"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on 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?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!' Matthew 7:21-23 (NIV)
These may very well be the saddest verses in the New Testament. Some of us, some of our loved ones, are deceived in believing that we are in right standing with Jesus--the one to whom we must one day give an account. There are people who call Him "Lord" who will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Maybe you sit next to them in church on Sunday. Some have even prophesied and done miracles in His name--but that does not guarantee their salvation. What is the evidence of an authentic relationship with Jesus? Our obedience says that we know Him, and are known by Him. Read what God says through Jeremiah:
"Thus says the LORD: 'Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight," says the LORD. Jeremiah 9:23-24 (NKJV)
"There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death." Proverbs 14:12 (NKJV)
It seems that there has been an oversight. God forgot to mention, in the book of Matthew, that there is another road that people can travel. If the narrow road is too confining, but you're just not comfortable on that broad road, try the middle road. You can learn all about it in this brief video from Francis Chan.
http://youtu.be/ZQj6rEvQb44
"But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." Matthew 7:14 (NIV)
This statement scares me. Most people in this world, it seems, are not interested in finding the narrow road that leads to life--they prefer that broad, comfortable road that leads to destruction. Why is that--what's wrong with the narrow road? For one thing, it must take some work to locate it because only a few "find it". Once you get there, you have to stay on the path--there's no room for wiggling or wandering off-- God wants you to follow His directions. It can be a lonely path--there is no large crowd of travelers sharing the journey-- but you are never alone because the One who cleared the path is walking with you.
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it." Matthew 7:13 (NIV)
God says we have two choices in this world--two roads that we can follow--which way do we go? Even though He tells us up front which road to choose, the wide gate is still the popular choice. Why is that? There's lots of company on that road--many have chosen to travel on the broad road. It's easy to just follow the crowd. You're not confined on the broad road--plenty of room for every belief and philosophy of life. There's lots of freedom--everyone is pursuing their own selfish desires--the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.
If you find yourself wandering aimlessly with a large crowd of people, you might want to check your GPS.You won't find God on the broad road--He doesn't go there and He doesn't want you to go there either, because it leads to destruction.
"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them." 1John 2:15 (NIV)
Whether it's gross disobedience or incomplete obedience, it's still sin. These sins--big and small-- keep us (and the church) from being effective in today's world. Jesus said we are to be in the world, but not of it. We are to be the light in a world that is getting darker and darker. To be holy is to be set apart for God's purpose. If we have the same appetites and desires as the world, we have nothing to give. People need to see something different about us--that we love God enough to follow Him and obey Him--that we do not love the world or the things of the world. We find our satisfaction in Him. Most of the people today are trying to fill an empty place in their heart with things, and things never satisfy. We can show them the better way.
Billy Graham's Prayer For Our Nation:
"Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done.
We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.
We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.
We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem.
We have abused power and called it politics.
We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition.
We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression.
We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.
Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from sin and Set us free.
Please. Come back and rule our nation, be number one in our nation.
Amen!'
"Although he did not remove the high places from Israel, Asa's heart was fully committed to the LORD all his life."
2Chronicles 15:17 (NIV)
Asa's obedience to God was almost perfect, but not quite. He failed to tear down the places of idol worship that had been used by previous kings. Our obedience matters to God--it should be instant and complete. In My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers put it this way:
"Beware of ever thinking, "Oh, that thing in my life doesn't matter much." The fact that it doesn't matter much to you may mean that it matters a great deal to God. Nothing should be considered a trivial matter by a child of God...You say, 'I know I am right with God--yet the "high places" still remain in your life. There is still an area of disobedience. Do you protest that your heart is right with God, and yet there is something in your life he causes you to doubt?"
