“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?’
And then will I declare to them,
‘I never knew you; depart from me,
you workers of lawlessness.’"
(Matthew 7:21-23)
Introduction
Here in Matthew 7 we come nearly to the end of what we call Jesus’s great Sermon on the Mount. At the beginning of chapter 5, the Scripture says “he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them” (Matthew 5:1-2). From then on all the way through to the end of chapter 7 he teaches—he teaches the crowd. He shares truth. He reveals many wonderful things.
He speaks of the way a man can be blessed. He says we are to be salt and light. He elevates the law and applies it not simply to behavior but to the heart. He speaks on anger, lust, divorce, oaths, and revenge. He tells us to love our enemies, to not be hypocritical in religion, to not pretend, to not do our good deeds to be seen by men. He teaches us to pray in the Lord’s prayer. He teaches us that true religion is first a matter of the heart, the inner-man. He says not to lay up treasures on earth, not to be anxious, and to be careful when we judge others. He shows us the goodness of the Father in giving us good things when we ask him. And he sums up the entire Old Testament with these words: “whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 7:12).
This Jesus is The Great Teacher, and He teaches all this—not merely as a man, but as the God-man. He speaks for God. As the Son of God, he speaks the words of God his Father. And no teaching of God would be complete without a serious warning, a warning of judgment. It’s here in particular in chapter 7 that we meet God’s Son, the Great Teacher, at the end of his Great Sermon on the Mount.
Not Everyone Who Says…
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven.” Right out of the gate, Jesus minces no words, he makes no bones about it. He cuts straight to the truth—”not everyone who says will enter”. He basically says, don’t think that because you call me Lord that you have your ticket to heaven. No. That’s not how this works. In fact, in Luke’s account of this exact teaching (Luke 6:46), Jesus begins with a no-nonsense question: “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I tell you?”
Talk is Cheap, But Actions Speak
Perhaps you’ve heard the phrase, “Actions speak louder than words.” There’s truth to that. It’s easy to say and never do. Talking requires no real commitment, no real effort. You can talk all you want. If your talk doesn’t match your walk, all you have is talk. To always say one thing and do another is to prove you are false. BUT—to walk the talk—this is to be real, you see.
In a later chapter of Matthew, Jesus tells a parable that illustrates this truth beautifully. Listen to what he says. He’s speaking to the Pharisees.
“What do you think? A man had two sons. And he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ And he answered, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he changed his mind and went. And he went to the other son and said the same. And he answered, ‘I go, sir,’ but did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him.” (Matthew 21:28-32)
The first son says, “No father, I will not work” but he changed his mind and went.
The second son says, “Yes sir, I will work” but did not go.
Jesus asks, which of the two sons did the will of the father? The first son. It’s the first son. Yes, he may have said I will not go. But he changed his mind and he went.
Do you see? Talk is cheap. But actions speak.
Now, here’s the question: which son are you? Have you said and never done? Have you said to God, “Yes, Lord, I know. I’ll get around to it.” You might fool others. You might even fool yourself. But you don’t fool God. Even the dark is light to him. James says “Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22).
Many Will Say…
“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?’”
Here Jesus is speaking about a future reality—a day of judgment. It’s a day that is coming. He says, “On that day many will say.” Will say what? They will say to him, “did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?”
Pretenders Justify
Now, wait a minute. I thought we said that talk is cheap but actions speak? So what’s wrong with these people? Aren’t they doing the actions of God in God’s name? Yes, they’re pointing Jesus to their actions, even actions done in his name. But we must ask: for what purpose? For what reason do they appeal to these works? To justify themselves. To defend themselves. As if their actions earn them a place in heaven. Notice too—what nature, what type, what form of works are these?
- “prophesy in your name” —Prophecy
- “cast out demons in your name”—Exorcism
- “do many might works, or powerful deeds”—Miracles.
Prophecy
Now that is interesting. Why? Because one can prophesy falsely. One can be a false prophet. In fact, Jesus warns of this very thing back in verse 15, “Beware of false prophets” (Matthew 7:15). All throughout the New Testament we are warned of false prophets, false teachers, false christs, and wolves. One thing to keep in mind: a prophet who speaks for God does not necessarily mean he is sent from God.
Exorcism
Next is exorcism. This is also interesting. Judas was one of the twelve disciples whom Jesus gave authority and power—to do what? To cast out demons. To do exorcism. Now we might ask: despite the fact that he cast out demons, was Judas a true believer, a true disciple of Christ? No, he was not. He was not a disciple of Christ. In fact, Jesus says that he was a devil (John 6:70).
