Lord, Lord, Didn't We. . .

[jimmyjimmy]

There are many who will come to Christ on the last day and present their track record. They will plead their case by offering up all that they have done as a reason why they deserve Heaven; however, the entire point of Matthew 7:21-23 is that we can't rely on what we have done, but only on what Christ has done. Christ is not saying that we need to do more. He's saying that we need to do less!

“The main thing between you and God is not so much your sins; it's your damnable good works.” - John H. Gerstner

 

[EmSw]

There are many who will come to Christ on the last day and present their track record. They will plead their case by offering up all that they have done as a reason why they deserve Heaven; however, the entire point of Matthew 7:21-23 is that we can't rely on what we have done, but only on what Christ has done. Christ is not saying that we need to do more. He's saying that we need to do less!

“The main thing between you and God is not so much your sins; it's your damnable good works.” - John H. Gerstner

It wasn't their works of good which condemned them. It was their works of lawlessness! Any good a man does, will not profit him at all, if he continues in works of evil.

Matthew 7
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

 

[sdowney717]

Just goes to show that, those who love and practice sinning, don't know Jesus and He does not know them either. Those works they did were evil and or wretched rags not done in God.

John 3
18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

v21, why?, because God was at work in them, so they came to the light. God does never come second place, God is always in first place.

 

[jimmyjimmy]

Just goes to show that, those who love and practice sinning, don't know Jesus and He does not know them either. Those works they did were evil and or wretched rags not done in God.

John 3
18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

v21, why?, because God was at work in them, so they came to the light. God does never come second place, God is always in first place.

Self-salvation is the greatest sin of all.

 

[Soyeong]

There are many who will come to Christ on the last day and present their track record. They will plead their case by offering up all that they have done as a reason why they deserve Heaven; however, the entire point of Matthew 7:21-23 is that we can't rely on what we have done, but only on what Christ has done. Christ is not saying that we need to do more. He's saying that we need to do less!

“The main thing between you and God is not so much your sins; it's your damnable good works.” - John H. Gerstner

1 John 3:6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.

He was telling them to depart because of what they had done, which showed that they hadn't seen or known him. The law was never for the purpose of providing a means for us to save ourselves through our own efforts, but rather it is instructions for how to live by faith. We are new creations in Christ for the purpose of doing good works by grace through faith, not for the purpose of avoiding good works.

 

[jimmyjimmy]

showed that they hadn't seen or known him

Is that really what He said?

 

[Mister_Al]

Matthew 7:21-23 Amplified Bible (AMP)
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me on that day [when I judge them], ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and driven out demons in Your name, and done many miracles in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them publicly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me [you are banished from My presence], you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands].’

Judging from this scripture, these people were probably professing to be 'Christians' for quite some time, and were more than likely ministers of some kind in order to profess doing all of these mighty works. But, if you look at what Jesus says to them you'll notice that He says that He NEVER knew them. That means that these people were NEVER saved in the first place otherwise Jesus would have known them at the point of their salvation. But, for Jesus to say that He never knew them (and there were many) then they hadn't done what they needed to do to be saved and, therefore, hadn't done the will of the Father regarding salvation.

Blessings,

Alan

 

[Soyeong]

Is that really what He said?

He said that he never knew them, which is a similar thing to what is being said in 1 John 3:6. The obedience of faith is an important part in growing in a relationship with God.

 

[EmSw]

Self-salvation is the greatest sin of all.

Where do you find that in the Bible?

 

[EmSw]

Matthew 7:21-23 Amplified Bible (AMP)
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me on that day [when I judge them], ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and driven out demons in Your name, and done many miracles in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them publicly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me [you are banished from My presence], you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands].’

Judging from this scripture, these people were probably professing to be 'Christians' for quite some time, and were more than likely ministers of some kind in order to profess doing all of these mighty works. But, if you look at what Jesus says to them you'll notice that He says that He NEVER knew them. That means that these people were NEVER saved in the first place otherwise Jesus would have known them at the point of their salvation. But, for Jesus to say that He never knew them (and there were many) then they hadn't done what they needed to do to be saved and, therefore, hadn't done the will of the Father regarding salvation.

Blessings,

Alan

1 Corinthians 12:3
Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.

 

[Job8]

Judging from this scripture, these people were probably professing to be 'Christians' for quite some time, and were more than likely ministers of some kind in order to profess doing all of these mighty works. But, if you look at what Jesus says to them you'll notice that He says that He NEVER knew them. That means that these people were NEVER saved in the first place otherwise Jesus would have known them at the point of their salvation.

