HOW TO IDENTIFY WOLVES IN SHEEP CLOTHING
Meditation for Wednesday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time
(Gen 15:1-12,17-18; Mt 7:15-20)
At a time like this, the words of Jesus in the gospel of today are ever timely because there are so many self-acclaimed prophets, evangelist, pastors, etc in every city. Even in the ordinary practice of the faith, wrong approaches to faith and distorted spiritual exercises abound. How can we differentiate and identify wolves in sheep’s clothing? Jesus warns, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits.” What kind of fruit does true faith produce?
Let us meditate on the experience of Abraham as given in the first reading to understand the kind of fruit that differentiates and reveals a true prophet and a true believer. It appears the old man was wondering whether he had believed wrongly or not. So, Abraham began to question God, saying, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” The Lord brought him outside and asked him to number the stars, saying, “If you are able to number them, so shall your descendants be.” Abraham believed what the Lord said, and this faith was reckoned to him as righteousness. Thus, the FRUIT OF FAITH is evident. That means true faith re-produces itself in oneself when practice rightly, and in others through the works of the true prophets.
Further, Abraham asked for a sign to show that he and his descendants shall possess the land that God promised him. The Lord asked him to offer a SACRIFICE acceptable to him. The accepted the sacrifice in the form of a smoking fire and a flaming torch. “On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘To your descendants I give the land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river of Euphrates.” Thus, the fruit of a true faith will always be a pleasing sacrifice offered and acceptable to the Lord. This can vary from simple acts of charity to endurance and forgiveness, up to a life of participation in the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross.
These are ways we can identify and differentiate the numerous wolves in sheep’s clothing. At the end Jesus says, “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.” Amen.
Fr Jude Chinwenwa Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church,
Tedi-Muwo, Ojo, Lagos.
Wednesday June 28, 2023.
www.nwachinwe.blogspot.com
