Easily Identifiable

Matthew 7

15 “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. 16 You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. 19 So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. 20 Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.”

These words from Jesus help us to combat those who would misuse the “judge not, least ye be judged” passage. It is true that it is not my place to judge anyone, but I also have been given the good sense and discernment to be able to tell what’s what from the fruit of a person’s actions. God will take care of the judging, but to point out sin in someone’s life, is not judging, it is merely making an observation. Now, this applies to those of us who are followers of Christ only. Pagans behave like pagans because they are pagans. But those who claim to follow Christ, yet live like a pagan, well, those are the folks Jesus is talking about here. You can spot them from a mile away. So can I. Stay away from them. Period.