False Teacher and The will of God? || Acharya Prashant, on Jesus Christ (2016)

The tree and Its Fruit

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

Questioner (Q): What is meant by false teacher?

Acharya Prashant (AP): When Jesus says, “Beware of false prophets” — he says just see, what influence they are having upon you; tree is known by its fruits. Just see what their presence does to you. Are they really able to bring peace and lightness to you? Are they really able to remove fear from your mind or are they putting you in greater fear?

Do not know them by their forms, decorations, medallions, all the respect that society gives them — do not use that to know them.

Know them by one criteria only — what have they done to you? Have they liberated you or have they…