By Lee Roy Anderson
Did you see it? There it is in the Bible. Not every one. Not every one that saith unto me Lord, Lord, shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but he that doeth the will of my Father, which is in Heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? And in thy name have cast out devils? And in thy name done many wonderful works? And then, will I profess unto them, I never knew you depart from me ye that work iniquity. Matthew 7:21-23. Now, do not think for a minute this is a soap box message. The main reason your attention is called to these facts is the way it has crept into church preaching and teachings also. Too many people now feel that everyone is going into the Kingdom of Heaven. The expectation of the minister to tell other they arrived safely to their eternal home in glory is the normal now. However, there is a major problem with this theology. It is not Biblical?
Look at what the Bible teaches plainly about the Kingdom of Heaven. Review Matthew 7:13-23. There are several important teachings from this passage that we must call our attention to. It is a warning that must be taught regardless of what is popular in religious circles these days. First, these verses tell us not everyone will be saved. They can be, but they won’t be. Some people have made the decision to reject Jesus Christ. They will not believe in Jesus Christ. There are many who say, we are all God’s children. This is not true. We are all God’s creation but are not all God’s children. Only the saved are the children of God. But, as many as received him to them gave the power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. John, 1:12.
If you want to be His child you must believe His Word. How sad that everyone will not be saved. Matthew 7:13, tells us there will be more people die lost than those who are saved. This verse tells us the way to destruction is wide. The reason is easy to understand. There are many travelling this road. Verse 14, tells us the road to life is narrow and there are few that find it. We all have sinned. We all need a savior. Jesus Christ died to save us. So, in reality, we all need Jesus. We learn many that go to church will not make it, not everyone that says Lord, Lord, Matthew 7: 22-23. We learn from these verses the sad fact of many who are expecting to be saved will be lost. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? And in thy name done many wonder works. They are expecting to be saved based on all the spiritual things they have seen happen.
However, the Lord will declare to those I never knew you. If church makes you miserable then you wouldn’t last. He won’t let you into the Kingdom of Heaven. He won’t let you in because he loves the church and gave Himself for it. Remember, God will create us a vessel acceptable and worthy to have a place in His Kingdom.
