| A Good Enough Life |
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About three weeks ago, during a visit with my grandmother, she made a statement that caught me off guard. “I just hope I’ve lived a good enough life”, she reflected. I thought, 98 years of life and this saint still wonders? Of course I reminded her that God finds favor not in our being good but in our being surrendered to the work of Jesus. She smiled and nodded in agreement, but I naturally did what many of us do when we hear someone ask that question; I began to wonder about myself. In the back of my mind rests these haunting words of Jesus found in Matthew chapter seven; “Not everyone who calls out to Me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of My Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to Me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from Me, you who break God’s laws.” Perhaps, like me, you find these words of Jesus quite difficult. Not everyone who is religious will find themselves enjoying the glories of heaven. You or I may preach in His name, cast out demons in His name, or perform many other works of power, and it will prove nothing. I mean, there’s no way to look at what we DO in the name of Jesus and be assured that when we cry out “Lord, Lord” He will know us. We may be fooled by what appears righteous and godly on the outside, but God knows what lies within our hearts.Also, Jesus precedes this statement in Matthew 7 with the point that you can tell a tree by the fruit it produces. A bad tree cannot produce good fruit (verse 18). But according to Jesus, someone who even cast out demons in His name is not guaranteed the glories of heaven. Defeating the enemy would surely count as “Good Fruit” in my book. But Jesus says that this is still no guarantee. Even miracles through prayer or anointing do not assure us that we will hear Christ calling us to heaven on the Day of Judgment. Is it just gamblers luck; a divine roll of the dice that assures us of the glories of heaven? Or is there something more concrete behind this statement of Jesus I may be missing. I spent the better part of a week looking for some sure fire evidence that would put not only my heart at ease, but also those who would ask the same question; “Have I lived a good enough life?” But the reality is that I can’t tell by my good deeds or by my fruit. None of us can. And, to be honest, I was stuck here in hopelessness for quite some time. But then it hit me; this statement by Jesus is to show us that looking for tangible proof that we can hold in our hand or measure against some standard does not exist. Like the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, we too are trapped inside a system that makes us believe rewards are based upon merits. The Apostle Paul points out in Romans chapter three that “People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed His life, shedding His blood. He declares sinners to be right in His sight when they believe in Jesus (Not when they preach, cast out demons, or do other glorious works in His name). Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith”.We don’t earn our way to heaven by measuring our life against some standard; it is grace based upon our faith and the attitude of our heart. The person who worries if they have lived a good enough life to make it to heaven needs to be told “no”. But they do need to understand what is said here in Matthew by Jesus. It’s not based upon their good living. It’s based upon whether they are surrendered to God; and whose hope and trust and faith are found in the promises of Jesus. Pastor Greg |
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This is a statement that I believe all who serve Christ have struggled with at on time or another. But the key to that verse is when Jesus says “I don’t know you”. I believe what He is saying is that we can do all things in His name but unless we have a personal relationship with Him its all for not. We have to stop concentrating on living a good life, trying to “bear fruit” and focus on our relationship with Him! The next thing you know you have lived your life in Christ and the fruit is very tasty. Posted by Pastor Frank Zerbel, Whose homepage is http://forgiven.christianblogsites.com/blog/ on January 30, 2007 at 12:30 |
