"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.'” - Matthew 7:21-23 ESV
This is a little scary. How could I be doing good works in the name of Jesus and yet He doesn’t know me?
I think it comes down to the difference between what I do and how I do it. Am I doing things to gain attention for myself or to honor my Lord Jesus? Am I truly following the Lord in how I serve Him, or do I just run with my own idea? Am I submitted to serving Jesus, or am I really serving myself?
Those are humbling questions to ponder, but we need to ponder them frequently. It’s all too easy to start off right but then get off-track if we’re not paying attention. That’s one reason I try to frequently pray Psalm 139:23-24, asking God to help me know my motives.
Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting! - Psalm 139:23-24 ESV
There’s another way that someone could be doing good works in Jesus’ name but not be known by Him. Sadly, there are some people who go regularly to church or have been brought up in Christian homes, but don’t really have faith of their own. They trust in the things they do for salvation rather than trusting Jesus. They might know something about what the Bible says but don’t strive to live according to its teachings.
This is the difference between knowing about Jesus and knowing Him. To be received by Jesus, to enter the kingdom of heaven, we must do the will of the Father. He wants us all to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) This means that we accept that we are all sinners and that we can’t save ourselves, that we believe that Jesus died for our sins and rose to new life, and that we commit our lives to following Him. Then we will do the good works that He has for us to do.
if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. - Romans 10:9 ESV
Think About: Do you know Jesus? Are you known by Jesus?
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