Posted on by Californiacontrarian

Matthew 7:16


Again to be honest right from the top, I am far, actually very, very far from being a Biblical scholar. In fact one of my goals for 2021 was to start to read or, second best, have the Bible read to me. “The Bible in One Year” podcast by Father Mike Schmitz from Duluth has thus far been my vehicle for this journey. I am behind schedule but still gradually making headway. Presently I  am just starting Joshua, the sixth book of the Old Testament. Let me tell you, it’s been slow-going, but things should now pickup as the Jewish people have crossed the Jordan River and are now entering the Promised Land. At this point one thing I can say for sure is that there is no way I will finish the Bible in one year.

Be that as it may, today elsewhere I read a quote from the New Testament, specifically from the Gospel of Matthew … Matthew 7:16, that seemed very apropos to the present controversy involving our “very Catholic” and “devout” President, at least according to the Washington Post and his backing of abortion.

The quote:

“By their fruits you will know them. Do you

gather grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles?”

The following is from Dean Larson of the Church of the Latter Day Saints:

“Those of us who seek wisdom in the Bible might do well to heed its admonition: “By their fruit ye shall recognize them.” We are also well-advised not to be taken in by appearances, even appearances of those who seem to be religiously observant. They, too, can, as the Bible says, “appear to people as righteous but on the inside” be “full of hypocrisy and wickedness.”

I am not a Mormon, but I thought that this statement by Dean Larson was in itself, very prophetic.

Jesus states that one will be able to identify false prophets by their fruits. False prophets will not produce good fruits. Fruits, which are a common metaphor in both the Old and New Testaments, represent the outward manifestation of a person’s faith, thus their behaviour and their works.

Aha! Suddenly it all became clear … “outward manifestations” or actions is how to identify false prophets. With this as a guide, is it possible that an outwardly “very Catholic” and “devout” man is a false prophet? 

Indeed, something to think about and moreover, something to pray about.

5/16/21

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