Devastating, horrifying … hearing Jesus say: “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” (Mt 7:23) Deceived about God and how to relate with Him, expecting Jesus to receive them with open arms, so many will hear these words in abject terror. (Mt 7:22) How do souls meet so dreadful an end, believing themselves servants of Christ while grieving Him and trampling His ways underfoot?
Whenever we hear God’s Word and don’t do it, we deceive ourselves. (Ja 1:22) Knowing about God doesn’t make us good; disobeying Him enables the enemy to blind us.
Why bother hearing God’s Word, studying Scripture and teaching it to others, if we ourselves are hating His instruction and casting His words behind us? (Ps 50:16-17) Willfully disobeying God reveals an enmity against Him. (Ro 8:7) We end up pursuing God’s blessings rather than God Himself; rather than seeking a deep relationship with Him, we simply use Him to further our own interests, trying to make ourselves look good on the outside while ignoring our hearts.
Having a religious exterior means nothing to God. Not loving truth (2Th 2:10) is rejecting light. (Jn 3:19) YHWH will cast all who don’t know and obey Him, both profane and religious, into a fiery furnace (Mt 13:49-50) to be trodden down, to inherit indignation (Ps 69:24), eternal shame and everlasting contempt. (Da 12:2)
Eternity is infinite in multiple dimensions: fullness, intensity and duration. Let’s give diligence to make our calling and election sure. (2Pe 1:10) No one can afford to miss this. (Lk 9:25)
Though many affirm us in our own way, there’s no safety outside God Himself, no rest apart from knowing Him and being known by Him. (2Ti 2:19) Believing what we want, picking and choosing Bible verses here and there to succor our lies, ignoring those which counter us, is merely to deceive ourselves. In the end, there can be no excuse (Ro 1:20); His Word, taken as a whole, is simply too clear.
Why do we fashion a god like ourselves? Because we aren’t content to know God as He is; wanting Him to be different. Rather than conforming ourselves to be like Him, we pretend He’s like us. This is a type of idolatry.
What are some ways we do this? Presuming His blessings imply His approval, since we don’t bless our enemies. Thinking His wrath isn’t an expression of His love, because our wrath isn’t. Wanting Him to execute justice according to our timing, not His own, and according to our measure instead of His.
Those described in this text express a desire for recognition from God, expecting Him to accept them based on their merit, rather than a desire to know God and have intimate relationship with Him; He wants THEM, not their service.
Their appeal reveals their continued disinterest in having and knowing God Himself. Confronted with eternal damnation, they’re still trying to use Him to further their own interests.
May Abba give us eyes to see and ears to hear what His Spirit would have us do, think and say; that we may never have to hear those words, “Depart from Me”. Rather, may we set our hearts on Him that we may hear ” Well done”! And, that we may have “right to eat from the tree of life”!
If we have any concern that Yeshua will ever say to us, “I never you,” this implies we’re unsure that He knows us now, and we should never be content to remain one more minute in such a dreadful state. No one who knows that they already have eternal life (1Jn 5:13) should ever have this concern.
Focusing on obeying God more faithfully in order to ensure that we never hear these dreadful words is to miss the whole point. It’s like trying harder to be someone’s child. If we base our assurance of salvation in any manner upon our obedience or our works, then we are not fully grasping what He’s done for us or how to be in relationship with Him, nor how terribly depraved we are, even on our best day; we should never think to posture ourselves with confidence that He will accept us on our merits, the filthy rags of our own righteousness. Our hope may only be found in knowing that we’re begotten by Him, that we belong to Him, which is evidenced by His ongoing transformation of our souls into His likeness. We’re to labor to enter into His rest, assured of everlasting, eternal life because of what He’s already done in dying for us and washing us from our sins with His own blood. (“And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood.” Re 1:5) We should not be striving to work harder for Him, but to abide in Him.
If one need not be concerned about obedience, then what does Paul mean in 1 Corinthians 9: 24-27 when he knew to behave, or be a castaway? And Revelation 14: 13 says that “their works do follow them”. Maybe I misunderstood the point that you are making, but in the grand plan of things, obedience is a requirement after repentance and immersion.
See also, Matthew 16: 27 and James 2. A search of the word “works” in the New Testament is very helpful. Faith and works are inseparable.
Abba gives His Spirit to those who obey Him and obedience is a good thing because He says so. It is better to obey than to do sacrifice. But, how do we obey? We must obey His Word AND obey His voice. With that said, the Scripture commanding us to abide in Jesus is also very good, but is not contrary to obedience. We must do both. I believe that we can have difficulty when we strive only for outward obedience to Abba’s commands without a contrite heart. But, “If you love Me, keep my commands.” Perhaps, keeping the commandments with an upright and joyful heart can lead to an “abiding” relationship. I believe that is Abba’s desire. How do you see it, my Brother?
I am in complete agreement that faith and works are inseparable. But this is not the point.
My question to you is this: Do you now have, as a present possession, an eternal, everlasting life? Do you know that 10,000 years from now that you will be safe with Messiah in Heaven? Are you as safe from the wrath of God as Yeshua is? Is your righteousness a perfect, flawless righteousness, one that has been imputed to you for Yeshua’s sake, one that is not in any way based upon your own performance? Have you entered into His rest, and ceased from your own works, as YHWH did from His? (He 4:10)
If the answer to any of these questions is “No,” then I urge you to give no rest to your soul until you can answer them all “Yes” with absolute certainty. Anything less is madness, in my opinion; we cannot live thoughtful, honest and joyful lives when we are in any doubt about our eternal welfare.
This does not mean that works are unimportant; what it does means is that they are not the basis of our acceptance with YHWH; assurance of eternal life does not depend upon them. Good works are a by-product, an inevitable consequence of having a saving relationship with YHWH (we are His workmanship, Ep 2:10), yet they are not the foundation of this relationship. They are evidence of our faith, not what we depend on to ensure our acceptance in Him.
Children look and act like their parents, but this does not ensure that they are legitimate children — the fact that they actually have been begotten by their parents results in their appearance and behavior. Trying to be good to ensure that we belong to YHWH is like a boy trying to be good enough to ensure he is a child of his father. Either we are His children or we are not; if we are, then we will act like it, but trying to act like children doesn’t make us so.
Thoughts?