Beware of false prophets! By their fruits ye shall know them.

[Sadliers]

"15 ¶Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit." (Matthew 7:15-18)

 

There is much to be said regarding these verses. Ironically it is the false prophets that uses these verses to "prove" they are true prophets. But first, what is a prophet? Simply put, a prophet is one that receives revelation from God. Communication and direction may be received by anyone, inside or outside the church, but that is not the same as revelation. Revelation is a more pure form of communication. False prophets sincerely believe they are receiving revelations from God thus one cannot expect them to confess the errors of their ways. It is failing to be able to differentiate between God and the other sources of revelation (self or Satan) that leads one to being a false prophet. Interestingly it is pride that always plays a role with false prophets because they are unwilling to entertain the idea that their revelations are not from God - one that is prideful is not teachable.

 

How do false prophets use that scripture to their advantage? By misinterpreting it. They substitute "works" for "fruits". Once they make the substitution then they'll point to their "good works" as proof that they are a true prophet. They aren't the only ones that make that incorrect substitution, though. How many times do members point to the Book of Mormon as a "fruit" of Joseph Smith? It is not a fruit but rather a work, and what a work it was to do the translation! But it is still a work, not a fruit. Nor is faithful home teaching and visiting teaching a fruit but rather a work. Just as it is incorrect for false prophets to substitute "works" for "fruits" so also is it incorrect for us members to make that same mistake.

 

So then what is a "fruit" if it is not synonymous with "work"? It is the core attributes/characteristics of a person. It consists of those individual attributes that make up the "fruit of the Spirit": Love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance. It also includes the opposites: indifference, hate, miserable, contention, impatience, evil, doubtful, pride, and hot-headed. It is those core attributes that define our characteristics. Once we are attuned to observing those key attributes then false prophets are readily weeded out. Take President Monson, for example. Is he more of a loving man or one that is indifferent towards others or hates others? All who personally know him know that love best describes him. How about faith? Is he one that seems to live by faith or doubt? Those that know him know he is not a doubter but rather is faithful. We can go right down the list, comparing him to those attributes that make up the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and see that his being is in line with those of the Spirit. Yes, he is a true prophet. Just the same we can take others and compare them. Take Charles Russell, founder of a popular religion. Followers willingly admit that he was one that liked to debate and argue. How does that fit with the comparison of "peace" vs "contention"? One of such character also lacks love - how does that compare with "love" vs "indifference/hate"? Once the fruits are examined it becomes clear that he was not of God. 

A false prophet usually does not know that they are a false prophet. They honestly believe they are a true prophet. The deception is either from Satan or from themselves, or both. That's how Snuffer got his start - by relying on his own understanding and wisdom through studies, but then Satan was able to get a foothold by appearing as an angel of light. Snuffer truly believes that which he espouses and apparently makes good arguments since many seem to be taken in by it. If one that personally knows Denver will examine the fruits then it will be guaranteed to reveal that he is a false prophet. How am I so sure? Because he does not have the Holy Spirit with him - those that do will reflect the attributes that make up the fruit of the Spirit. But because he did not know the Spirit he did not know when he was straying away. When Satan provided a false manifestation he failed to compare ALL the attributes in the fruit of the Spirit to prove that it was the Spirit, and that fatal neglect led him to excommunication along with many others. And the followers are making the same mistake of failing to consider that ALL the attributes must be present otherwise it is not the fruit of the Spirit and, hence, is not the Spirit.

In a nutshell all one is doing to detect a true or false prophet is to look for whether the Spirit is with them. That is observed by how well they match the attributes that makes up the fruit of the Spirit. That doesn't just apply to proclaimed prophets but rather to all people, whether member or nonmember. Righteousness is not based on what one does but rather how close they come to matching the Spirit, which is the same as measuring up to the stature of Jesus Christ. That seems to be a touchy subject especially for those that don't have the Spirit but think they do. They immediately retort that it is a judgment. But is that what the scripture says? Does the scripture say "ye shall judge them by their fruits"? No, it says "ye shall know them by their fruits". There's no judging because it is simply known just as it is known whether a person is black or white without having to judge. Stating a fact is not a judgment just like stating the race of a person is not a judgment. Any angry person does not have the Spirit with them - there's no judging but rather it is self evident and simply known. A contentious person does not have the Spirit with them and it is not judging to make that observance. 

"the guilty taketh the truth to be hard, for it cutteth them to the very center." (1 Nephi 16:2)

 

Failing to recognize the Spirit is a first step in becoming a false prophet. Thinking the Spirit is felt in different ways is a failure to recognize the Spirit because the Spirit only has one fruit and only feels one way. If one adds Satan's counterfeits, normal human emotions, and/or only part of the characteristics of the  then there will be the appearance that the Spirit feels different ways but in reality that the person does not know how to distinguish between the Spirit from other sources. And, just the same, their fruits will reveal that they are failing to know the Spirit. A common characteristic of those that fail to know the Spirit is anger, impatience, pride, and/or contention. It is very easily remedied by simply becoming humble,  turning to God, and seeking the Spirit's guidance. 

