Matthew 7:21 “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.”
I often think there is a politician in all of us. I think I can confidently say that all of us have not kept our word at some point in our lives. We said “yes” to something, but then didn’t follow through. Our intentions might have been to keep our word, but in the end we didn’t.
Integrity is one of the most difficult qualities to master. We live in a world of half-truths and outright lies, so it can be easy to fall in with the cultural norms. But we as believers in Jesus must do better. And the standard and goal is the same: live our words.
Jesus in this concluding section of the Sermon on the Mount told His hearers that not everyone who claims to be a member of the Kingdom is actually a member. Not everyone who claims to know Jesus does. A claim is not enough, Jesus says. Our lives must match our words. We must do what is in line with His will and character.
I have found it funny that the House of Representatives has put in a new set of rules about which pronouns that are acceptable to be spoken in the chamber, but then have violated their own rules. Sounds like government officials who ordered lockdowns, but then were found to be violating their own orders. And who can forget the “Amen and woman” foolishness.
It is very easy for all of us to say we are Jesus followers. But for most of the world’s population, saying you are a follower of Jesus makes life increasingly more difficult to live. Their lives are put on the line. Their livelihoods are removed. Their homes are destroyed. They are attacked and maimed or killed.
For us in the United States, the worst it gets for us is that we are the butt of jokes on late night TV, broadcast news shows, and the politicians who need an easy scapegoat. There isn’t widespread action against Christians for being Christians. At least not yet.
One day our words will be weighed against our actions to see if they matched. And the One on the judgment seat will know the content of our hearts. He will know if we are genuine in our motives and actions. There will be no place to hide. And there is no grey area. He knows!
The emphasis of Jesus in this passage is on the doing of the Gospel. Our lives must reflect Jesus. We must be listening to the Holy Spirit and responding. We can’t be passive Christians. Our lives must be different. We must be walking our talk.
Otherwise we are like the house built on the sand. It might look good in fair weather, but as soon as a storm comes, it collapses. I don’t know about you, but I want my house, my spiritual being, to stand when the storms come. I don’t want to be found to have fallen short.
The Arnold Journey 