A Biblical Guide to Knowing Who to Trust
“There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.” – Luke 12:2
“By their fruit you will recognize them.” – Matthew 7:20
We live in an age of carefully curated images. People present their best selves on social media, in job interviews, on first dates, and yes, even in church. But Scripture cuts through the performance with a bracing and liberating truth: what is hidden will come to light, and what is real will bear good fruit. Time is the great revealer.
Jesus, in Matthew 7:15-20, uses a masterfully simple metaphor. You don’t walk up to a tree and demand that it prove itself to you in an afternoon. A seed goes into the ground. Seasons pass. A sapling rises. Years unfold. Blossoms appear – and then the fruit comes. Only then do you truly know what you are dealing with. The patience required is not a flaw in the process. It is the process.
With that in mind, here are three critical arenas of life where we must be patient, prayerful, and meticulous fruit inspectors.
1. Before Entering a Business Partnership or Deep Financial Trust
This arena may seem less spiritually charged than others, but it runs neck-and-neck with them in real-world consequences. Shattered business partnerships and financial betrayals have destroyed families, decimated life savings, split churches, and left lasting wounds on communities. And in almost every case, someone trusted too quickly.
A person’s true character around money is among the last things to reveal itself in a relationship because people know how much is at stake, and they manage initial impressions carefully. Generosity, integrity, honesty about past financial failures, how they handle debt and obligation – these things take sustained time and real circumstances to surface.
The book of Proverbs is filled with counsel about the slow, careful nature of wise trust. Before you sign your name alongside someone else’s on a business venture, an investment, a loan, or a shared financial future, be a fruit inspector. Talk to people who have done business with them before. Watch how they handle small amounts before entrusting them with large ones. Let time do its sacred work.
Luke 12:2 is not a threat; it is a promise. What is hidden will come out. In a wise financial partnership, with proper time and due diligence, it comes out before you sign. In a rushed or emotionally driven one – driven perhaps by excitement, greed, or flattery – it comes out after, and often at great cost.
2. Before Marriage
Marriage is a covenant designed to last a lifetime, yet many people spend more time researching a car purchase than they do prayerfully and soberly evaluating a potential spouse. The early season of a relationship is, by its very nature, the blossom stage – everything is fragrant, colorful, and appealing. But blossoms are not fruit.
Fruit takes time. How does this person behave when things go wrong? How do they treat people who can do nothing for them – a waiter, a stranger, an elderly neighbor? What is their relationship with money, with anger, with honesty, when the pressure is on? What do the people who have known them the longest – their family, their oldest friends – say about who they truly are?
Luke 12:2 is a promise here as well. What is hidden will come out. In a healthy courtship, with proper time and accountability, it comes out before the altar. In a rushed or emotionally driven one, it comes out after. The wise fruit inspector does not let the beauty of the blossom rush them past the patient waiting that wisdom requires.
3. Before Trusting Spiritual Teaching
Jesus issued His warning about false prophets in Matthew 7 for a reason, and that reason has never been more urgent. We are living in a moment when teachers, preachers, and self-appointed prophets are more accessible than at any point in human history. A single person with a microphone, a camera, and a charismatic personality can reach millions before a single piece of fruit has had time to develop.
The question is never simply, “Does this person speak well?” or even “Does what they say sound biblical?” The more relevant question is: what does their life produce?
Do their teachings produce humble, Scripture-grounded, repentant followers – or proud, selfish, and unquestioning (even gullible) ones? Does their personal life reflect the biblical model taught in the books of Timothy and Titus? Do they welcome accountability, or bristle at it? What has their ministry looked like over the long arc of years, not just the highlighted reel of recent months?
Scripture is explicit that spiritual deception will not decrease as history moves toward its climax – it will intensify. Jesus warned in Matthew 24 that false christs and false prophets would arise and “show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.” Paul told Timothy that “in the last times, some will depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons” (1 Timothy 4:1). Those of us who believe we are living in the days directly preceding the Rapture and the events of Revelation are not being dramatic when we say the stakes could not be higher. We are living in Bible times — and the deception is accelerating.
This means that fruit inspection in the spiritual arena is not optional for the serious believer. It is an act of faithfulness. The false teacher who has carefully constructed a flawless image is not beyond the reach of God’s revealing light – Luke 12:2 guarantees that. But our job is to be discerning enough to seek out the fruit and trust what it tells us. Watch the life. Give it time. And pray for eyes to see clearly in an age that is working very hard to blur your vision.
The Patience of a Fruit Inspector
None of this is cynicism. Fruit inspectors are not suspicious persons who trust no one. They are wise people who understand that genuine goodness – real character, real faith, real integrity – does not wither under scrutiny. In fact, it welcomes scrutiny. Individuals of authentic character are not threatened by your careful observation. They will still be standing, still bearing sweet fruit, when the seasons have done their work.
We are living in days that demand both urgency and discernment, a combination that does not come naturally but is absolutely available to those who ask for it (James 1:5). So, in every important relationship, pay close attention. Let time pass. Watch what grows.
The fruit always finds its way to the light. And so does the truth.
***
Click to purchase audiobook
Here are links to my blog indexes, so please click one and keep reading!
My Books, Workbooks, and Fun Books
Knowing the Unknowable One
Opening the Treasure Chest
Walking Heart-to-Heart with God
Walking Heart-to-Heart with Each Other
Fighting the Good Fight of Faith
Christian Mysteries: Why I Love Them!
List of Some Nonfiction Books You Don’t Want to Miss
Index of Assorted Topics