Wednesday in the Twelfth Week Ordinary Time, June 23, 2021

Matthew 7:15-20

Jesus said to his disciples: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but underneath are ravenous wolves. By their fruits you will know them. Do people pick grapes from thorn-bushes, or figs from thistles? Just so, every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. So by their fruits you will know them.”

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but underneath are ravenous wolves.”  The Lord Jesus warns his disciples of false prophets numerous times in the Gospels.  From what he tells us, we can discern a few points about them.  These false prophets would appear after the Lord’s Ascension into heaven.  They would be members of the Church.  They would have their own interests at heart, not those of the faithful.  Their deceptions would not be errors committed in good faith, but calculated words to lead astray believers in the Lord.  They would appear as virtuous, faithful, well-read in the Scriptures, and devout.  And they would deceive many.  How can we know them so that we might protect ourselves? “By their fruits you shall know them.”  Even those of us who do not know an apple tree from looking at it can tell what it is from its luscious fruit.  Likewise, when a person says beautiful things and does terrible things, we can know to stay away.  Indeed, the Lord tells us that we must stay away, for they are “ravenous wolves”, who kill brutally and without mercy.  We see false prophets doing this when they openly teach doctrines that attack religion and truth.  Over time, these false prophets no longer care that no one takes their babbling seriously any longer — for their lies and their sinful lives have been exposed.  They are living proof that “a rotten tree bears bad fruit”.  

On the other hand, “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit.”  Christians who live according to the Gospel as best they can are the best sort of prophet, and their efforts to act virtuously bear the “good fruit” of conversions even when they fail occasionally out of weakness — for the example of getting up and trying again is one that heartens many.  As long as we seek Christ, we will find him, and as long as we seek him, we will draw others to do the same.  “Good fruit” attracts by virtue of its goodness, and it leads people to think that is the fruit is good, then how great the Tree on which it hangs must be.