When the Broad Way Comes from the Pulpit

After describing the narrow gate, Rev. Sang Ho Bae touched a very sensitive issue, and that is proclaiming the broad way from the pulpit itself.

In Matthew 7, the Lord gives a very important warning as He reaches the concluding part of the Sermon on the Mount.

Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves (Matt. 7:15).

This word is not a simple piece of advice but the Lord’s command that the church in every age must surely keep in mind. False prophets have always existed, and even today their number has not decreased. The problem is that outwardly they are almost indistinguishable from true shepherds. Their words are gentle, their demeanor appears devout, and their teaching is attractive. But within them lie greed that devours souls and distorted truth. Therefore, the Lord commands, “Beware”—to stay awake, to watch carefully, to discern, and to be on guard.

The greatest characteristic of false prophets is that they turn the narrow way into a broad way. The Lord said, “Enter through the narrow gate” (Matt. 7:13–14). The narrow gate signifies the way of self-denial, obedience, and the cross. But false prophets turn this path into a broad and comfortable one. They say, “Just believe in Jesus and be saved,” and replace the life of discipleship with cheap grace. Sin and judgment, repentance and holiness, and the reality of hell and the wrath of God disappear from their preaching, and instead only love, comfort, and worldly blessings are emphasized. Just as the false prophets in Jeremiah’s time cried, “Peace, peace” (Jer. 6:14; 23:16), their message sounds pleasant but lacks the sword of truth that awakens the soul. It is like merely wrapping a bandage for a festering wound instead of cutting it open. People feel comfort, but that comfort is a sweet poison leading the soul to destruction. Calvin said, “False prophets are those who blur the essence of the gospel and lead people into self-satisfaction.” They use the language of the gospel but in reality remove the substance of the gospel.

Another characteristic of false prophets is that they replace the word of God with the words of man. “The vision they speak is from their own heart, not from the mouth of the LORD” (Jer. 23:16). This is also the reason today’s pulpits have become confused. Preaching is supposed to be the place where God’s word is proclaimed, but at some point lectures, philosophy, and social discourse began to replace preaching. Some pulpits have turned into philosophy classes, and some emphasize only worldly success and blessing. But Scripture not only speaks of blessing; it also teaches the narrow way, self-denial, and the path of suffering. If one side is emphasized alone, the balance of the word collapses, and Scripture is ultimately distorted.

The Lord gave a clear standard for discerning false prophets: “You will know them by their fruits” (Matt. 7:16). The fruits appear in two areas. The first is the fruit of life. False prophets outwardly appear devout, but in their lives there is no fruit of the Spirit. Their words are gentle, but in their hearts dwell pride and greed. They use people rather than serve them, and they reveal themselves rather than exalt God. Peter said, “In their greed they will exploit you with fabricated words” (2 Pet. 2:3). They are not those who feed the sheep, but those who feed on the sheep. The second is the fruit of teaching. It may look biblical at first glance, but as time passes, their teaching leads people not to God but to themselves and to the world. They weaken sin and repentance, and they package human desires in the name of faith.

Today we live in an age where the internet and media overflow. It has become an age in which anyone can preach and teach, and accordingly the influence of false prophets has increased explosively. A true shepherd lays down his life for the sheep, but a false shepherd uses the sheep to exalt himself. A true shepherd leads the sheep according to the word, but a false shepherd deceives the sheep according to his own desires. A true shepherd fears God, but a false shepherd is conscious of human popularity.

The Lord said that on the last day many will say, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name? ” (Matt. 7:22). But the Lord will declare to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness” (Matt. 7:23). The real problem of false prophets is that their actions do not arise from mere intellectual error or temporary mistakes but are the inevitable result of fundamentally not knowing the Lord. They use the Lord’s name, but they do not truly know Him, nor are they known by Him; they are wolves in sheep’s clothing.

Discerning false prophets is the work of protecting the church and guarding our souls. We must take the word of God, not human speech, as our standard; we must look not at outward appearance but at fruit; and we must follow not popular teaching but the teaching of truth. Only those who are deeply rooted in the word, awake in prayer, and dwelling within the sound teaching of the church can overcome the deception of false prophets.

For the AI-generated song version of this article, check Stay Awake: Guard The Narrow Way.