Matthew 7:21-23 (ESVST)
21 “ 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. 22 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? ’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. ’
I am not sure how many of us really understands what the scripture above really says. I am saying this because I think if we did, we won’t be spending all our time trying to please God with our good works instead of doing his will. Do we even know what the will of God is. If you don’t know the will of God, you should be concerned because, if you don’t know his will then, you can’t do it and if you can’t do it, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. All your good works or good living would have been for nothing.
Verse 21 in the above scripture, it is very clear on this matter that if you don’t do the will of God, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. It says that not everyone who goes around saying “Lord”, will enter heaven. Not everyone who calls himself or herself a Christian, will enter the kingdom of heaven. Being a Christian is not an automatic qualifier to enter the kingdom of heaven
Verse 22 and 23 says if you think that because you do good works, you will enter heaven, well, you are wrong. If you think because you go to church every day and you pay tithe and you feed the poor and you don’t drink alcohol, etc, you will go to heaven, you are wrong. God will say at the end, I never knew you. Look at this, God does to not say “I don’t know you”‘ he says “I never knew you”. In everything you did that was good, not a single one caught God’s attention.
So, it is very important, it is a matter of life and death (spiritually), to know what the will of God is.
What is the will of God? What is Jesus referring to when he talks about the will of God?
John 6:38-40 (ESVST)
For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
There are two things which reflect the will of God:
1) The first one is that Jesus must not lose anyone that God has given him and must raise them on the last day
2) The second one is that everyone who looks to him (Jesus), and believes in him, should have eternal life and Jesus will raise him on the last day.
Now this is the will of God. It has nothing to do with what you do or don’t do.
Ephesians 2:8-9 (ESVST)
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
So, the will old God is that you believe in his son and our Lord Jesus Christ. That is all. The good works that you do supplement your believe. Good works are as a result of believe and not the other way. Good works alone are simple not good enough.
It is also the will of God that once you have believed in his son and our Lord Jesus Christ that you leave a Godly life. James said that faith without works is dead. So, if you believe and that faith does not result in you doing good works, then that faith is dead.
James 2:17 (AMP)
So also faith, if it does not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back it up), by itself is destitute of power (inoperative, dead).
This is the will of God with regards to good works:
1 Thessalonians 4:3-7 (AMP)
For this is the will of God, that you should be consecrated (separated and set apart for pure and holy living):that you should abstain and shrink from all sexual vice,
4 That each one of you should know how to possess (control, manage) his own body in consecration (purity, separated from things profane) and honor,
5 Not [to be used] in the passion of lust like the heathen, who are ignorant of the true God and have no knowledge of His will,
6 That no man transgress and overreach his brother and defraud him in this matter or defraud his brother in business. For the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we have already warned you solemnly and told you plainly.
7 For God has not called us to impurity but to consecration [to dedicate ourselves to the most thorough purity].
John 3:18 (ESVST)
Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
John 3:16 (ESVST)
16 “ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
You simple have to believe because if you don’t believe, you are not doing the will of God and therefore, you will not enter heaven. This believe must result in good works, otherwise the faith is dead. Take note that, nowhere does it say good works will make you enter heaven or make you not to enter heaven. It simply says that faith or belief that does not result in good works is dead. This means that we can never be sure that a person has true faith, if that faith does not result in good works.
It is all about believe. How do I do it, how do I believe?
Romans 10:9-11 (ESVST)
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says, “ Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.”
If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. This is all that you need to do to be saved and to do the will of God. I know it is not easy because the devil is doing everything he can to ensure that you don’t do the will of God. The devil actually makes you think that you are doing the will of God but as you have seen, if you don’t believe, you will not enter heaven
2 Corinthians 4:4 (ESVST)
In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
The other trick the devil uses is to keep you trapped in sin by using the riches of this world. He makes you think it is boring to be a believer.
Ephesians 2:1-6 (AMP)
AND YOU [He made alive], when you were dead (slain) by [your] trespasses and sins
2 In which at one time you walked [habitually]. You were following the course and fashion of this world [were under the sway of the tendency of this present age], following the prince of the power of the air. [You were obedient to and under the control of] the [demon] spirit that still constantly works in the sons of disobedience [the careless, the rebellious, and the unbelieving, who go against the purposes of God].
3 Among these we as well as you once lived and conducted ourselves in the passions of our flesh [our behavior governed by our corrupt and sensual nature], obeying the impulses of the flesh and the thoughts of the mind [our cravings dictated by our senses and our dark imaginings]. We were then by nature children of [God’s] wrath and heirs of [His] indignation, like the rest of mankind.
4 But God—so rich is He in His mercy! Because of and in order to satisfy the great and wonderful and intense love with which He loved us,
5 Even when we were dead (slain) by [our own] shortcomings and trespasses, He made us alive together in fellowship and in union with Christ; [He gave us the very life of Christ Himself, the same new life with which He quickened Him, for] it is by grace (His favor and mercy which you did not deserve) that you are saved ( delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation).
6 And He raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together [giving us joint seating with Him] in the heavenly sphere [by virtue of our being] in Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
So, there is hope for you and me only if you do the will of God, that is if you believe. Amen