Matthew 7:21-23 KJV
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Luke 6:46-49 KJV
And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.
This is one of the hardest teachings Jesus ever shared. The reason is that this does not hit the atheists and the “evil” people of the world; however this hits the believers in God. This very teaching highlights the fact that you can believe and act on behalf of God and still be separated from God. This is the part that nobody talks about.
Jesus was speaking to all, but was really calling out the Pharisees. These were the religious giants of the day. They knew their law. They did things of God and in God’s name…yet God was not pleased with them. He even said that they would die in their sins.
Now grant it, they refused to believe that Jesus was the Christ which possesses one lesson on its own. Jesus was very clear that He is THE WAY AND THE TRUTH. He is the door. This too is a hard teaching because there are plenty of spiritual and God fearing people… But will God be pleased with them in the end?
But Jesus was also referring to anyone who does things in God’s name. Anyone who says “Lord Lord”.
So who are we talking about? And what are they doing wrong?
Jesus said that the ones who will enter heaven are the ones who do His Father’s will. This conversely means that those that do not do His will cannot enter in. He further refers to them as workers of iniquity. In the other passage, Jesus clarifies by saying they do not do the things that He says. Disobedience. They hear the commands but do not do them. Yet they call out “Lord Lord”. He goes on to liken them to a house on a shaky foundation.
These are people that are claiming to be godly. These are people that DO godly things. Yet there is something that God has commanded that they have yet to obey. Perhaps they never obeyed the gospel the way He commanded it. Perhaps they don’t worship the way God commands. Perhaps they are hypocrites. Perhaps they preach in error. James writes he that stumbles in one area is guilty in the whole law. Wow.
The remedy is to examine God’s law against the life we lead, the doctrine we follow, the place we worship, the things we practice…etc.
The other remedy is to truly produce fruit for the kingdom. As Jesus says, you will know them by their fruit.
The one thing we do not want to hear is “I never knew you”. This suggests you were never His. Consider a runner jumping into an ongoing race from the audience, passing up everybody and crossing the finish line first. However, he gets nothing because he never officially entered the race.
Enter the race by God’s regulations. Peter gave those instructions in Acts 2 at Pentecost. Stay in the race so as to not be disqualified.
Let us believers have this conversation. Let’s discuss the fact that belief alone does not save. For even the demons believe and tremble. Let us exhort and admonish…because we, like God, are not willing that any should perish.
Blessings in your Christian walk.
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