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The Responsibility Of Being A Righteous Person 2 - Bible Study
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redeliver orally and not for profit and I encourage you to look up the Bible passages. Make sure that you
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Please keep it in the context of The Holy Bible. The only way to understand what God's Message is saying
is for you to know the Bible. Open your mind to God's Message. Back to Bible Study Home
each week. These lessons are from my personal notes or used by permission from licensing agreements to
redeliver orally and not for profit and I encourage you to look up the Bible passages. Make sure that you
read everything and make your own opinion about the Bible Study lesson that is being presented to you.
Please keep it in the context of The Holy Bible. The only way to understand what God's Message is saying
is for you to know the Bible. Open your mind to God's Message. Back to Bible Study Home
Download this Bible Study "The Responsibility of being a Righteous Person 2" in MP3 or PodCast format
TheResponsibilityOfBeingARighteousPersonPartTwo.mp3 from God's Message on the Web
We will read the Bible verses first from the King James version. And then we will read the same passage
from The Message which is a paraphrase of the original languages of the Holy Bible and crafted to present
its tone, rhythm, events, and ideas in everyday language. See if God’s
Message comes through clearer in today’s tone
Matthew 7:6-27 (King James Version)
6Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them
under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
7Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
8For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be
opened.
9Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?
10Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
11If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father
which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
12Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is
the law and the prophets.
13Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and
many there be which go in thereat:
14Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
15Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
16Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
17Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
20Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
21Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth
the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we no
t prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful
works?
23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
24Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man,
which built his house upon a rock:
25And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell
not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish
man, which built his house upon the sand:
27And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell:
and great was the fall of it.
Matthew 7:6-27 (The Message)
6"Don't be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don't reduce holy mysteries to
slogans. In trying to be relevant, you're only being cute and inviting sacrilege.
7-11"Don't bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This isn't a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek
game we're in. If your child asks for bread, do you trick him with sawdust? If he asks for fish, do you scare
him with a live snake on his plate? As bad as you are, you wouldn't think of such a thing. You're at least
decent to your own children. So don't you think the God who conceived you in love will be even better?
12"Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you,
then grab the initiative and do it for them. Add up God's Law and Prophets and this is what you get.
13-14"Don't look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a
successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don't fall for that stuff, even though crowds of
people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention.
15-20"Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are
out to rip you off some way or other. Don't be impressed with charisma; look for character. Who preachers
are is the main thing, not what they say. A genuine leader will never exploit your emotions or your
pocketbook. These diseased trees with their bad apples are going to be chopped down and burned.
21-23"Knowing the correct password—saying 'Master, Master,' for instance— isn't going to get you
anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at
the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, 'Master, we preached the Message, we bashed
the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.' And do you know what I am going to say?
'You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don't impress me one bit.
You're out of here.'
24-25"These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to
your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into
your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river
flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.
26-27"But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a
stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it
collapsed like a house of cards."
For several weeks we have examined Jesus' sermon found in Matthew 5, 6, and 7. May I call your attention
to a brief, insightful overview? First, Jesus presented in positive concepts a basic description of a righteous
person. In that description, eight times he said, "Blessed are . . ." He did not present the description by
saying, "Cursed are . . ." He presented basically what a righteous person did, not what a righteous person
did not do.
Second, he emphasized that the righteousness of the person who followed him must go beyond the
righteousness of the religious leaders of their society.
Third, he drew a distinct contrast between what they always had been taught and what they were now to
understand. He contrasted "you have heard that it was said" with "I say to you."
Fourth, he revealed two current inadequacies in the religious life common to their society. Inadequacy one:
religious acts done for wrong motives are inadequate. Inadequacy two: placing your life focus on physical
well being and material security is inadequate.
Fifth, he concluded with five responsibilities.
This is the insight:
Jesus was not teaching them just to inform them: the objective was not merely knowledge.
Jesus was not teaching them just for them to understand proper contrasts: the objective was not merely
understanding.
Jesus was not teaching them just for them to realize inadequacies: the objective was not merely realization.
Jesus was teaching them to enable them to accept responsibility: the objective was to lead them to the
knowledge, the understanding, and the realizations that would allow them to accept responsibility.
As I stated last Sunday evening [i.e., 22 December 1996], chapter 7 concluded the sermon by declaring five
responsibilities. Last Sunday evening we examined the first: the responsibility for self-evaluation.
