Interesting topic truth...
First, ask anyone from any belief group whether or not they love truth and believe the truth and you will get an answer that yes, they, and those in their belief group, both love truth and have the truth with regards to their core beliefs. Atheists have the truth, Agnostics have the truth that you cannot know for sure one way or the other, Moslems, Mormon's, Roman Catholics, Baptists, Jehovah's Witnesses ... everyone knows they have the truth and love the truth. Every group that believes in a Gospel believes it is a simple gospel, they just all believe different "simple" gospels.
Even those who believe Jesus is their Lord, God and Savior at the end of Mat. 7, the "Many" who believe and who possess the same signs and wonders the true Christians of their day were also performing, are not really Christians at all, nor were they ever true Christians in spite of those things. It's not a lack of beliefs that is in question. It is a lack of believing the truth. The focus in Mat. 7 is not on what people believe they are doing for God, it's about whether or not they truly hear and understand, and live in accordance with what God truly does command. "Those that DO the will of My Father ..."
Premise: Everyone gets everything they need to either believe the truth or hold fast to what they want to believe "as" truth.
Mat. 7 covers the Christians, the "many" on the broad path who are headed for hell in spite of their beliefs in Christ. Rom. 10:1-3 covers the Jews who were zealous for God, and Romans 1:18-32 covers the non-religious lost.
Here's a good summary passage for how every person in the world can KNOW and have an UNQUESTIONABLE faith that their own core beliefs are "FACT" and be completely wrong...
2Th 2:10 and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. 11 For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, 12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness. 13 But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.
Yes, verses 10-12 apply to those who will be deceived in the end times. Starting in verse 13 though, Paul says that those alive that he is writing to pass this exact same test and did receive faith in the truth. This same standard applies to non-religious lost like Atheists and Agnostic, Religious lost that does not believe in Jesus as their Lord God and Savior like the Jews in Rom. 10 or the Moslems, and also to all the people who believe Jesus is their Lord God and Savior in Mat. 7 but are lost as well. Every belief group on the planet gets from God exactly what they need to hold fast to everything they "want to believe" "as" truth. Don't trust me, look around. Pick any group.
People who want to hold fast to what they “want to believe” “as” truth:
1.) Gather whatever they can “use” to prove what they “want to believe” to be truth.
2.) Accumulate all evidence they believe proves all opposing views incorrect.
3.) Assume their beliefs are unquestionable truth, and interpret everything in such a way as to make it all support, or at least not negate, their beliefs. Think about it. If your beliefs are unquestionable truths, all “valid” data, must support … or at least not negate, your infallible beliefs, right?
4.) Reinterpret, ignore, discredit, invalidate … anything that doesn’t seem to fit with their views, Why? Our beliefs are “Fact”. Valid data interpreted correctly can’t contradict the facts.
5.) Gather all the other experiences, feelings, data … to solidify their beliefs such as signs, wonders, spiritual gifts or facts about your belief group. Things like: we have a burning in the bosom, we speak in tongues, we perform signs or wonders, a statue of Mary came to life and told us our belief groups views are correct, we have prayed to God for the truth and received “feelings” or even signs from heaven. Or, on a more concrete level: Our belief group is the oldest, largest, fastest growing, wealthiest, has the most experts with doctorates… Include anything that adds assurance that your views and belief group have the most truth.
These are the things we do "if" we just want to believe what we want to believe, and have reasons for discarding the rest. This process closes our eyes, ears and hearts to even considering anything else. This process allows all the people from every group believing themselves to be Christian to believe the gospel is simple, while believing completely different “simple” gospels.
Everyone using this Methodology can do only one thing with this Methodology above (#1-5) and that is prove their beliefs true and prove all opposing beliefs false. There is no other possible outcome. No one using that Methodology can ever do anything other than harden themselves into their current beliefs, closing their eyes and ears to even considering that anything "else" might be true. After all, if your core beliefs are fact, being open minded to altering any of them is being open to exchanging the absolute truths of your beliefs for lies, by very definition. No person from any belief group is willing to seriously consider exchanging truth for a lie. By definition their eyes and ears are closed to anything else.
Part of receiving a love of the truth is also understanding the truth of how people cement themselves into believing lies to be truth and truth to be lies. Confront anyone using the above Methodology to hold fast to their positions and they will immediately jump into their piles of selected data they know proves their beliefs true, proves everything else false, how to interpret everything correctly, their reason, explanations, interpretations that prove their views are the correct ones, and even their fruits of the spirit, gifts of the spirit, ... burning in the bosom, ... statues of Mary coming to life ...
Are there promises with regards to seeking truth, and not "proving what you want to believe to be truth"? Yes, all over, "Prove all things and hold fast to what is good." Present tense expanded meaning, "Keep on proving ALL things over and over again as a habit and way of life, like an ongoing court case that never ends where your only goal is to get to truth no matter how long it takes, and hold fast to what is good/true, NOT TO YOUR BELIEFS."
If we look at Mat. 7 a little closer, some of this appears there as well. First we have a command of Christ to judge ourselves according to the standard He is about to give, FIRST.
