I NEVER KNEW YOU - Matthew 7:22-23
Matthew 7:22-23 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
One of the biggest mistakes most Christians make is that while they admit that they are saved by grace, they still feel that they are judged by God based upon their works. While God will judge you for your actions, more importantly, Christ is showing us in this passage that the most important thing is your relationship with God.
In this passage, Christ reveals to us that we can do all sorts of wonderful things in the name of Christ, but if we do not have that perfect relationship with HIM, our life will be worthless. Christ is revealing to us that it is more important to make sure that your relationship with God is in order than to make sure that everyone looking at you believes that you are a Christian.
When you focus on your relationship with God, as a natural result of that relationship, you will have the power of God in your life and your life will be a testimony to others of what God can do through you. Just because you focus on doing good works for God, it does not mean that you have a relationship.
What is more important to you, that God knows you have a personal relationship with HIM or that the world around you thinks you have a relationship with God?
We often desire the praises of man more than the praises of God. When we focus on the praises of man, it does not matter what we are doing, God is not pleased and we could end up being very shocked when we reach heaven and find out that God does not claim to know us even though we proclaim to know him.
There is a popular story of Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War where some generals were asking whether the Lord was on the side of the Union. Abraham Lincoln wisely remarked that the question was not whether the Lord was with the Union but whether the Union was on the side of God. The words of Lincoln were not original - they were illustrated in this passage by Christ many years before.
Stop worrying about whether the Lord will be with you on a particular endeavor. Instead, you need to take the time to add knowledge of the ways of God for your life. As you study what God will have you to do, you will then understand what you need to do in order to be on the side of the Lord. Your actions should be focused around doing the perfect will of God. How can you do the will of God if you have not taken the time to understand what the will of God is?
When Christ was on this earth, HE did not follow the disciples around, HE commanded the disciples to follow HIM. The disciples did not have to follow Christ, but once they committed to following HIM, than they must follow through good or evil.
You did not have to become a Christian and follow Christ. Of your own free will you had the option to follow Christ. However, once you relinquished control over your life, you cannot afford to dictate to God how you are going to live your life. Instead, you must focus your attention upon hearing the words of God and living your life so that HE might be glorified through you. Your relationship with God is the most important thing.