace. I don’t have to make anything up to God; Jesus already did it for me. I don’t have to worry about what comes after death; Jesus already assured me that I will be with him in heaven. I don’t have to struggle with God to get what I need; he supplies it—even with the strength to carry on. When I believe the truth about Jesus, then I build my life on the rock, on a foundation of a peace that surpasses all understanding.

But you’ve got to be careful—careful to believe only the truth. You see, I’m not afraid that tomorrow you’ll deny that Jesus is your Savior, but I am afraid you’ll be stricken with some doubt about your forgiveness, some doubt about God’s love for you, some doubt about your eternal future. I’m not afraid that tomorrow you’ll deny that Jesus is your Savior, but I am afraid that you’ll succumb to indifference, to care nothing about hearing God’s word, to care nothing about what God really says in his word. I’m not afraid that tomorrow you’ll deny that Jesus is your Savior, but I am afraid that tomorrow you’ll be overcome by guilt, a guilt which will paralyze your faith and sap the joy from your life. You’ve got to be careful! Having listened to the truth, now believe the truth! That truth is that Jesus is your eternal Savior from sin. That truth is what Jesus says about himself and you in his word. Don’t be foolish enough to build your life on the sand of what you think or what someone else says. Build it on the truth of your eternal Savior! That’s being careful. That carefulness brings eternal blessings! May those blessings abound in your life! Amen.