“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)
There will be more people that go to hell than people think. Many people think that they can just pray a prayer, and then they are saved no matter what happens in this life. However, at the same time, many of these people deny the existence of hell and the lake of fire. The truth of the matter is that Hell is real and so is the Lake of Fire. The wicked will go to both places, although many people speak against these true beliefs. Jesus is the answer, but they don’t allow Him to know them, so they end up here. The sad part about all this is that many professing Christians die and go to hell, for their daily lives were never really for Jesus. This includes people with church callings, pastors, and more. These are those who go to church each week, act very religious during service, sing with arms stretched wide, and more while at church. Why is this? It is because they live like hell outside of church and God doesn’t really matter to them. These people have secret sins, but God can see them all.
Every false convert gives only a few hours a week to Jesus and His kingdom. Instead, they live week after week for the flesh. Their daily life is not conformed to God, for they continue to live how they always did. Do people not realize that a friend of the world is an enemy to God? Therefore, we are to live a life for Jesus and not the lusts of the flesh. God changes His people from within. And if Jesus cleanses them through His blood, their daily lives are also conformed to His, for they are different. Instead of gravitating to TV, they go to God in prayer and read the Bible. Instead of playing video games, they look for things to do in God’s kingdom like street evangelism, and more. Instead of turning on worldly music, they turn on Christian music, including instrumental, classical, and more. Instead of turning to alcohol, they allow the Holy Spirit to speak to them with a clear mind. Even their language is different, as no more do they use foul language, but watch their tongue as they speak.
God’s people were once sexually immoral, some having looked at pornography, but God took away these sinful desires. But it doesn’t end here. A life with Christ is when people’s desires are His desires also. So when we see a homeless person or anyone in need, we stop to help them. Our new desires are less about us and all about others. We put God first and this is seen in our everyday life. People who are saved have fruits of their salvation. And the best part about this is that they don’t have to plead their cause in the next life, for Jesus already knows them. On the other hand, Jesus will say, “I never knew you, depart from me, ye that work iniquity” to those who are willful sinners. So choose Jesus and you will not perish. But this is a lifelong journey. Those who are saved will not go off the path to not return. Instead, their light may be dim for a while at times, but in the end, they will keep letting Jesus light them up. The Lord God is our source of light and knowledge. Please think about this. Amen.
By closely examining this verse, notice what the people said. They listed their works. That could be they to this verse. We are saved by faith. Our works do not add anything to our salvation.