Depart From Me

“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)

Meditation

On the day of reckoning there will be those who think they’ve done enough to earn their place in heaven. They will say, when I was doing something good and helpful to someone, I was doing God’s work. However, too late they will learn, it’s not what you do outwardly, to be seen by other people, that pays the price for your salvation. Good deeds will never save you. It’s what Jesus did on the cross that saves you, and what you hold in your heart that counts to God.

Good deeds, even hard work for the church, doesn’t measure up to a tiny drop of the blood of Christ. Jesus wants us to be followers, not coworkers. He doesn’t want our advice; he wants our obedience. All the glory for our good works belongs to him, not us. If it wasn’t for the work done on the cross by Christ, we probably wouldn’t be doing any good works. We would still be prisoners of our selfish ways. If he tells you to depart from him, he’s not saying to go back to your old life. He’s sending you to everlasting hell.

I could prophecy and claim a word from God, but if those words are really my own, even if they’re good and insightful, are hateful to God. I could be the best evangelist to the lost, even leading thousands to faith in Jesus, but if he isn’t the Lord of my life, he will not know me on that glorious day. I could spend every day of my life helping the poor, but if I don’t personally know Jesus as my Lord, it’s all for nothing. I have to have submitted my will for the will of the Father in heaven before I stand in judgment.

If you haven’t truly made Jesus the Lord of your life, then you will have great sorrow on that Day. If you expect that doing enough “good stuff” will outweigh all the “bad stuff’, you’re going to be sadly mistaken. If you do not submit to Jesus’ lordship, you will hear the words, “I never knew you, depart from me!” If you put him first in every part of your life, then you will hear the words, “Well done good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your master.” The alternative will be horrible beyond your imagination.

Daily Prayer

Heavenly Father, we praise you for the grace and mercy you show us every day. On that great and fearful day of judgment, you will separate the sheep from the goats. Because of your just treatment of us, we have the free will to choose whether we’re going to be numbered among the sheep or the goats. Father, some of us are deluding into thinking we’re going to heaven because we were born into a Christian family. They think all it takes is going to church. They utter Christian sounding words to put up a front, but there is no submission in their hearts. They pretend to cast out demons, but they are charlatans, not knowing the love of Christ. We thank you for Jesus, who paid the price for our iniquities and make us righteous by his blood. Give us hearts like his for the lost. Give us the desire to seek and save anyone who doesn’t know him. We pray this in his holy name. Amen!