“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 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.” (Matthew 7:21-23)
There is coming a day when there will be a group of people who will stand before the Lord expecting to enter heaven based on their works rather than on the finished work of Jesus Christ. Among them will be some people who, no doubt, did “many wonderful works,” as they will claim but there will probably be some who didn’t do much, they just claim to have done many works. What do I mean by that? Well, as I observe people in this life, I notice that many times who like to speak the loudest about what they do are the ones who do the least. This is true in the office – you’ll hear them in meetings as they boast to try to gain favors with the boss. It’s also true in churches – you’ll hear them in their boastings in various settings, sometimes even in the pulpit. Sometimes it’s true even in the home when the one who does the least will boast of doing “many wonderful works” when guests come over so as to impress someone.
But God knows the heart. He knows what is going on here and He will know what is going on at that coming Judgment. Whether you are doing a lot or a little, none of it matters if you don’t know the Lord. And the proud boasters will find out that their boasting might have gotten them places in this life, but not in the life to come. What a sad day it will be when Jesus says, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” Salvation is all of grace and our trust must be in what Jesus did on the Cross, not what we have done. There will be no place for boasting in heaven.
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
Are you fully trusting in Jesus today?