NOT EVERYONE!

NOT EVERYONE!

Matt 7:21-23

21 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.

22 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?

23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

           Jesus uses various illustrations to explain that there are two paths and only two. One leads to destruction and this path is occupied by the many. The other path is strait which is the Greek word stenos meaning narrow and surrounded by obstacles. Since that is so, should we not give serious consideration to the popularity of some modern brands of Christianity? On the other hand, must true Christianity be unpopular and ill attended? The debate continues.

           The fact is that God is the only qualified judge of whether faith is real or insincere. Warren Wiersbe says: “A false profession will last until judgment comes. Sometimes this judgment is in the form of the trials of life. Like the person who received the seed of God's Word into a shallow heart (Matt 13:4-9), the commitment fails when the testing comes. Many people have professed faith in Christ, only to deny their faith when life becomes spiritually costly and difficult.” However, Jesus, in verse 23 is referring to the final and ultimate judgment.

           Jesus shines the light on overt religious activity and shows that it is no real measurement of true faith. Even foretelling the future or claiming to speak with divine inspiration is no guarantee that religious works are genuine. Even the casting out of demons and performing wonderful works is no real proof. Interestingly, the word “works” is the Greek word dunamis which is the same word used in Acts 1:8 when Jesus promised power from the Holy Spirit.

           The wheat and the tares (weeds) will grow together until harvest day when one will be gathered into barns and the other will be burned. Jesus warned against trying to remove the mote (a piece of straw) from my neighbor’s eye while there is a beam (log) in my own. Diligence must be applied to make sure our faith is genuine (2 Peter 1:10).

Dear Lord, let me be sure of my calling and display truth in my dealings. AMEN