As we look at the church today, we cannot help but see the fruits of the church in multiple institutional expressions of the church. Glory unto the Trinity, glory unto the name of Jesus Christ, spiritual fruit and virtue wrought by the Holy Spirit, the pushing back of demonic powers, and the saving knowledge of the true God — all this occurs in more than one institution.
We see saints in the medieval East and saints in the medieval West. We have exorcisms in Roman Catholic contexts and exorcisms in Pentecostal contexts. We find testimonies of spiritual transformation in the name of Christ in Congregationalist churches, and we find the same in Coptic churches.
What are we to make of this? How does the New Testament teach us to discern the work and presence of Christ?
On the Basis of Their Fruit
In Matthew 7, Jesus gives a criterion by which to determine true and false prophets:
Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits. — Matthew 7:15–20 (ESV)
Here Jesus articulates not merely that good fruit is more likely to come from a good tree. He claims that a bad tree cannot bear good fruit (v. 18). Therefore, if we have good fruit, we know we have a good tree. Jesus gave us this teaching because he expected us to put it into practice. He expected us to distinguish true and false prophets on the basis of their fruit.
What Sort of Fruit is ‘Good’?
When I have made this point in YouTube videos, critics often respond by asking if this means Buddhists or Mormons who have positive religious experiences are saved. This objection misses the point: We are seeking to obey the command of Christ, and Christ was not advancing religious pluralism or playing on our sentimentality.
By the word “fruit,” Christ did not mean generic religious experience but the spiritual result of the Holy Spirit’s work in and through the Christian gospel. This is the same word used in Matthew 3:8, “Bear fruit in keeping with repentance,” and John 15:5, “Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit” (ESV).
Paul uses this term to refer to the virtues wrought in a believer by the Holy Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal. 5:22–23, ESV). In its usage in the New Testament, this term refers to spiritual good wrought by the Holy Spirit in the lives of those responding to the gospel of Christ and being incorporated into his kingdom.
The Genuine Work of Christ
It is this understanding of “fruit” that Jesus commands us to consider in practicing spiritual discernment. This does not mean there will be no fake miracles or exorcisms, as Jesus also warns in the immediately following verses (Matt. 7:21–23). Satan can occasionally work miracles, as we see with Pharaoh’s sorcerers (Ex. 7:11), and as Jesus warns concerning false Christs and false prophets (Matt. 24:24).
But Satan cannot produce virtues. He is incapable of producing joy, peace, goodness, kindness, love for Christ, love for God, love for the Holy Spirit, love for the Scripture, love for truth. Only Christ produces these things. Therefore, such fruit testifies to the genuine work of Christ.
Another principle for discerning the work of Christ is given to us by Paul in 1 Corinthians 12:3: “No one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says ‘Jesus is accursed!’ and no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit” (ESV). This test is both spiritual and doctrinal — we are commanded to discern the work of the Holy Spirit based on the fact that it results in an affirmation of the lordship of Christ.
This is an exclusivism, but it’s a Christocentric exclusivism. Both a Roman Catholic and a Calvinist could pass the test, but a Buddhist or a Mormon could not, since neither would affirm that Jesus is Lord as Paul understands and teaches in his letters.
What Is Christ’s Church? A Hypothetical Scenario
So consider the following scenario. The gospel comes to a remote village through the advance of the internet. People start reading the Gospel of John online and come to believe in Jesus as the Son of God and Savior of the world. The gospel message about Jesus’s death and resurrection for our forgiveness and reconciliation to God spreads throughout the village. The whole community is baptized and confesses the name of Christ.
In response, the witch doctors lose their power, the sorcerers burn their magic books, and the demons leave the village. The people start devouring the New Testament, and some even begin spreading the gospel message to neighboring villages. Sick people are healed in the name of Christ, and practices like polygamy and slavery gradually cease through the gospel’s influence. The community eventually discovers the Apostles’ Creed and recites it every Sunday during their worship celebration. Their celebration of the Eucharist is marked by tears of joy.
Considering the principles of Matthew 7, 12, Mark 9, and 1 Corinthians 12, are we not to suppose this is Christ advancing his Church? Do they not have a valid Eucharist?
It is true they have no formal, continuous succession of bishops back to apostolic ministry via the laying on of hands. They don’t have “a bishop” at all, in the sense of an office distinct from presbyter. So what? They have Christ. They have the Spirit. They have faith. They have the gospel.
We should tremble to reject them from full membership, full participation, in the true church of Christ! Do we not fear blaspheming the Spirit? Are we not commanded to infer a good tree from the good fruit? Satan doesn’t cast out demons, convict sorcerers, convert idolators to the true God, or glorify the name of Jesus Christ. A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. What is happening in this village must be recognized as the true work of Christ in advancing and building his church.
Recognizing the One True Church
The point of this chapter has been to demonstrate that a Protestant ecclesiology is better equipped to allow for judgments of this kind. Because it does not claim to be the “one true church” but instead positions itself as a renewal movement within her, Protestantism is prepared to discern the true church wherever Christ is present in word and sacrament. Therefore, for Christians seeking to recognize the church in her fullness as we move into the middle of the twenty-first century and beyond, awaiting the return of Christ, Protestantism offers the most promising pathways by which to cultivate and pursue catholicity.
Adapted from What It Means to Be Protestant: The Case for an Always-Reforming Church by Gavin Ortlund.
Christianity Today’s Book of the Year 2024
There’s a movement among evangelicals of exploring the more sacramental, liturgical, and historically-conscious church traditions, including Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. This hunger for historical rootedness is welcome—but unfortunately, many assume that this need can only be met outside of Protestant contexts.
In What it Means to Be Protestant, Gavin Ortlund draws from both his scholarly work in church history and his personal experience in ecumenical engagement to offer a much-needed defense of the Protestant tradition.
Note: What It Means to Be Protestant is published by Zondervan, the parent company of Bible Gateway. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of Bible Gateway, Zondervan, or their affiliates.
Gavin Ortlund (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is president of Truth Unites and theologian-in-residence at Immanuel Nashville in Tennessee. He’s a highly sought-after speaker and apologist, and his books include Anselm’s Pursuit of Joy, Retrieving Augustine’s Doctrine of Creation, Why God Makes Sense in a World That Doesn’t, and Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals. He and his wife, Esther, have five children.
