Reading: 2Kings 22:8-13.23:1-3; Ps.119; Matt. 7:6.15-20
Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia
HOW CAN WE IDENTIFY A TRUE PROPHET FROM A FALSE PROPHET?
A tree is known to be either good or bad, healthy or sick by the fruit it produces. In the same way, the human heart is known to be either good or bad, holy or sinful, sincere or corrupt by the fruit of our words and actions as rooted in our character. Thus, in our societies today many false influential powers have great effects on our lives coming from various sources under the guise of good but are leading us astray. Every day many false prophets and teachers are increasing and are deceiving the people. So, there is a need for us to examine these influences.
Little wonder Jesus in our Gospel passage today said: “Beware of false prophets who come to you disguised as sheep but underneath are ravenous wolves. You will be able to tell them by their fruits. For a sound tree produces good fruit but a rotten tree bad fruit. A sound tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a rotten tree bear good fruit. Any tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown on the fire. I repeat, you will be able to know them by their fruits.”
Here, Jesus is calling our attention to the ugly situation in our societies today, where false prophets and teachers are deceiving people. He tells us to be careful and discern to know false prophets from true ones. He made us to know that by the fruits they bear we shall know them. For a true prophet draws what is good from the store of goodness in his heart; while a false prophet draws what is bad from the store of his bad thoughts. Because a man’s words flow out of what fills his heart. So it is not sufficient to speak about God, we must practice what we speak. We must let the Word of God touch and shape our lives so that we can bear good and healthy fruit.
Dear friends, the ugly attitude of deception, manipulation, exaggeration, corruption and flamboyant lifestyle of false prophets and preachers in our societies today can make it difficult for people to become true and faithful believers of Christ in our world today.
Little wonder, people are scandalized by the actions and behaviour of some preachers and teachers. Some have given up their faith, some are about to give up, some are just confused while a lot of people are just holding on to the little faith they have based on their little personal experience and encounter with the Divine.
Therefore, we must be very wise for many false prophets are operating under the power of the devil. Let us come to Jesus who has promised us the Spirit of truth that will give us a special sign for distinguishing true doctrine and true teachers from false ones, just as we heard in our first reading today when the King discovered a book in Tempe that contains God’s commandments and said ‘Great indeed must be the anger of the Lord blazing out against us because our ancestors did not obey what this book says by practising everything written in it.
Hence, let us constantly ask the Holy Spirit to give us the grace of discernment in order to distinguish between good and false prophets and teachers. Let us also be true Christians in our way of life, words and deeds. Though is not easy to be a true teacher or prophet in our world today. Let us learn to put our trust in God who has promised to keep us from falling away from the true faith we have found in His Son Jesus.
LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, our societies are full of deception, false prophets and teachers, send us the Spirit of truth to discern the truth from the false. Grant we pray that we may always stand and witness to the truth we have found in Jesus against all the false influential prophets and teachers in our society today. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a fruitful day.
