Who Do You Listen To?

Scripture: Deuteronomy 18.15-20; Mark 1.21-28; Matthew 7.15-20


I used to be able to eat whatever I wanted. I could eat and not have to worry about gaining weight, because my metabolism and lifestyle were active enough to do that. Things change. I used to look at all the people on the treadmills at the gym with mild pity, and vow I would never be some exercise hamster like them. Things change. I do treadmill now. I get on there and I watch that digital calorie-counter with avid interest and when I burn over one hundred I congratulate myself because I can now go home and eat a guilt-free cookie.

Have you noticed all the commercials on television about diets and diet pills? They are on all the time. They all feature success stories, show good looking people, quote experts. Maybe they all work! Maybe none of them work. Who do you listen to?


If knowing who to listen to is important when it comes to exercise and diet, isn’t it pretty important to know who to listen to with even bigger questions in your life? This is exactly what is at issue in Deuteronomy 18. God tells the people that He is sending them a prophet whom they would do well to listen to. And what’s notable is, God anticipates the problem of false prophets, false and misleading voices, to which Israel might be exposed.

“But any prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, or who presumes to speak in my name a word that I have not commanded the prophet to speak – that prophet shall die.”

Then God gives the people this simple test to know the difference between a true prophet and a false one:

“You may say to yourself, ‘How can we recognize a word that the Lord has not spoken? If a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord but the thing does not take place or prove true, it is a word that the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; do not be frightened by it.”

If the thing spoken of, happens, then it’s a prophet. Pretty simple. And that kind of jives with how we sometimes view a prophet – someone who predicts the future. But a prophet is not a fortune teller. A true prophet brings the power and goodness of God’s Word to people’s lives today. When a prophet sees good things, they give glory to God. When a prophet sees evil, they warn people to turn from their evil or face the consequences, e.g. Jonah and Nineveh.

Let me suggest that the last phrase of verse 22, but if “the thing does not take place or prove true,” then it is not God’s word, is vital for us to understand. What does it mean for something to prove true? Something that is true is good , sound, accurate, even beautiful. Truth has a ring to it, we say. So when we are looking for persons and voices to listen to and rely on in our lives, we should use this measure of truth and apply it rigorously.

If someone is true they speak with authority. When Jesus teaches in the Capernaum synagogue the people are amazed by the experience. “Wow, what a message – and spoken with such authority! That guy knew what he was talking about!”

They literally said this out loud to each other because it was so different from the teaching they were used to hearing, maybe good stuff, but not given with such conviction and application to their lives. This kind of authority is not faked, it comes from walking closely with God, and truly speaking what the Holy Spirit directs. Jesus, of course, is the One who did what the Father instructed him to do, spoke what the Father told him to speak. True authority comes from character, and character is shaped from above.

Authority is not to be confused with charisma or flair. We are such suckers for a slick presentation in this culture in which we swim and are entertained. We are seduced by good hair and shiny teeth and powerpoint presentations. Barbara Brown Taylor reminds us that Paul the Apostle was not such a great preacher:

He knew what people said about him – strong on paper, weak in person. Contemptible delivery. In the apocryphal literature Paul was described as “a man of small stature, with bald head and crooked legs. . .with eyebrows meeting and nose somewhat hooked.

The last ten years of my life, my theme verse seems to be the one where Paul tells us to be like him. . .I’ve been living that out as literally as I can.

Taylor’s point is that Paul didn’t want to wow a crowd with cleverness or emotion. He just wanted to preach Jesus, and Him crucified. True authority can be found in persons who make their lives about God and not themselves. We would be wise not be distracted by the packaging.

If someone is true, then their lives will bear the fruit of truth. This sounds so obvious that it doesn’t need saying. But it does. We forget that if deeds don’t match words, then maybe the words are wrong, or at least don’t have any real power or meaning in the speaker’s life.

This is a trap for all Christians to avoid, even, (especially?), preachers. You know I want my life to match my words. I want to live the Life, you know? I want to be a good father and a good husband. I try to pull my weight around the house. I want to help out. In fact, I asked my wife a long time ago, “What’s the one thing in housework that you really don’t want to do?”

She said, “The dishes – I don’t want to do the dishes.” And I’ve got to hand to it to her, in ten years of marriage, she hasn’t done many. And they’re really piling up too. It’s a mess in the kitchen. The prophet has spoken presumptuously, don’t be frightened.

I was talking to a good friend just the other day. I asked him how his kids were doing – he is the father of three small children. He said they were whiny. He asked me if my kids are ever whiny. I said no. We laughed because what usually happens is our kids are usually wanting our attention and time and we don’t give it, which makes it worse, and they get frustrated and we get mad and end up shouting at them something like,

“Will you just be quiet and leave me alone, can’t you see I’m trying to prepare a talk for my Parenting Class?”

If we are in the truth, our lives will reflect truth - not moral perfection, but evidence of a life being transformed by the power and word of the living Christ. If someone is true, then their lives will bear the fruit of truth. If someone is true they speak with authority. “You may say to yourself, ‘How can we recognize a word that the Lord has not spoken? If a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord but the thing does not take place or prove true, it is a word that the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; do not be frightened by it.”


The living Christ once said, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.” Matthew 7.15-20

Every one of us in this room is here because of true people bearing good fruit in their lives. And every one of us in this room continues to need good people to look to and listen to.

Who do you listen to? Avoid fancy packaging and easy answers. Find people you know to be faithful, good, selfless, caring. Find people who’ve “proven true.” Look to character and integrity and above all a heart for God. Find those people and try to be like them. You won’t go wrong.