I. Responsibility # 2: the responsibility for spiritual discretion (Matthew 7:6).
A. "Do not judge," responsibility #1, could have been interpreted to mean that they should
indiscriminately share Jesus' teachings with all others.
1. If they saw and understood, they should go out and share their understandings with everyone.
2. "Be excited about what you understand and share it with absolutely everyone."
3. "Don't go out to condemn anyone, but go out to tell them what you have learned."
B. But immediately following the instruction not to judge, Jesus said something we would not expect:
do not go out and share what you have learned with just anyone.
1. Jesus' statement was not a statement of exclusion: he was not indicating that God is unconcerned
about some people.
2. His point: "Share my teachings with those who are receptive; do not try to force my teachings on
those who are incapable of appreciating or understanding them."
3. Jesus made his point by using dogs and pigs, both unclean animals to the Jews.
a. Dogs were incapable of appreciating anything holy--in fact, they made no distinction between
something holy and something unclean; they would eat either a holy thing or an unclean thing without
hesitation.
i. Sacrifices, such as the sin offering, were holy (Leviticus 6:24-30).
ii. A portion of the holy sacrifice was eaten by the priest.
iii. What the priest could not eat was to be burned (Leviticus 7:17).
iv. You did not provide the dogs opportunity to eat the priests' holy food--for they surely would.
b. Pearls are totally without value to pigs, though they were extremely valuable to those people.
i. Since pearls are not food to pigs, pigs will sniff at then ignore a pearl, and then trample it into the
muck of the pig pen.
c. If you frustrate or disappoint the dog or the pig, they will turn on you and rip you if they can.
4. Some people are incapable of understanding what is holy and what is spiritually of great value.
a. They not only have no appreciation of what you try to share with them, but they easily become
irritated and frustrated with you.
b. Among the most violent enemies you will ever encounter are religious enemies. Some of the most
horrible things are done in the name of religion.
5. Jesus was talking about both ungodly and religious people who were incapable of appreciating his
teachings.
II. Responsibility # 3: the responsibility of initiative.
A. When a person understood Jesus' teachings, that understanding makes him aware of how much he
does not know, does not understand.
1. I am certain that Jesus was not speaking of material pursuits when he instructed them to ask, to seek,
to knock.
2. "If you truly want to be a righteous person, if you truly want to understand the existence and
relationship with God that I am revealing, it is your responsibility to ask God for wisdom/understanding, to
pursue this new awareness built on new insights by knocking on God's door."
a. It is the responsibility of faith to initiate, to act.
b. If you hunger for righteousness, act.
3. "You are evil; it is impossible for you to remove the reality of evil and the influence of evil from your
lives."
a. Even though evil will forever be the reality of your earthly existence, you still know how to respond
to your children's requests for food by giving them food--by doing good.
b. Is not the God of pure goodness much more capable and willing to respond to your requests when
you ask, seek, and knock?
4. Since you belong to the God of pure goodness, you do good by treating other people like you want to
be treated.
III. Responsibility # 4: the responsibility of direction.
A. The easiest, simplest course of action to take in life is to move in the direction to crowd is moving.
1. It is easy to go with the crowd in the ungodly world.
2. It is easy to go with the unspiritual crowd in the religious world.
B. The most difficult, challenging course to take is the "I am responsible for me and my decisions"
direction.
1. The crowd in both the ungodly world and the religious world typically moves in the direction of least
resistance, the path more comfortably traveled.
2. The path of personal responsibility requires personal knowledge, personal understanding, personal
commitment, and personal decision.
C. We have to be very careful to use this scripture in its context.
1. It is much too easy to assign anything we personally dislike or disapprove of to the broad way.
2. It is much too easy to assign any demand we personally think needs emphasis as an evidence that we
are traveling the narrow way.
3. Here the narrow way is the direction Jesus' teachings would take them.
4. The broad way could be the direction of disinterest or the direction of the Pharisees.
5. Just being hard to do does not make a direction the narrow way Jesus spoke of.
6. The narrow way is the more difficult way because it requires thought, understanding, and heart
response.
