“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” (Matthew 7:21-23 KJV).
Some people are so gullible and captivated with the sensational rather than the spiritual, many are deceived by imitation rather than the real thing. By imitation rather than the real thing I mean the facade or deception of the miraculous in verse 22. With the advent of television and technological trickery, miracles are easy to fake, additionally, today they are a poor test standard of God’s approval. Countless others have fallen for these frauds parading around as God’s men and women and unfortunately, they are deluded and deceived because they substitute obedience and faith in God with being dazzled, amazed, and wowed by pretenders of God’s kingdom.
In life, you will cross paths with those who appear to have everything going for themselves. They will appear to be able to do no wrong, everything they touch will seem to turn into gold, truly they must have the Midas touch you may say.
When you’re on the outside looking into someone else’s life, they may look nothing short of perfect, and the privileges and pleasures of the world seem to fall into their laps. You may deduce that they are truly enjoying the good life and living one close to perfection too. May I suggest that simply because someone appears to say and do all of the right things from our perspective, it doesn’t necessarily mean their life, or their heart is in the right place according to God’s will.
The Lord Jesus explained this truth to His 12 core disciples saying, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and, in your name, perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” (Matthew 7:21-23).
Jesus is revealing to all that there is an appointed time when all the nations of the earth will one day come to the judgment throne of God in heaven and as they are giving an account for the life lived on earth, they will affirm to Jesus all of their righteous deeds and wonderful, miraculous works. But many of these people will never have had a born again and a personal relationship with Jesus. They will have never actually been transformed by His mercy and grace, and they will have not accepted his free gift of salvation and the forgiveness of their sins committed on earth. Thus, Jesus will say to them, “…I never knew you.”
You do not become a follower of Jesus simply because you like his teaching and believe they are good principles to live by. You are not saved by Jesus just because you have done countless good works. Nothing you do on your own places you in a personal relationship with Christ and fellowship with God. It doesn’t matter how many hundreds of church services you attended, hours spent on your knees in prayer or Bible study, or good neighborly kinds of work done for others can save you from the consequences of your sin.
Friend, you must understand your need for Jesus as your Savior and allow Him to transform your mind, soul, and your heart. When your heart changes and you begin to seek after Jesus you will find him. If you knock, he will open up and fellowship with you. He loves you so much that He gave his life on the cross so that you might have the hope of eternal life forever. He is also the author of eternal life and in his is life. But that change of heart must come first.
You must desire that God’s will be done first in your life and seek to do it above all other interests. If you do this, you will find that you will have a balance in your life that you otherwise did not have. Why? Because when you live a God-centered life, it brings balance in your life sensually, spiritually, socially and financially. How can that be? Jesus said, “Therefore take no thought, saying, what shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:31-33).