False Prophets
One
“Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits” (Mt 7:15-16). This prophetic warning from our Lord indicates the nature of His Church on earth. It will house the good and the bad, even the dangerous. We are His flock, and He alone is the Shepherd, and when He appoints shepherds, it is to represent Him and tend His flock. As sheep, His flock will be inclined to wander off and follow base instincts and harmful passions, which is why He offers His instruction and this warning. This is what sheep do. This is what we do and why we disobey. Lord, you are the Good Shepherd. Defend us from the wolves, interior and exterior.
Two
This prediction also foretells of evil people who will attempt to look like a fellow Catholic, perhaps even a Shepherd of Christ’s Church, but secretly are interested only in corrupt practices that ruin one’s soul. The CCC states, “The human mind, in its turn, is hampered in the attaining of such truths (of God), not only by the impact of the senses and the imagination, but also by disordered appetites which are the consequences of original sin. So it happens that men in such matters easily persuade themselves that what they would not like to be true is false or at least doubtful” (#37). Jesus is warning us, therefore, of two things: of the human tendency to sin and of those who would appear as one of His own flock, but who will secretly strive to attract and to deceive. Fortunately, Jesus tells us that we will recognize them by their bad fruits.
Three
Jesus tells us, “The good man out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart produces evil. For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Lk 6:45). Thus do our deeds flow from our heart’s desires. Our desire to justify our wrongdoing, however, is how we leave ourselves open to the teachings of false prophets. A false prophet teaches evil under the pretext of doing good. A follower of falsehood lauds the teachings and leadership of the false ones to cover the nature of their deeds. Prestige and public praise cannot cover over the consequences—or fruits—of sin, however. St. Paul makes very clear that the desires of the flesh work against the Spirit and leads to destruction. “Now the works of the flesh are plain: immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit, envy, drunkenness, carousing and the like. I warn you as I warned you before that those who do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God” (Gal 5:19-21). These deeds, then, constitute the evil fruit that Our Lord says will reveal the nature of wolves in sheep’s or shepherd’s clothing. To ensure we aren’t deceived, let us then live the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. (cf. Gal 5:22-23). “And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (ibid. v.24).
Four
Theologian Erasmo Merikakis, in his beautiful work, “Fire of Mercy, Heart of the Word,” says that there is a “linkage between the wideness of the easy road that leads to perdition (cf. Mt 7: 13) and the niceness of the disguised wolves that lead astray in order to devour…in both cases it is fidelity to the voice and warnings of the Shepherd that gives the sheep the key to safety and life—recognition of the true way by its narrowness and of the true prophet by its fruits.” (p. 307-08). The way to heaven is narrow and steep because of original sin. Our natural tendency is to commit evil. That is the choice that seems more fun, more dangerous, more thrilling. We have all seen the t-shirts or bumper stickers that say things like “Bad Boys Have More Fun,” or “Good Girls Love Bad Boys,” or vice-versa. I’m old enough now to know just how completely false these statements are, but our tendencies lead us to believe it. God’s ways seem too difficult. This is actually not true, but we do need to develop some good habits first before we can experience the ease of joy of His path. Self-sacrifice seems complete folly to a proud and pleasure-seeking person, but for those who accept the crosses found in life, we will quickly see that God fills hearts emptied of selfishness. Then the way of heaven becomes joyful, peaceful, exciting, adventurous, friendly, and interesting.
Five
St. John the Beloved refers to this teaching of Jesus in his first letter. He says, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already” (1 Jn 4:1-4). Here, testing the spirits means to look at the fruits of those trying to influence our actions. For St. John, there is one obvious fruit that if missing, reveals not just false prophets, but THE CHIEF false prophet, namely, refusing to confess Jesus Christ as the Incarnate God. Following the teaching of Jesus, the CCC explains, “Before Christ’s second coming the Church must pass through a final trial that will shake the faith of many believers. The persecution that accompanies her pilgrimage on earth will unveil the ‘mystery of iniquity’ in the form of a religious deception offering men an apparent solution to their problems at the price of apostasy from the truth. The supreme religious deception is that of the Antichrist, a pseudo-messianism by which man glorifies himself in place of God and of his Messiah coming in the flesh” (#675). So, false prophets will deny Christ and glorify men and fallen, sensual practices. These are the tell-tale signs to look for. These teachings are not designed to cause fear and trembling; rather, they are designed to help us remain faithful during times of trial. Lord, strengthen us in faith, grant persevering hope, and hearts full of goodness, that we may rejoice at the fulfillment of your words. Today, I resolve to make a good examination of conscience to identify the false prophets in my life and go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation at the next available opportunity.