Reflecting back on Easter this year, and some situations that have developed over the last couple of years, there is a particular Bible verse that comes to mind\u2014Matthew 7:22. It is one that I have mentioned to a few people, and one that I personally consider to be one of the most sobering verses in Scripture. For context, I will quote the passage, Matthew 7:21\u201323 (from the English Standard Version), noting that these are the words of Christ:<\/p>\n
“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. 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?’<\/strong> And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'”<\/p>\n If you were to look at the preceding passage (Matthew 7:15\u201320), it is clear that Christ is talking about false prophets\u2014that is, messengers who falsely claim to be from God. While one could argue that a reading of those two passages could be restricted to false messengers, I consider there is a case for extending the scope to false teachers (i.e., false Christian pastors), and even broader to false believers (i.e. false Christians). Why? The principle is clear: one’s actions\u2014one’s very life\u2014must be consistent with one’s professed beliefs, otherwise they are not one’s true beliefs. In short, there should be a clear\u00a0absence of hypocrisy<\/em>, an\u00a0absence of deception<\/em>, an\u00a0absence of bad faith<\/em> in how one lives.<\/p>\n No human being except Jesus Christ is perfect. Everyone physically walking the Earth today will be inconsistent at some level. But examine anyone’s life and you can see where his or her direction lies: is it consistently tending towards moral uprightness, consistency, justice, humility, service towards others, and glory to God, or is it consistently tending towards moral crookedness, inconsistency, injustice, pride, self-service, and glory to self?<\/p>\n On Judgement Day, there will be many people who believe themselves to be Christians, to be holy, to be righteous before God, but they will have deluded themselves. When people ask me if I am a Christian, these days I often (though not always) phrase a response like this, “If Christ claims me as His own, then I am a Christian.” My identity as a Christian (or not a Christian) rests on Christ’s decision, not my own.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Reflecting back on Easter this year, and some situations that have developed over the last couple of years, there is a particular Bible verse that comes to mind\u2014Matthew 7:22. It is one that I have mentioned to a few people, and one that I personally consider to be one of the most sobering verses in… Continue reading One of the most sobering verses in the Bible<\/span>