7. The broad way may be any easy direction that leads me away from Jesus' teachings.
IV. Responsibility # 5: the responsibility to exercise caution.
A. Jesus said it was their responsibility to exercise caution in identifying three sources of spiritual
deceit:
1. False prophets.
2. Faulty fruit trees.
3. Verbal declarations.
4. False prophets and faulty fruit trees focus on your choice of influences.
B. Be on guard against false prophets.
1. If you use today's typical concept of false prophets, you will miss Jesus' point.
2. The false prophet Jesus spoke of was identified in two ways.
a. The false prophet deliberately created a fake spiritual appearance to hide his or her savagery and
greed.
i. A wolf is a cunning, deadly animal that stalks its prey.
ii. A false prophet made prey of other people.
iii. A wolf thinks only of himself, his desire of the moment, his appetite--in his greed, he destroys for
his own purposes.
b. Thus, the false prophet was to be identified by the way he used you, preyed upon you.
i. It was not what he or she said that make him or her a false prophet.
ii. It was what he or she did; how he or she exploited and preyed upon others that made him or her a
false prophet.
C. Be on guard against faulty fruit trees.
1. Do not pattern your life and existence after the person who bears faulty fruit.
a. Righteous people do not live their lives doing evil things.
b. Righteous people do not look good but have horrible influences on others.
c. Righteous people's lives do not produce the consequences of ungodliness.
d. The Pharisees bore faulty fruit.
2. Good trees produce good fruit, and rotten trees produce rotten fruit.
3. When you choose those you will allow to spiritually influence you, do not merely examine their
appearance or listen to their claims; examine the influence and the impact of their lives.
D. Be on guard: distinguish between verbal declarations and commitment to the will of God.
1. Verbal declarations will not place you in God's kingdom.
a. You can honor Jesus with the right words and right titles.
b. You can properly praise Jesus.
c. You can do the priority religious deeds of the day.
2. But, if in doing these things, you are not committed to the will of God, then Jesus does not know you
and will not acknowledge you in the last day.
Was what Jesus shared in that sermon very important? That lesson did not deal with many of what you and
I refer to as fundamentals. Since it did not focus on fundamentals, what he said was good, but was it
essential?
Jesus said, "If you have heard me (meaning understood me) and will put into practice what I have told you,
in so doing you build a life that will not collapse no matter what storms descend on your life. If you have
heard me (meaning understood me), and you do not act on what I have shared, you can be assured that you
are building a life that will collapse when the storms come."
Look at the lessons Jesus taught in Matthew 5, 6, and 7, and ask yourself, "What kind of life am I building?"
Download this Bible Study "The Responsibility of being a Righteous Person 2" in MP3 or PodCast format
TheResponsibilityOfBeingARighteousPersonPartTwo.mp3 from God's Message on the Web
Used with permission from David Chadwell, West-Ark Church of Christ
Visit God's Message Blog to comment on this Bible Study Lesson
http://godsmessageontheweb.blogspot.com/2007/11/responsibility-of-being-righteous_05.html
Last updated on November 4th 2007 God's Message on the Web
TheResponsibilityOfBeingARighteousPersonPartTwo.mp3 from God's Message on the Web
We will read the Bible verses first from the King James version. And then we will read the same passage
from The Message which is a paraphrase of the original languages of the Holy Bible and crafted to present
its tone, rhythm, events, and ideas in everyday language. See if God’s
Message comes through clearer in today’s tone
Matthew 7:6-27 (King James Version)
6Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them
under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
7Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
8For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be
opened.
9Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?
10Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
11If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father
which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
12Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is
the law and the prophets.
13Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and
many there be which go in thereat:
14Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
15Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
16Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
17Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
20Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
21Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth
the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we no
t prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful
works?
23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
24Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man,
which built his house upon a rock:
25And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell
not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish
man, which built his house upon the sand:
27And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell:
and great was the fall of it.
Matthew 7:6-27 (The Message)
6"Don't be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don't reduce holy mysteries to
slogans. In trying to be relevant, you're only being cute and inviting sacrilege.
7-11"Don't bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This isn't a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek
game we're in. If your child asks for bread, do you trick him with sawdust? If he asks for fish, do you scare
him with a live snake on his plate? As bad as you are, you wouldn't think of such a thing. You're at least
decent to your own children. So don't you think the God who conceived you in love will be even better?
12"Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you,
then grab the initiative and do it for them. Add up God's Law and Prophets and this is what you get.
13-14"Don't look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a
successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don't fall for that stuff, even though crowds of
people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention.
