-- Tuesday, 8/9/11 -- GOOD WORKS - Matthew 7: 21-23

[J.R. & Bonnie Ricks]

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GOOD WORKS – Matthew 7: 21-23

 

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he 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 perform many miracles?’  Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

 

This is a difficult passage to read.  In fact, it can be downright scary for some, wondering whether they might be included in “I never knew you”…  After all, Jesus doesn’t seem to be very specific here.  His only real distinction as to who will go to heaven is “he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven”.  Then He mentions people who claim to be doing things that we know are all “good works”… prophesying, driving out demons, performing miracles.  Aren’t these the will of the Father?  Let’s think about this…

 

The world is full of what you and I would call “good people”.  These are people whose lives are exemplary.  Everything they do makes us think that they’re hiding halos… halos that would be so bright that they would blind someone if pulled into the light of day!  But the truth is, although their actions make them appear to be incredibly “holy”, their hearts are very ugly… at least if compared to God’s heart.  Their actions are not a result of their faith… their actions are their attempt score enough “brownie points” to gain access to heaven.  But work though they might, they’ve totally missed the mark. 

 

So how do you and I know – without a doubt – that we’re not one of those people Jesus is talking about here?  As with all things, we go to God’s word…

 

First, what is the “will of the Father”?  In John 6:40a, Jesus says, “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life…”  That’s  it.  Wait a minute… that’s IT???  Yes, that’s it.  That is the entire will of the Father where you and I are concerned… for us to believe in Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

 

But what about “good works”?  Shouldn’t we be doing those?  Aren’t those things “fruit”?  Again, yes and no.  In a portion of Isaiah 64:6, we find out just what God thinks of our “good works” that are done for the wrong reasons… “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags”.  To make it really clear how disgusting these so-called “good works” are to God, those “filthy rags” Isaiah mentions are the menstrual rags that were used once a month by women. 

 

But how do we know when our “good works” are the right good works?  Paul pretty much sums up the entire concept in Ephesians 2:8-10, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.  For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

 

Remember, just as true righteousness comes only from Jesus, truly good works come from Him, too.   What’s the source of your good works?  Think about it.

 

All Bible quotes contained in these devotionals are from the New International Version 1984 (NIV1984), unless otherwise specified.

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