There are several lessons in this Scripture for both "professors" and "possessors":

1. There are a multitude of people in the world who believe they are Christians, but have never been born again, hence have no personal relationship with Christ, so that He "knows them" because He indwells them. Those who trust in church membership, sacraments, baptism, or even a "profession" of faith, but do not have an experiential knowledge of Christ will be shocked on the day of Judgment.

2. There are many who receive Christ as Savior but do not make Him Lord of their lives. They too will be shocked, since to receive Christ is to receive Him as both Lord and Savior.

3. There are many who supposedly prophesy, do miracles, even cast out demons yet are not genuine children of God. They do these works in the name of Christ, but He is not really within them, and their motive might be something other than pure service to Christ. They too will be shocked.

So this is a warning to all professing Christians. The church at Laodicea was a "professing" church, but they were warned that they would be "spewed" out of the mouth of Christ. Why? Because essentially they were unsaved, and the proof is in how they are described: WRETCHED (without hope), MISERABLE (without forgiveness), POOR (without the riches of Christ), BLIND (without the Holy Spirit), AND NAKED (without the robe of Christ's righteousness). That is precisely why the Lord says that he stands outside the door of this church and knocks (hence the door of every heart within that church) and asks to be invited in. We have vast multitudes in professing Christendom who need to take this Scripture to heart.

 

[Jesus First]

Matthew 7:21-23 Amplified Bible (AMP)
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me on that day [when I judge them], ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and driven out demons in Your name, and done many miracles in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them publicly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me [you are banished from My presence], you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands].’

Judging from this scripture, these people were probably professing to be 'Christians' for quite some time, and were more than likely ministers of some kind in order to profess doing all of these mighty works. But, if you look at what Jesus says to them you'll notice that He says that He NEVER knew them. That means that these people were NEVER saved in the first place otherwise Jesus would have known them at the point of their salvation. But, for Jesus to say that He never knew them (and there were many) then they hadn't done what they needed to do to be saved and, therefore, hadn't done the will of the Father regarding salvation.

Blessings,

Alan

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Here is some clarification on this passage. I used to twist it unknowingly. First the passage:

"Not everyone [doesn't say all] 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. 22 On that day many [does not say all] 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?’ 23 And then will I declare to them [the many of verse 22], ‘I never knew you [the many]; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’" Matthew 7:21-23 (ESV)

I was wrongly taught that this passage taught eternal security because Jesus never knew these people. It wasn't until I started studying this doctrine in neutral that God revealed to me that it says "many" not "all".

Keep the faith in Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 4:7).

In Christ!

 

[jimmyjimmy]

Imagine what the original hearers would have thought about what Jesus said in Matthew 7. They would have been shocked, I would imagine, because these people who are told to depart had done all of this!: ‘prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’. I doubt that anyone here could claim to have done half of these things. In other words, Jesus is saying to the original hearers, and us, that the works of the best of best do nothing to gain the Kingdom of Heaven, which is a common theme for Jesus. He said as much many times over.

I see John 6:28-29 as a good cross-reference to Matthew 7:21-23. "Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” (John 6:28-29 ESV)

And, John 13 comes to mind, as well: “No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.” “Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”

At the end of the day, the people who are told to depart were obviously relying on their works, which were quite amazing; however, they, like Cain, had brought God the wrong offering. The only offering acceptable to the Father is that of the Son. These "workers of iniquity" were never washed in the blood of the Lamb, as they had no need. Their works would save them, so they thought.

 

[Jesus First]

There are several lessons in this Scripture for both "professors" and "possessors":

1. There are a multitude of people in the world who believe they are Christians, but have never been born again, hence have no personal relationship with Christ, so that He "knows them" because He indwells them. Those who trust in church membership, sacraments, baptism, or even a "profession" of faith, but do not have an experiential knowledge of Christ will be shocked on the day of Judgment.

2. There are many who receive Christ as Savior but do not make Him Lord of their lives. They too will be shocked, since to receive Christ is to receive Him as both Lord and Savior.

3. There are many who supposedly prophesy, do miracles, even cast out demons yet are not genuine children of God. They do these works in the name of Christ, but He is not really within them, and their motive might be something other than pure service to Christ. They too will be shocked.

