Subscription Lists
Thoughts of a saint and slave
by Sam Isaacson
In my quiet time the other day I read what is possibly the most challenging part of Scripture I have ever read, because it made me question whether I will be one who says 'Lord' but gets disowned because of my disobedience.
Matthew 7:21-23 [Jesus said:] 'Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?" And then will I declare to them, "I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness."' (ESV)
I know many people who have prophesied, prayed for healing and seen it, performed mighty works and miracles (alternate translations to Greek word dunamis in verse 22, can also mean excellence of character) and done it all in the name of Jesus. A high-level reading of this verse, however, would make one question whether that is a true sign that they are in a relationship with Christ, and I myself have often relied on seeing, for example, a healing as a sign that the person praying for healing is a 'true Christian'.
Now above all, we must not use this verse as an excuse to worry - Philippians 4:6 says not to be anxious about anything so clearly that would be a sinful response. However, in all spiritual maturity and earnest seeking of the truth we must certainly not disregard this passage, but rather respond by digging into what Jesus is saying. Personally I feel these verses make one ask three questions:
Who can prophesy and so on in the name of Jesus? I think it is clear from a variety of places in the New Testament that prophecy is a gift of the Spirit and therefore one would simply have to be a Christian in order to have the gift of prophecy and therefore be able to prophesy. However, it is apparent from the Matthew 7 passage that some will come on the final day, claiming to have prophesied in Jesus' name without actually being a Christian. How is this? Firstly, God is far bigger than we ever give Him credit for, and therefore can use unbelievers to bring others closer to Jesus, whether they realise it or not. Secondly, who is to say that those who make these claims to Jesus are actually telling the truth? As humans we have the ability to lie, even before God; of course, He will never be tricked by us! So those Jesus is talking about here must be liars. Now whether they are intentionally lying or if they genuinely think they are prophesying and so on remains to be seen but the challenge remains. It is a fact that potentially we may pray in Jesus' name to see healing and then see it, but is that in itself a guarantee that we are in a relationship with Christ? The answer, from this text, must be 'no'.
Is Jesus preaching salvation through grace or works here? One of the first things I noticed when I read this is that Jesus effectively says if you call on the name of the Lord you may not be saved, which is in direct contrast to Acts 2:21. In addition, Jesus says that those who will enter the kingdom of heaven are the ones who do the will of the Father, again possibly in contrast with Ephesians 2:8-9. So is Jesus saying that we get into the kingdom of heaven through works and not grace? Absolutely not! Jesus opens this passage by clarifying and expanding on Acts 2:21, i.e. saying, 'Everyone who calls on the name will be saved? In theory yes, but we know there are many who will just call on the name of the Lord even though they do not believe it. Rather, it would be better if everyone lived in the will of God, which is that they be saved by His grace poured out by the ransom for many, Jesus Christ' (see 1 Timothy 2:4-5). Jesus then further clarifies himself by using an example that someone may come up and claim, 'I should be in heaven - just look at this list of things I did'. This person has, of course, entirely missed the point. We cannot be saved by what we do, even if what we do is absolutely incredible! We will always fall short (Romans 3:23) but through the person and work of Jesus Christ alone we can be saved!
How must we respond? Our response therefore must be twofold. Firstly we must realise in absolute humility that there is nothing we can ever do ourselves to earn our salvation. Jesus Christ died for us, and the moment we begin to rely on what we are doing instead of what he has done we step away from the life Jesus offers. Secondly we must receive this passage as a challenge, and respond accordingly. Only those who do the will of the Father will be in heaven, and so we should learn to hear and understand the will of God in our lives through reading God's Word and listening to His Spirit, fleeing from temptation to enable God to keep us pure, and pray and actively seek to see God's will done in our daily lives, and the lives of those around us.
Rate it:
Receive the newest devotional each week in your inbox by joining the "Thoughts of a saint and slave" subscription list. Enter your email address below, click "Go!" and we will send you a confirmation email. Follow the instructions in the email to confirm your addition to this list.