[Guest]

Do you believe Denver Snuffer is a prophet? What do you believe him to be?

[Guest]

What "fruit" I get from the OP is constant condemnation of others whom are adjudged to be unworthy of calling themselves "Saints of God".

[Traveler]

I would submit that the most misunderstood part of this scripture is in verse 16 where in prophesy the question is asked “Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?”  This is in direct reference to the fruits.  But the obvious is that grapes vines do not have thorns nor do fig trees grow thistles. Thorns are by purpose are intended to hurt and cause pain.  To me this means that a false prophet will speak of the joy of Christ whereas a false prophet is anti and speaks to the ills of other religions with intension to spiritually hurt and bring pain

[Anddenex]

1 hour ago, Eowyn said:

Do you believe Denver Snuffer is a prophet? What do you believe him to be?

Sadliers answers this in his post, "If one that personally knows Denver will examine the fruits then it will be guaranteed to reveal that he is a false prophet. How am I so sure? Because he does not have the Holy Spirit with him - those that do will reflect the attributes that make up the fruit of the Spirit."

[Guest]

Thank you. He posted that answer after I asked on this thread.

I find that one has to be very direct and almost pushy to get Snufferites to admit to what they are. It seems like the fact that the Snufferites' modus operandi is stealth and deception would tell them something...

But I digress.

[thoughts]

I was interested in his latest decision (claimed by a 'conference", of course) to authorize his followers to use the temple ceremony words to marry his church members for eternity, while complying with civil authority for civil side. 

[Anddenex]

These are principles shared which I would completely agree with regarding false prophets and the tendency for one to become a false prophet.

1. False prophets sincerely believe they are receiving revelations from God thus one cannot expect them to confess the errors of their ways (pride).
2. Love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance. It also includes the opposites: indifference, hate, miserable, contention, impatience, evil, doubtful, pride, and hot-headed. It is those core attributes that define our characteristics.
3. In a nutshell all one is doing to detect a true or false prophet is to look for whether the Spirit is with them. That is observed by how well they match the attributes that makes up the fruit of the Spirit.
4. Failing to recognize the Spirit is a first step in becoming a false prophet.

The notion that changing "fruit" to "works" is leading a person toward becoming a false prophet, appears borderline pedantic. Our past and current Church leaders appear to interchange "fruit" with "works" and also other meanings to provide insight for our prophet and learning, for example:

1) Mark E. Peterson declared, "We take humble pride in the rapid growth, the marvelous accomplishments, and the stability of our people. “By their fruits ye shall know them,” the Savior taught (Matt. 7:20). Our fruits bear testimony of our devotion to Almighty God, of our firm commitment to carry on his modern ministry, and of the validity of the message which we bear." Marvelous accomplishments would easily be defined as works accomplished by the Church and its people.

2) Russel M. Nelson explained that fruits also represent our children, "Scriptures teach, “By their fruits ye shall know them.” Earlier in life Sister Nelson and I often met young people who said they felt like they knew us because they knew our children. Now we are greeted fondly by those who know us because they know our grandchildren."

3) M. Russell Ballard explained/defined "fruits" as this, "A church, or any way of life, should be judged by the fruits or the results that it generates" (emphasis added) -- a result generated, or a fruit, he mentions would be that members of the Church tend to live longer and obtain higher educational pursuits.

 

 

 

[The Folk Prophet]

I would suggest that the "fruits" that are spoken of used to know true prophets from false ones are less related to the character of the person and "fruits of the Spirit" than they are related to the authority that allows them to provide fruits that cannot otherwise be provided.

What I mean to say is that anyone can be a good guy/gal and that has no bearing on whether one is a prophet or not. One can serve, teach, be wise, be kind, etc., and still be a false prophet leading people away from God.

How does this work? Simple. There is only one path back to God and it is through the ordinances of His priesthood. The fruits of a true prophet are the fruits of the ordinances of the priesthood. They are authorized missionary work, baptism, temples, sealings, work for the dead, etc.

It does not matter how nice a person is...if they cannot provide these things that actually lead us to the Celestial kingdom then...well...by their fruits ye shall know them.

 

Edit: Note -- I didn't fully read all the responses, so if I'm repeating ideas already presented that is why.

Edited April 4, 2016 by The Folk Prophet

[Sadliers]

5 hours ago, Eowyn said:

Thank you. He posted that answer after I asked on this thread.

I find that one has to be very direct and almost pushy to get Snufferites to admit to what they are. It seems like the fact that the Snufferites' modus operandi is stealth and deception would tell them something...

But I digress.

No, you'll see that it was not edited. Snuffer was identified from the start.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Sadliers said:

it was not edited.

 I never said it was.

[priesthoodpower]

For some people It doesnt help to know the history of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, my wife for one, thinks they were both false prophets.

[Sadliers]

1 hour ago, Eowyn said:

 I never said it was.

Sorry, I must have misunderstood the comment.