I received an excellent letter in response to last month’s Trumpeter in which the writer wonders if it isn’t true that a genuine believer in Christ should, and perhaps, must be recognized by his outward lifestyle. The writer included several Scripture verses upon which I will make comments later.

But first, I’ll lay the groundwork by making some observations concerning (1) Satan and his devious ways, (2) religious people who are adept at putting on a convincing spiritual show, and (3) true believers and what they are capable of being and doing.

How does Satan blind the unbeliever? By appearing to represent God:

Since Satan’s cunning and power are greater than man’s, it shouldn’t be too surprising that we can be so easily duped by him. Can we tell ministers of Satan by their appearance? Obviously not! They are deceitful workers, false apostles, but they don’t appear so. Therefore, we cannot always tell the difference between the false and the true.

They read their Bibles, they praise God publicly, they pray, and give to missions — all things any growing Child of God would do. Their lifestyle would say: "I am a Christian," but if inwardly they are really trusting in these same good works to get into Heaven, then they would not be truly saved at all. Jesus described this kind of apparent believer when He said, "Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders (miracles) in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’" (Mathew 7:22,23). These will be sad and frightening words for many. To be expecting to be ushered into Heaven’s portals only to be separated from God forever will be a shocking thing indeed — especially when their lifestyles would indicate that they "had it made."

Can true Christians always be identified? Satan’s ministers appear to be apostles of Christ and ministers of what is right. We cannot always recognize them for what they really are. The flip side is also true: we cannot always recognize the true identity of genuine believers in Christ. A few Bible examples should make this point apparent.

Joseph of Arimathea is described as "a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews." He finally came out of his shell when he asked Pilate for the body of Jesus to bury in his own tomb ( John 19:38), but previous to his request of Pilate, one would not have known he was a true believer in Jesus as his Messiah.

The "many rulers" in John 12:42,43, who "believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God." Some say these rulers were not true believers because true believers would confess Christ and would not love man’s praise over God’s (an example of attempting to make Scripture fit one’s theological presuppositions). However, the verses clearly say that they "believed in" Christ — the exact wording used throughout the Gospel of John describing the condition that brings salvation. See John 3:15, 16, 18, 36; 6:28, 29, 47; 7:38, 39; 8:30, 31; 11:25, 26; 12:9-11; 17:20; 20:31.

The Corinthian believers. Paul said that the carnal lifestyles of these Christians were, in appearance, just like the unsaved — like "mere men" (1 Corinthians 3:1-3). One man was so gross in his behavior that Paul advised giving his body over to Satan (5:1-5).

Some in the Galatian Church. When referring to them, Paul used phrases such as "you are turning away so soon from Him…(1:6); "O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth" (3:1); "But now after you have known God…how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements?" (4:9); "I am afraid of you" (4:11); "I have doubts about you" (4:20). If we take scripture alone as our authority (I Corinthians 4:6), we see that it is not always possible to tell who is or is not a genuine believer in Christ — either inside the Bible or outside of it where we live our lives.

My correspondent also had questions about other puzzling verses:

Matthew 7:16-20: Verse 16 and 20, contain the statement that constitutes the main question we are dealing with: "You will know them by their fruits."

I have probably heard or read fifty or more sermons on this passage and, almost without exception, the speaker or writer uses the passage to prove that we can know a true Christian by his "fruit." But verse 15 identifies the ones in verses 16 and 20. "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits."

We should be able to tell the false prophets by what they produce, but their "fruit" is not found by examining their lives. You see, the "fruit" in this passage cannot be outward appearance because these false prophets look just like sheep! Their true identity is inward where no one but God can see. These may be the same ones as in verses 22 and 23 (quoted earlier) who boast of doing so many good "Christian" things.

Whatever the "fruit" is, it can be tested. Jesus said we should know them by what they produce. Comparing Scripture with Scripture, we turn to Matthew 16:5-12 where Jesus said, "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees" (v. 6). He was referring to the "leaven" of "the doctrine of the Pharisees and the Sadducees." How do you detect a false prophet? By how they act, their behavior? No! But by what they teach, by their doctrine! We may never be able to tell the true Christian from the fake by examining men’s works, but we surely can tell false prophets by what he teaches as truth.

Galatians 5:22, 23: These verses describe the fruit "of the Spirit" displayed in the child of God who is "walking in the Spirit and not fulfilling the desires of the flesh" (5:16). If believers always walked in the Spirit, Paul wouldn’t be urging them to do that which automatically would be the lifestyle of every Christian.

Titus 2:11: God’s grace by which we are saved also teaches us "that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously and godly in this present age." Grace always "teaches" believers to live properly. Grace is never dangerous but instructive in godlike living. But though God’s grace trains us to live properly, not all of God’s children are willing to be trained by it (Hebrews 12:5-11), so disobedient believers do not demonstrate that they belong to the Lord.

I Corinthians 5:12, 13: My correspondent’s observation here was that outward indications must be required because Paul says we should "judge" the ones among us. How can we do this unless we watch their outward activity? An excellent point! That which Paul is telling the Church to judge is not whether this man is a believer, but rather, what the Church should do about this brother’s immoral behavior. In fact, from outward appearances some would say such an immoral, perverted person could not possibly be a true believer in Christ — and they would be wrong in this case! On the other hand, Paul who is not present to observe, judges that they should, "Put away from yourselves that wicked person!"

Richard Seymour is the founder and director of Clarity Ministries International, Post Office Box 2472, Douglas, GA 31534