Mat 7:1 "Do not judge so that you will not be judged. 2 "For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. 3 "Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 "Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' and behold, the log is in your own eye? 5 "You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.
Understand this is a prelude to Jesus command for us to judge absolutely every single person we meet based on the standard He is about to reveal ... Ask yourself, how do you respond when people share what is Holy, i.e. their pearls, things they consider to be of eternal value?
For the sake of doing it, reread the Methodology Atheists, Agnostics, Moslems, Mormons, and almost all humanity uses to hold fast to their beliefs (#1-5 above.) When you share with them, what are they thinking about? First: Our beliefs are fact. Second: If you are objective and look at all the data we have gathered that we know proves our beliefs are "unquestionable truth" and all of the facts we know prove your opposing beliefs false and interpret everything correctly, you will alter your beliefs to fit our beliefs. Our beliefs "are" truth. No, we are not open to considering that our core positions might be false.
The topic in Mat 7 is those who believe they are Christians but are not. They are false prophets/preachers, they are the "many" who believe Jesus is their Lord, God and Savior, and who have the same gifts that the true Christians of the day had. But these people are lost and are headed for hell in spite of their beliefs and in spite of all the evidence they know proves they are right. Problems arise if you suggest that they are a part of the great masses who have missed the truth and that they might truly be lost and headed for hell. Shoot, they might even want to tear you to pieces, but they certainly are not going to give any serious consideration to altering their core beliefs.
As far as the truth goes on core beliefs, ANY disagreement at all on the core beliefs will get you silenced and/or removed from their belief groups. They all have to protect their flocks after all. No consideration will be given with regards to core beliefs. None. That is a belief group, and yes, they all have everything they need to hold fast to their beliefs and NONE OF THEM, in spite of Jesus claim that the vast majority of those who believe themselves to be right with God/Christ are still lost and headed for hell.
But do any of them see that they fall short of this?
Mat 7:6 "Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.
No, right? They all have unquestionable proof that their core views are fact. None of them ever falls short. Then Jesus completely changes the topic in Mat. 7, right?
Mat 7:7 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9 "Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? 10 "Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? 11 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!
Interestingly, all of those are in the present tense indicating ongoing continuous, habitual action that never ever stops.
Mat 7:7 "Keep on continuously Asking, and never stop, and it will eventually be given to you; Keep on continuously seeking, and never stop, and you will eventually find; Keep on continuously knocking, and never stop, and it will eventually be opened to you. 8 "For everyone who keeps on continuously asking, and never stops, eventually receives, and he who keeps on continuously seeking and never stops, eventually finds, and to him who keeps on continuously knocking and never stops, it will eventually be opened. 9 "Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? 10 "Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? 11 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!
Interestingly, there is another passage that uses almost the exact same words, with a minor difference:
Luk 11:9 "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 "For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened. 11 "Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? 12 "Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? 13 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?"
The thing is, every person from the belief groups out there has already found the truth. Seeking is no longer necessary other than seeking out more things to prove their beliefs true and all opposing views false. They asked and received. They knocked and had it opened. The problem is though that they stopped. The guarantees don't apply to them. They would get horribly angry if you suggested that they are a part of the lost at the end of Mat. 7, and they certainly are not open to altering any of their core beliefs about Jesus, the gospel, ...
But here's the thing. Every belief group out there who believes they are Christians agrees that open-mindedness to considering the truth of their beliefs is a prerequisite to saving faith. They also believe that anyone already in agreement with their core beliefs should be as closed minded as is possible.
From the context, this next verse ties in the response of the religious lost people who believe they -are Christians in verse 7, and those who will eventually get to truth in verses 7-11.
Mat 7:12 "In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for
this is the Law and the Prophets.
Sure you have all the evidence you need to hold fast to your beliefs. So does everyone else using that Methodology. But that's the problem. The target is not really truth. No one can ever get "from" their beliefs, "to" truth doing those things. All they can do is harden themselves into their beliefs. They know how they want others to respond to their gospel, i.e. with open-mindedness, seriously considering absolutely every piece of evidence that they present with a willingness to open their minds and hearts to the truth of what they present, but they are unwilling to do the same and respond like those in 7:7-11.
The "Many" on the broad path that leads to destruction is the same "many" who believe Jesus is their Lord God and Savior but are headed for destruction later on. The "Few" that are saved are on the path that is so narrow it literally means "to groan" it's so tight. The vast masses already know and have the truth regards to Christianity, and aren't really listening when people share. These same people speak forth all kinds of variations in gospels and beliefs and all of them "Know" they have the truth about God/Christ. There is no doubt.
The question is, what do you "do" if you are a true Christian according to the passage? What are the "fruits" that put you in one group or the other in this passage? Which group will, eventually get the Holy Spirit? Those who truly love truth will avoid the first Methodology above like the plague. Those who love truth keep on seeking, proving, knocking, examining the scriptures diligently daily, and always are willing to alter any, or all of their beliefs to fit truth. They have no interest in holding fast to any beliefs. Thus their Methodology differs. When it comes to getting biblical truth ... See part 2