fruit and works.

The fruits of the Spirit.

John 13:35 "By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Romans 12;10 "Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;"

1 Thessalians 4:9 "But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another;"

Hebrews 13:1 "Let brotherly love continue."

2 Peter 1:5-9 "But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins."

New American Standard Bible
"You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?

What do you specifically look for to know them by their fruits?

If we are to know them by their fruits. What are the fruits you look for to discern the truth?

But I see unbelievers who are kind,loving, compassionate, try to do the right things, have amazing self control, believe in a higher power, have brotherly love. In fact ,The majority of society(at least in the USA) has a mindset for world peace and all of us getting along. And equality for all man.

I'm not understanding what you are trying to get at or say here. Help me out can you explain what it is you are getting at?

Come on! Everyday life. Things that make you look cross eyed, and things that you discern are on the mark.

Everyday life? Okay, let's see...
When someone makes a rough remark to you or accuses you of being x or y or z, you don't bristle. You just continue on in the discussion and connect, other than maybe an "I'm sorry, that wasn't my intent. What I meant was such and such." You don't hear shrieks of how someone just slandered you and needs to apologize for twenty pages. (Don't misunderstand me, this isn't won by hard work. It is by Him getting you to the place in your walk where you see that this behavior is lack in you, which leads to prayer and trust He will fix you and waiting and more prayer.) He brings you there, it takes some time, and He shows you what hurt feelings really are - a bruised pride, a feeling you deserve respect and therefore not showing the same mercy and forgiveness He showed you. He actually has got you to a place where you don't feel anyone owes you respect but everyone owes HIM respect.

Or...you don't demand someone else does the dishes because you always do them. You do them because you really start to like your labors and you like taking the load off of anyone else. And while you're doing the dishes, where you used to fume and resent in your mind while you did them because so and so absolutely REFUSES to rinse their plate off so the food is now stuck on it and dried, you just soak it for a minute or two and really find that you're at peace and not resenting and murdering your household.

When someone asks if you'll do something and you say yes, you don't put it off until later so they must ask you 20 more times over the course of the next three months. You do it pretty soon because you don't forget what they've asked because you love them and want them to be happy.

When someone cuts you off in traffic, you don't honk your horn and glare at them and yell, you just let them in and thank God for saving you from a wreck while your thumping heart calms down from the dose of adrenaline.

You do NOT get to this place by just trying really, really hard, because you go that route for awhile and then realize it doesn't get you any closer to the way you wish you could be, with your wildly fluctuating emotions not controlling you and making you do and say what you really wish you wouldn't. You pray, you wait, it keeps happening, the emotions getting the best of you, and He let's you struggle with sin for some length of time before He begins to change things in some way that you can't really quite figure out what He has done exactly, you just know you're going longer amounts of time without getting angry and you're in an odd, general and calm peace. Sometimes you recognize a slight motion of your heart toward some silly resentment, like someone missed the trashcan and their napkin is on the floor and they just don't care if you have to pick it up, but it doesn't go past this first motion because you just don't advert to it and let it start dictating to you what you deserve that someone treat you like and you pick it up and think of how much you love them and what a lousy shot they are so they better study hard because they ain't never making it to the NBA.

These are fruits. Growing humility, meekness, not demanding your way, emotions in subjection instead of ruling you, growing love, ( even when someone IS kind of selfish and is a demanding person in general), joy, calm, and peace in the Spirit, a general sense of peace that is very delightful and relaxed and doesn't go away based on whatever circumstance you find yourself in because it's not based on your general level of comfort or discomfort and so it can't be greatly swayed.

Gal 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Gal 5:20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Gal 5:21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Gal 5:23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Gal 5:24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Gal 5:25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Gal 5:26 Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

All good comes from God and some people (that don't know God) do have some or most of these good fruits and we don't need to know why or how just praise God for working good in their lives. When the Spirit of God is controlling you (your walking in the Spirit), these fruits come naturally. Apple trees don't naturally produce oranges. We just need to make sure we are connected to (abide in) the vine which is Jesus.

Joh 15:4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
Joh 15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

The scriptures you posted. I see many unbelievers that overtly act like what the scriptures you posted tell believers to do.

Many unbelievers have brotherly love. Many unbelievers have self control. Many unbelievers believe in a higher power. Many unbelievers have ALL the overt qualities of following the Law.

What are the fruits You see that you can discern the real from the fake?

New American Standard Bible
"You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?

What do you specifically look for to know them by their fruits?

If we are to know them by their fruits. What are the fruits you look for to discern the truth?

Examine all things through the word of God.

Gods word is a mirror not a magnifying glass.

Examine self not others. Others will show themselves forth as believers or pretenders. Allow God to reveal as He chooses.

For the cause of Christ
Roger

Matthew 7:15-17 (NASB)
[SUP]15 [/SUP] "Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.

[SUP]16 [/SUP]"You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?

[SUP]17 [/SUP]"So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.


To be accurate Jesus was talking about how to identify false prophets. False prophets are those that "seem to mimic " the words of the Lord but these words are not true. What kind of fruit does these words bring in a person's life?

When a supposed preacher comes with words saying anything that is contrary to what Christ has done by His finished work on the cross and resurrection - what does this bring in a person's life? What is the fruit of their words?


Does it bring arrogance and abusive behavior, malice and the slandering of others? Does it insult others and de-mean them? Does it try to "lord it over your faith?" by their superior knowledge and human scholarship? Does it bring condemnation to others? This is the fruit of a false prophet in the midst.

They could be genuine Christians too and not true false prophets but just under the deception of the enemy and his deceitfulness or they could not even be true believers in Christ. I'll leave that judgment in the hands of the Lord who knows all people's hearts.