What does Tribe teach about false prophets?
Drawn from the messages where it was actually addressed: the words said from the front, the passages taught, and where to hear the whole thing.
At Tribe, the teaching on false prophets starts with Deuteronomy 13, which Brian has walked the congregation through in more than one message. The passage sets up a scenario that feels counterintuitive: a prophet's predicted signs actually come true, and yet the prophet is still leading people away from God. Brian read that in two stages on purpose, first letting the room feel how compelling a genuine sign would be, then revealing what the text actually says, that God can allow a real sign to occur through a false voice specifically to test whether his people love him more than they love the miracle. The assignment, Brian said, is discernment, and it requires knowing the word, staying in relationship with God, and checking the fruit of anyone asking for your trust.
Brian connected Deuteronomy 13 to Matthew 24, where Jesus warns that false prophets will multiply in the generation of his return. His point was that a counterfeit only circulates because the genuine article exists. The proliferation of false prophets is not a reason to distrust the prophetic altogether but a signal that the real, authentic prophetic voice will also be rising in that same generation. When a congregation member brought up 1 John 4 and its instruction to test the spirits, Brian said it fit exactly with what Deuteronomy 13 was already teaching. The practical test 1 John offers is straightforward: any spirit that acknowledges Jesus Christ come in the flesh is from God.
All of this connects, in Brian's teaching, to the broader danger of walking by the flesh rather than the spirit. The Pharisees are his example of what happens when a religious structure gets built on level ground, defending the flesh under the cover of scripture. Walking in the spirit is what makes genuine discernment possible in the first place, because you cannot reliably identify a false voice if you are not already attuned to the real one.
Taught from Deuteronomy 13:1-5 · Matthew 24:11-13 · 1 John 4:1-3 · 2 Timothy 4:3-4 · Luke 6:47-49
“You can't trust your flesh.”
From Why It's Important to Walk in the Spirit
The passage taught · 1 Corinthians 13
1 If I speak with the languages of men and of angels, but don’t have love, I have become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal.
2 If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but don’t have love, I am nothing.
3 If I give away all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but don’t have love, it profits me nothing.
4 Love is patient and is kind; love doesn’t envy. Love doesn’t brag, is not proud,
World English Bible
The messages that teach on it
- May 20, 2024 Why It's Important to Walk in the Spirit Brian Hunter walks through why walking in the Spirit matters more than religious effort, using Scripture, honest conversation, and a mountain bike analogy to make the case.
- May 19, 2024 Why is it Important to Walk in the Spirit? Brian Hunter walks through why walking in the spirit matters more than religious effort, using Scripture, cycling analogies, and honest conversation with his congregation.
Mentioned along the way
- May 10, 2026 "Here I Am" A preteen boy, a sleeping prophet, and a God who kept calling. This Mother's Day sermon from 1 Samuel 3 explores what it means to say "Here I am, Lord, your servant is listening."
- July 29, 2024 The Return of Jesus Brian Hunter walks through Matthew 24, mapping Jesus's own words about birth pains, tribulation, and his return, and why understanding these things builds confidence rather than fear.
- December 11, 2023 The Power of Persistence in Prayer Brian Hunter walks through Isaiah 62 and Luke 11 and 18 on persistent prayer, holding God to his word, and praying with shameless audacity until he answers.