Words of the Heart

On November 18, 2020   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Matthew 15: 18

But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and those things defile the person.

Matthew 12:34

You offspring of vipers, how can you, being evil, express any good things? For the mouth speaks from that which fills the heart.

Jesus said that in the last days, wolves would come dressed as sheep so we must be adept at discerning who is of the truth and who is not. Jesus said you would know the wolves (and the sheep) by their fruit. Yesterday, I sent you the test. It comes out of Colossians 3 and Galatians 5. Here is another way to tell the difference between those who say they follow Jesus from those who actually do. Check the fruit of their mouth.

No one who is of Christ lies. Period. End of story. Does that mean if a person ever tells one lie they are devil spawn? No. It means they relaxed their guard for a moment, perhaps have not been spending enough time with the Lord. However, a habitual liar or one who doesn’t have a strong relationship with the truth is not a Christ disciple. I’ve said it before, lying comes from the devil’s house. You can’t dance to his tune and be in harmony with Jesus.

Other language will give one away too. Is the person’s language kind, gentle, peaceful, patient, filled with goodness and faith? Or are their words harsh, critical, and judgmental. You can tell what is in a person’s heart by what comes out of their mouths.

Back to Top

Wolves and Fruit

On November 7, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Matthew 7: 15-16

Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits.

Galatians 5: 22- 23

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Jesus gave us a warning in chapter 7 of Matthew. He told us that in these days there would be people who would represent themselves to us a part of the flock of Jesus but in reality, they are ravenous wolves who would devour us if we let them. Fear not though. There is a way we can tell real followers of Christ from those who pretend to be sincere believers. You will know them by their fruit Jesus said. “What fruit,” you ask. The fruit of their character.

Do not attempt discernment by listening to what they say. Anyone can say anything. That is what Jesus was pointing out when he said they would be dressed as sheep. They will say the right things and will sound convincing but ask yourself about their fruit. They can even quote scripture and sound all holy but Satan quotes scripture too. That is what he did in the temptation of Christ (Matthew 4: 6) Being able to quote scripture does not make you holy or a Christian.

Also do not let their works persuade you. These false people will do many of the things that the children of light do in order to appear as sheep rather than as their true selves. But our salvation and our redemption are not in works. They are in faith in Jesus Christ, our redeemer. As a matter of fact, these people may even be leaders in the church. They may be on every church committee. They may participate in charitable works. But these things don’t make you a Christian any more than swimming makes you a fish.

Jesus explained that the way we can know about people is to check the fruit that is on their tree. Galatians 5: 22 tells you what fruit to look for. While none of us is perfect, if Christ is really inside of you then, you should increasingly bear the fruit that is of Him. You cannot give yourself to Christ without His light showing through you. As you walk through life don’t be mislead by people who purport to be Christ centered. If they truly are, they will not have to tell you. You will see that their lives are characterized by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Back to Top