15-20"Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are
out to rip you off some way or other. Don't be impressed with charisma; look for character. Who preachers
are is the main thing, not what they say. A genuine leader will never exploit your emotions or your
pocketbook. These diseased trees with their bad apples are going to be chopped down and burned.
21-23"Knowing the correct password—saying 'Master, Master,' for instance— isn't going to get you
anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at
the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, 'Master, we preached the Message, we bashed
the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.' And do you know what I am going to say?
'You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don't impress me one bit.
You're out of here.'
24-25"These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to
your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into
your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river
flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.
26-27"But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a
stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it
collapsed like a house of cards."
For several weeks we have examined Jesus' sermon found in Matthew 5, 6, and 7. May I call your attention
to a brief, insightful overview? First, Jesus presented in positive concepts a basic description of a righteous
person. In that description, eight times he said, "Blessed are . . ." He did not present the description by
saying, "Cursed are . . ." He presented basically what a righteous person did, not what a righteous person
did not do.
Second, he emphasized that the righteousness of the person who followed him must go beyond the
righteousness of the religious leaders of their society.
Third, he drew a distinct contrast between what they always had been taught and what they were now to
understand. He contrasted "you have heard that it was said" with "I say to you."
Fourth, he revealed two current inadequacies in the religious life common to their society. Inadequacy one:
religious acts done for wrong motives are inadequate. Inadequacy two: placing your life focus on physical
well being and material security is inadequate.
Fifth, he concluded with five responsibilities.
This is the insight:
Jesus was not teaching them just to inform them: the objective was not merely knowledge.
Jesus was not teaching them just for them to understand proper contrasts: the objective was not merely
understanding.
Jesus was not teaching them just for them to realize inadequacies: the objective was not merely realization.
Jesus was teaching them to enable them to accept responsibility: the objective was to lead them to the
knowledge, the understanding, and the realizations that would allow them to accept responsibility.
As I stated last Sunday evening [i.e., 22 December 1996], chapter 7 concluded the sermon by declaring five
responsibilities. Last Sunday evening we examined the first: the responsibility for self-evaluation.
I. Responsibility # 2: the responsibility for spiritual discretion (Matthew 7:6).
A. "Do not judge," responsibility #1, could have been interpreted to mean that they should
indiscriminately share Jesus' teachings with all others.
1. If they saw and understood, they should go out and share their understandings with everyone.
2. "Be excited about what you understand and share it with absolutely everyone."
3. "Don't go out to condemn anyone, but go out to tell them what you have learned."
B. But immediately following the instruction not to judge, Jesus said something we would not expect:
do not go out and share what you have learned with just anyone.
1. Jesus' statement was not a statement of exclusion: he was not indicating that God is unconcerned
about some people.
2. His point: "Share my teachings with those who are receptive; do not try to force my teachings on
those who are incapable of appreciating or understanding them."
3. Jesus made his point by using dogs and pigs, both unclean animals to the Jews.
a. Dogs were incapable of appreciating anything holy--in fact, they made no distinction between
something holy and something unclean; they would eat either a holy thing or an unclean thing without
hesitation.
i. Sacrifices, such as the sin offering, were holy (Leviticus 6:24-30).
ii. A portion of the holy sacrifice was eaten by the priest.
iii. What the priest could not eat was to be burned (Leviticus 7:17).
iv. You did not provide the dogs opportunity to eat the priests' holy food--for they surely would.
b. Pearls are totally without value to pigs, though they were extremely valuable to those people.
i. Since pearls are not food to pigs, pigs will sniff at then ignore a pearl, and then trample it into the
muck of the pig pen.
c. If you frustrate or disappoint the dog or the pig, they will turn on you and rip you if they can.
4. Some people are incapable of understanding what is holy and what is spiritually of great value.
a. They not only have no appreciation of what you try to share with them, but they easily become
irritated and frustrated with you.
b. Among the most violent enemies you will ever encounter are religious enemies. Some of the most
horrible things are done in the name of religion.
5. Jesus was talking about both ungodly and religious people who were incapable of appreciating his
teachings.
II. Responsibility # 3: the responsibility of initiative.
A. When a person understood Jesus' teachings, that understanding makes him aware of how much he
does not know, does not understand.
1. I am certain that Jesus was not speaking of material pursuits when he instructed them to ask, to seek,
to knock.