So this is a warning to all professing Christians. The church at Laodicea was a "professing" church, but they were warned that they would be "spewed" out of the mouth of Christ. Why? Because essentially they were unsaved, and the proof is in how they are described: WRETCHED (without hope), MISERABLE (without forgiveness), POOR (without the riches of Christ), BLIND (without the Holy Spirit), AND NAKED (without the robe of Christ's righteousness). That is precisely why the Lord says that he stands outside the door of this church and knocks (hence the door of every heart within that church) and asks to be invited in. We have vast multitudes in professing Christendom who need to take this Scripture to heart.

Dear brother Job8,

I respectfully and lovingly offer a different interpretation of the church at Laodicea. You seem to think they all (or in part) were unsaved. I respectfully believe the church of Laodicea were saved because of the following reasons:

1). Jesus is speaking in Revelation 3 to this church. Being God He obviously knows who are saved. Verse 14 states, "And to the angel of the church [body of Christ]'in Laodicea write". The church is the body of Christ. Therefore, being God, He knows who His own are. There may have been people in the congregation who were unsaved, but they would be excluded from the believers addresses as the "church".

2). Jesus id's their problem and it doesn't appear to salvation. It states, "15 ‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth" (vs. 15-16). These believers has gotten lazy and were hardly in fellowship. In verse 17 it describes how they were materially wealthy and spiritually poor.

How about verse 20? "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me". Based on my understanding, Jesus desires to be back in fellowship with them. They appear to have lost sight of the necessity of remaining in communion with their Savior. In verse 21, He warns them that they must persevere in faith ("conquer" as He did).

In Christ!

 

[Soyeong]

Imagine what the original hearers would have thought about what Jesus said in Matthew 7. They would have been shocked, I would imagine, because these people who are told to depart had done all of this!: ‘prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’. I doubt that anyone here could claim to have done half of these things. In other words, Jesus is saying to the original hearers, and us, that the works of the best of best do nothing to gain the Kingdom of Heaven, which is a common theme for Jesus. He said as much many times over.

I see John 6:28-29 as a good cross-reference to Matthew 7:21-23. "Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” (John 6:28-29 ESV)

And, John 13 comes to mind, as well: “No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.” “Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”

At the end of the day, the people who are told to depart were obviously relying on their works, which were quite amazing; however, they, like Cain, had brought God the wrong offering. The only offering acceptable to the Father is that of the Son. These "workers of iniquity" were never washed in the blood of the Lamb, as they had no need. Their works would save them, so they thought.

Good works do not gain entrance into heaven, but that was never the reason that God instructed them in the first place.

 

[Mister_Al]

You will notice that the scriptures say that these people only claimed to have done these works and not that Jesus ever verified their claims. Therefore, we cannot assume that their claims are valid. Hence, we can't knowingly say that they even had any good works to their credit.

Alan

 

[EmSw]

Good works do not gain entrance into heaven, but that was never the reason that God instructed them in the first place.

So, you are saying those who do evil works will gain entrance to heaven? Those who do evil works will come forth to the resurrection of damnation. How is it you say they can gain entrance to heaven? Only those who do good works come forth to the resurrection of life. Do you think the resurrection of life will get you into heaven?

 

[Soyeong]

So, you are saying those who do evil works will gain entrance to heaven? Those who do evil works will come forth to the resurrection of damnation. How is it you say they can gain entrance to heaven? Only those who do good works come forth to the resurrection of life. Do you think the resurrection of life will get you into heaven?

Why would you even think I was saying that? It is by grace through faith that we are saved and by grace through faith that we do good works. Our salvation is from sin, so our salvation is from doing evil works for the purpose of doing good works.

 

[Winken]

In context, the folks in Matthew 7 are presenting their works to Jesus at the GWT. HIS response is that, because they failed to confess Jesus as Savior (Romans 10:8-13), He never knew them.

 

[Winken]

In context, the folks in Matthew 7 are presenting their works to Jesus at the GWT. HIS response is that, because they failed to confess Jesus as Savior (Romans 10:8-13), He never knew them.

[EDITED]
Another context, worthy of discussion, is that since the audience Jesus spoke to was Jewish, and the Kingdom of Heaven cited was yet future, after the Great Tribulation, that Kingdom would be on earth, with Peter holding the key(s). Those Jews who failed to recognize Jesus as the Promised Messiah, prior to the crucifixion, would fail the "interview" at the GWT. Therefore, no entry.