This morning my spiritual mentor and I were chatting. I was pontificating (like I do...and like you don't have to be a pontiff to do) on a few things and that's when she dropped Matthew 7:22 and further on me. The separation of the sheep and the goats is what it gets expanded out to elsewhere.
The context of our original conversation isn't important but suffice to say that we were talking about the parts of the Bible that Christians tend to want to ignore. Like...Sin. We have to be honest and say that American Christianity overall hates sin and not in the way God hates sin. What I mean to say is that we hate talking about it, preaching about it, admitting it exists, and especially hate admitting that it even exists within our selves. But, what is the power of the Gospel at all if we don't fully recognize that we are a fallen creature who has done this to themselves, continues to do it to themselves, and justifies it almost as much as we poo poo it in our own circles. "You disrespected your spouse? Oh, honey/dude everybody does that. It's no big deal. Heck, I did it four times on my way over here. Now, if you cheated that would be totally different." Uh...actually it's not except by our own fallen creature standards. But if I continue down this route I'll be putting the miter back on my cabeza and get all pontiff on a subject I've already established it's not crucial for the sake of this post to illuminate. #MaybeTooLate
I'm going to come right out and say what I may have already stated in previous episodes... Matthew 7:22 and following scares me. It scares me right out of a dead sleep some nights. Why? Because it's Jesus talking. It being Jesus talking mean's it's GOD talking and what GOD is saying we have zero right or ability to worm our way around. It's foundational which means it's been true since the foundation of the world, in a land before time (not a kid's movie reference, thank you) whether we want to admit it or not.
There are a lot of things that can and have been said about what the sheep and the goat separation, mostly regarding what it "doesn't" mean. Often focusing on what it "doesn't" mean leads us to not pay attention to what it "does" say (Thank You, Alistair Begg) and that is a road that leads to ruin.
So, as I believe the LORD tells me from time to time, buckle up, buttercup. This is going to get rough. You're not going to like it. I don't even like it. But most things that heal us are not likeable...potent medicine, resetting bones, the application of tourniquets, cancer surgery...none of these are holiday options. So, lets take this line by line instead of scanning through.
"Many will say to me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?'" vs 22
Now here's the thing that pushed this blog post. It's a little thing. It's that first word. It's one of the scariest words in the whole of the scriptures because of its context.
Many.
It brings me absolutely not comfort and it shouldn't bring you any comfort either. Jesus isn't saying that a few, some, a goodly amount, but MANY are going to say to Him on the day of judgement, "but...but...but...we did stuff!"
These are people who clearly recognize Jesus as "Lord" and have dedicated themselves in some way to Him and His service. Barney down on the beach doesn't just prophesy for Jesus in between whiling his time away praying to Buddha and meditating on the Sutras. These "many" are for the home team. These are people swinging and fielding for Jesus, progressing to the point where they are actually prophesying, actually doing miracles, driving out DEMONS in His name, with His authority and His power. They call Him the Lord of their lives. Given this resume is it a huge leap to believe that they may have written books, taught Bible studies, headed up churches? Preached in arenas?
This is heavy. The very definition of heavy. These individuals believe they are Christians, believe they are saved, believe they are on His good side. They expected to be greeted with open arms and told, "Well done, good and faithful servant" or they wouldn't be protesting, they wouldn't be pleading their case before the judge of the living and the dead, the righteous and the wicked.
The message is compacted in the way only Jesus could, "Hey...this could be you. Look out. Don't make excuses. Don't tell me what I'm not saying. This is the deal. Guard your heart. Know your motivations. Make sure what is meant to be first is first in your life, and don't screw around with matters of your soul." We see this in His response.
"I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!" v23 b
I. Never. Knew you.
That's some cold words from someone everyone sees as loving, forgiving, and all embracing. That condemns them to Hell and that doesn't even come close to the depiction of Jesus as just a "good teacher" that the World and some in the Church want to think of Him as. There's going to come a time when He is going to tell people that the miracles they performed, the demons they drove out, and the prophesies they spoke count for nothing.
Do you know Him? Seriously, there is a vast difference between knowing about someone and knowing someone. I could read about Winston Churchill, I can read his own words, but I could never say that I know him only that I know about him. I can feel like I know him, to be sure, but that's not the same as knowing him. Interestingly the Greek word for "know" here (ginosko) is the same Greek word used for the Jewish idiom for "knowing" someone...sex. The suggestion is a deep deep intimacy with Him. "I never knew you" isn't him saying they didn't show up to church or pray. It's not a casual acquaintance "know" and in my life that's the level I used to be at with Him.
My encouragement, meager as it may be, is this: Don't take this lightly. And by "this" I mean knowing Him. We can do all the great and mighty works of God and still not know Him. I venture to say that we can even feed the poor, clothe the naked, and visit the sick and it still wouldn't count if we did not deeply intimately know Him.
Knowing you and being known by you is very high on God's list of things He wants. There are many out there who say that you can't experience God and my response is now and always, "Then WHY does He tell us to?" "Taste and See", "If I answer the door I will come in to him and sup with him", and I could go on and on. Knowing about Him isn't enough, and He says it right there in Matthew. Stop being consumed by the distractions of the world though they call to you, though you are addicted to them, though they make you so blissfully happy (and you already know which ones I'm talking about) because they are distracting you from REAL LIFE. And by REAL LIFE I mean HIM, because He says "I am the way, the truth and the life". He's not just A way or A truth. We say that all the time leaving off there and betraying our hearts. He is not A life. He is THE life. He is by His very own definition REAL LIFE. And that's heavy because I didn't realize that until right now so I'm going to pause, close the Facebook window in the background and let that sink in.
.
.
.
Wow. I've still not fully absorbed that.
It's a massive alteration which takes time. Though I'm sure my beloved Pastor is thinking, "BOOM! Yes! Got one!" because he's been trying to teach that to his congregation for YEARS and I thought I had it before, but now my vision cracked just a little bit and all that light is pouring through causing a kind of spiritual pupil constriction making me shield my spirit peepers and utter a full on Neo from the Matrix, "Woah..." It'll be a while before I can utter, "I know Kung Fu..." on this one to which I'm sure my mentor will pull the Morpheus response of a skeptical appraising look followed by the line, "Show me."
The point, in so much as I can full articulate one, is to stop your distractions. Focus on what connects to Him. He says that this very act has eternal consequences. We nod our heads along when someone quotes "...and there is no life apart from Him..." then get in our SUVs, turn on the game of the week, while playing games on our phones sitting next to our loved ones who are doing the same, and we say "Where's God?" Clear the field. Seek Him and you will find Him. How do I know? No other reason than because He says so and He is not a man that He should lie.
Pax,
Will
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