2. "If you truly want to be a righteous person, if you truly want to understand the existence and
relationship with God that I am revealing, it is your responsibility to ask God for wisdom/understanding, to
pursue this new awareness built on new insights by knocking on God's door."
a. It is the responsibility of faith to initiate, to act.
b. If you hunger for righteousness, act.
3. "You are evil; it is impossible for you to remove the reality of evil and the influence of evil from your
lives."
a. Even though evil will forever be the reality of your earthly existence, you still know how to respond
to your children's requests for food by giving them food--by doing good.
b. Is not the God of pure goodness much more capable and willing to respond to your requests when
you ask, seek, and knock?
4. Since you belong to the God of pure goodness, you do good by treating other people like you want to
be treated.
III. Responsibility # 4: the responsibility of direction.
A. The easiest, simplest course of action to take in life is to move in the direction to crowd is moving.
1. It is easy to go with the crowd in the ungodly world.
2. It is easy to go with the unspiritual crowd in the religious world.
B. The most difficult, challenging course to take is the "I am responsible for me and my decisions"
direction.
1. The crowd in both the ungodly world and the religious world typically moves in the direction of least
resistance, the path more comfortably traveled.
2. The path of personal responsibility requires personal knowledge, personal understanding, personal
commitment, and personal decision.
C. We have to be very careful to use this scripture in its context.
1. It is much too easy to assign anything we personally dislike or disapprove of to the broad way.
2. It is much too easy to assign any demand we personally think needs emphasis as an evidence that we
are traveling the narrow way.
3. Here the narrow way is the direction Jesus' teachings would take them.
4. The broad way could be the direction of disinterest or the direction of the Pharisees.
5. Just being hard to do does not make a direction the narrow way Jesus spoke of.
6. The narrow way is the more difficult way because it requires thought, understanding, and heart
response.
7. The broad way may be any easy direction that leads me away from Jesus' teachings.
IV. Responsibility # 5: the responsibility to exercise caution.
A. Jesus said it was their responsibility to exercise caution in identifying three sources of spiritual
deceit:
1. False prophets.
2. Faulty fruit trees.
3. Verbal declarations.
4. False prophets and faulty fruit trees focus on your choice of influences.
B. Be on guard against false prophets.
1. If you use today's typical concept of false prophets, you will miss Jesus' point.
2. The false prophet Jesus spoke of was identified in two ways.
a. The false prophet deliberately created a fake spiritual appearance to hide his or her savagery and
greed.
i. A wolf is a cunning, deadly animal that stalks its prey.
ii. A false prophet made prey of other people.
iii. A wolf thinks only of himself, his desire of the moment, his appetite--in his greed, he destroys for
his own purposes.
b. Thus, the false prophet was to be identified by the way he used you, preyed upon you.
i. It was not what he or she said that make him or her a false prophet.
ii. It was what he or she did; how he or she exploited and preyed upon others that made him or her a
false prophet.
C. Be on guard against faulty fruit trees.
1. Do not pattern your life and existence after the person who bears faulty fruit.
a. Righteous people do not live their lives doing evil things.
b. Righteous people do not look good but have horrible influences on others.
c. Righteous people's lives do not produce the consequences of ungodliness.
d. The Pharisees bore faulty fruit.
2. Good trees produce good fruit, and rotten trees produce rotten fruit.
3. When you choose those you will allow to spiritually influence you, do not merely examine their
appearance or listen to their claims; examine the influence and the impact of their lives.
D. Be on guard: distinguish between verbal declarations and commitment to the will of God.
1. Verbal declarations will not place you in God's kingdom.
a. You can honor Jesus with the right words and right titles.
b. You can properly praise Jesus.
c. You can do the priority religious deeds of the day.
2. But, if in doing these things, you are not committed to the will of God, then Jesus does not know you
and will not acknowledge you in the last day.
Was what Jesus shared in that sermon very important? That lesson did not deal with many of what you and
I refer to as fundamentals. Since it did not focus on fundamentals, what he said was good, but was it
essential?
Jesus said, "If you have heard me (meaning understood me) and will put into practice what I have told you,
in so doing you build a life that will not collapse no matter what storms descend on your life. If you have
heard me (meaning understood me), and you do not act on what I have shared, you can be assured that you
are building a life that will collapse when the storms come."
Look at the lessons Jesus taught in Matthew 5, 6, and 7, and ask yourself, "What kind of life am I building?"
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Last updated on November 4th 2007 God's Message on the Web