You didn’t misunderstand my point — you shifted the definition.
Scripture defines false prophets by objective revelation tests (Deut 18),
objective fruit tests (Matt 7),
objective doctrine tests (1 Tim 4), and
objective deception tests (Matt 24).
Your definition replaces those with subjective moral impressions:
“changed lives,”
“Christ‑imitators,”
“surrender,” “compassion,”
“rejecting elitism,”
“not reducing God to a box,”
“not hating certain people,”
“not following 16th‑century writers,”
“not preaching prosperity,”
“not ignoring the poor,”
“not restricting access,”
“not crushing questions,”
“not being brittle,”
“not being sectarian.”
Those may be true ethical critiques, but they are not the biblical definition of a false prophet.
OMC:
As usual, I find myself struggling with your citations, especially when you hide under an umbrella of "proof texts" that do not prove you contention. Deut 18 has these features. 1 There is no land inheritance for a priest. 2. Priest will eat from sacrifices. 3. Do not imitate conquered nations. Do not practice human sacrifice, consult mediums, cast a spell or consult with the dead (as did King Saul). 4.You must be "blameless before God." You must listen to the prophets of God through Moses all others must be put to death. 5. How do we know if a prophet is from God, if their prophecy comes true, then they come from God. As you seem to hold this sacred and binding, exactly how many witches have you murdered? How many slaves do you have and do you council your community to put to death women who commit adultery?? If not, where is the line and who determines it?
Matthew 7:
1“Do not judge, or you will be judged.
2For with the same judgment you pronounce, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. (seems like a clear condemnation of judging the "intent" of those asking "uncomfortable questions)
3 Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but fail to notice the beam in your own eye?
4How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while there is still a beam in your own eye?
5You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
6 Do not give dogs what is holy; do not throw your pearls before swine. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces. 7 Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. 9 Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10O if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 So if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! 12In everything, then, do to others as you would have them do to you. For this is the essence of the Law and the Prophets. 13 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.
I find this citation vastly supports my intuition than yours:
15 Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, by their fruit you will recognize them. 21 Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’
This supports my contention that only those who "do the word of God = fruits" All who claim God's blessing but refuse to produce fruit will be burned. All who bear "not fruit" will be burned.
In each case, only those living day to day in compliance with God's will produce the "fruit of salvation. No those who claim they are justified by their doctrines, creeds, statements of faith, but those who DO the will of God.
I Timothy 4 is a warning about Christians who get caught up in the religious practices of their day.
15Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
16By their fruit you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
17Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.
19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
20So then, by their fruit you will recognize them.
21Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’
23Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!
I Timothy 4 is a contested Pauline document and among other things, it violates the promise Paul made to the Jerusalem Council concerning the conversion of Gentiles. They are to abstain from 1. eating meat offered to idols, 2. eating nothing strangled and offered to idols, eat nothing with blood and 3 obtain from sexual immorality.
1Now the Spirit explicitly says that in the later times some will desert the faith and occupy themselves with deceiving spirits and demonic teachings,
2influenced by the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared.
3They will prohibit marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.
4For every creation of God is good and no food is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving.
5For it is sanctified by God’s word and by prayer.
if reject you definition of you contention that my list of defining by determining if we are LIVING in harmony with the Gospel, not just playing theological tic tac to.
I would never have expected you to protect the Prosperity Gospel, supporting Christ imitators, ignoring the poor, et. al. Why not do an exegesis on 1 corinthians that allow replacing love with hate? Why not include an exegesis of Galatians 5 to dispute the fruits of the Gospel? Why not do an exegesis on Matthew 25 in with this is just "allegory, metaphor and hyperbole? On the other hand why not stop warring for 16th century theology and contend with today's reality.