Mighty Works, or Miracles
Last in the list we have mighty works, or powerful deeds. This likely means miracles, signs, wonders. You have to understand—this is proof of nothing. Remember Pharaoh’s magicians in the book of Exodus? They could perform signs and wonders. They were not of God. In Matthew 24, Jesus warns that false prophets and false christs will have power to perform lying signs and wonders to deceive. They deceive. Even if the miracles happen, the intent is to deceive! It’s all for a show. It’s a charade. Nothing but a play, even if it’s done in the name of Jesus. When a true believer, when a true disciple of Christ in Scripture does miracles, the miracles always—always—accompany and authenticate the true message of God. In other words: miracles performed by true disciples of Christ are done to prove the message of Christ.
So, these people in verse 22, whoever they are, are pretenders. They are false. And they justify themselves. They defend themselves before God based on works which he does not require. Today, we don’t see these things. We don’t see new prophecies and revelations of God, we don’t see demons being cast out, we don’t see miracles.
I’ll tell you what we do see. We see people, all around us, committing abominations in the name of Jesus. Just think of the roman catholic “church” and all the garbage and filth they do and have done in the name of Jesus; all the unrepentant so-called “gay christians” (an oxymoron) who think that Jesus loves them just as they are in their sins; all the men who preach a false gospel of prosperity, health, and wealth—Benny Hinn, Todd White, Kenneth Copeland—evil men who pervert the gospel for filthy lucre, for greed, all in the name of Jesus—the very name of him who has said, “You cannot serve God and money” (Matthew 6:24).
You can be sure if you are like these men, you are heaping up for yourself the very wrath of God. If you use the name of Jesus to advance your own agenda, to build your own kingdom, to manipulate others to garner power—you are nothing but a pretender. You are under the righteous judgment of God. You cannot justify yourself. You dare not justify yourself before God. But repent! Or else your silly little kingdom of dirt will be turned to dung by Almighty God.
Believers Obey
“And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'”
Now this is real. This is judgment. This is the Son of God, the Son of Glory saying to men, “I never knew you—depart from me.” You need to feel the full force of this moment, because it is going to happen. There will be those who say ‘Lord Lord’ to Jesus and to whom Jesus says… get away from me. Now, how do I get the point that believers obey? Return to verse 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.” (Matthew 7:21)
Here’s the positive restatement: Those who do the will of my Father will enter the kingdom of heaven. So, if you come to this text with the question, “Who will enter the kingdom of heaven?” The answer is this: those who do the will of the Father.
Now, the marrow of this text comes out in this question: what is that will?
This is the question which must be asked and answered. This is the will that one must do if one is to enter the kingdom of heaven. This is what must be discovered and performed. So then, what is it?
I classify this will in three steps. If step one is done, steps two and three will inevitably follow.
The Will of the Father
I. To do the will of the Father is to repent and believe in the Son.
In John 6, the people come to Jesus. They ask him, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” and Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent” (John 6:28-29). To believe in Christ!—this is the first great work that God requires of you! Not words, not miracles, not prophecy, not casting out demons! But to believe in him whom he has sent.
II. To do the will of the Father is to grow in holiness and sanctification.
In 1 Thessalonians, the apostle Paul tells the believers, those who have already believed in Christ, these words: For this is God’s will: that you become holy, that you keep away from sexual immorality, that each of you know how to possess his own body in holiness and honor, not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God. He goes on to say… For God did not call us to impurity but in holiness. Consequently the one who rejects this is not rejecting human authority but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you. (1 Thessalonians 4:3-8)
III. To do the will of the Father is to turn away from evil.
We are also told by the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy, “But God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.” (2 Timothy 2:19). Did you catch that? Let everyone who names the name of the Lord… do what? Depart. From iniquity. It’s the same thing the Psalmist says, “Depart from me you evildoers that I may keep the commandments of my God” (Psalm 119:115).
Jesus himself says, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” In other words, don’t live like a lawbreaker. Don’t live in lawlessness. Now, notice something. Jesus says to these pretenders, “depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.” Paul says to Timothy, “depart from iniquity.” Do you see the connection? To refuse to depart from sin now is to invite departure from Christ later. See this post for further explication of this point as it moves throughout Scripture.
Jesus, being the Master Teacher that he is, does not leave us without a pertinent illustration to this sobering warning. He consummates the dichotomy he’s been presenting for some time in his sermon with this picture of two builders—both hear his words, but only one does them while the other does not.
The Master’s Dichotomy Portrait
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” (Matthew 7:24-27)
A Final Picture of Warning
I now turn to paint a picture of a particular person. You ask: is this me?
I don’t grow in grace and knowledge. I don’t pursue holiness. I don’t love the people of God. I don’t do the will of the Father. But I came to Jesus. I said ‘Lord, Lord’. I got my ticket years ago. I prayed the prayer. I came to the altar. I went to the evangelistic crusade and gave my heart to Jesus. I have no fruit to prove this, of course. In fact, there’s every indication from my life that I am in the world, of the world, and for the world. I don’t battle my sin. My conscience is seared and unaffected by evil. I have no real love for Christ or his Word.
If this is you, I urge you—be reconciled to God. Repent and believe the gospel. Turn from your sin to the Savior, Jesus Christ. And seek to grow in him.