Not Everyone that says Lord, Lord will enter the Kingdom
“Not Everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will Enter the Kingdom of Heaven” — Matthew 7:21 — NIV
Chapter seven of the Gospel of Matthew is filled with so many wisdom statements and life teachings about The Way of Christ, which is literally the way into the Kingdom of Heaven. In essence, many will claim to know the Lord and put on a good front but they do not practice what they preach.
Just before this passage in the 7th chapter our Lord was explaining how you could tell whether someone was authentic or a false prophet. He said; you will know them by their fruit. “By their fruit, you will know them.” You know that different fruit trees produce different kinds of fruit. A fig tree produces figs, apple trees, apples; orange trees, oranges; peach trees, peaches; and so on. Christ went on to say that every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree can only produce bad fruit. Thus by their fruit, you will recognize the tree. In a similar way, you will know a person by the fruit (acts, thoughts, and deeds) they produce.
For those of you who are not as familiar with the scriptures Christ often taught in parables, which are simple life examples that are quite clear to grasp without having to dissect the Pythagorean theorem. A more simple statement is saying things plainly so you do not have to stretch your brain trying to figure out what the statement is saying. It is easy to understand the fact that different fruit trees produce different kinds of fruit rather than saying it is from the desires of a person’s heart that dictates how they live and act. You do not need to get into religion or philosophy to understand parables. Most of the teachings of Christ were fashioned in parables to ensure the majority of people would understand them and hopefully apply His teachings to their lives.
You might know of a lot of people who claim to be faithful Christians. They make this boldly in public and by their public persona they are known as a “Good Christian.” One such person that we all know is our vice president of the United States of America. Even the president calls him a good Christian because that is the reputation he has set for himself over a number of years. I don’t personally know this man very well but I have heard that he is a faithful Christian. I think the faith community accepts Pence as one of their great examples of a Christian. Had I not seen him on television over the past few years supporting the current president I might have been inclined to accept the public persona that has established for himself. I do not wish to judge anyone because I do not personally know Mr. Pence, but I do understand the parable about the fruit. “You will know a tree by its fruit.”
This brings me back to the initial scripture about not everyone claiming Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven. I know that I am no saint but I also know that I have several weaknesses of which I freely confess. Even though I frequently post spiritual essays I do not claim to be a national leader or a representative for the Christian faith. I simply allow my fruit to identify me. You don’t need to try to figure me out you can just look as my acts and deeds. You can read a few of my essays that attempt to bring scripture alive in a practical living style. I might not get it right all the time but I only try to interpret what some of the more complicated passages are saying and express my interpretation of them, not as a national spokesman, but as a sinner trying to get better at following the teachings of Christ.
Scripture also tells us that to those who are given much, much is expected of them. That means that those who are our appointed leaders much is expected of them to lead the flock. This is exceptionally true about national leaders who claim to represent Christ or the Christian faith. As a public figure, you are judged by the standards that Christ set for His followers. If I had the chance to have a conversation with Mr. Pence I would be able to ask him a lot of things about his faith and he could explain to me in very simple words about his faith in Jesus Christ. In truth, he really doesn’t need to convince me of anything because there is only one Judge that matters and that is the one appointed by God. Mr. Pence has only to convince God’s appointed Judge about his faithfulness to Christ and he will either tell him that he is a good Christian who is welcomed into the kingdom, or He might tell him, I never knew you. Again this is not my call. I only look at the fruit to try to figure out what kind of tree this man represents.
Most of us know the character of our current 45th President. He makes no apologies for his character and says really horrific things that let you know what is in his heart. His fruit is fully exposed out on the end of the vine as low hanging fruit. 45 practice divisiveness and slander daily. He uses very mean-spirited tactics to get his point across. He might claim to be a Christian but it is quite easy to look at his fruit and you know that it is not good godly fruit that he produces. So it is quite easy to categorize 45 without the need to judge him spiritually. In addition, there are many people that stand with this president, namely his vice president that claims to be a “good Christian,” and many party loyalists that fully support and stand by this man who spews vile language and ungodly character several times each day.
Scripture tells us that you cannot dine with Christ and the Devil at the same table. Either you are loyal to one and disassociate with the other or you just leave. You cannot support both. God even says that you are either for Him or against Him and that you must make a choice. Again this takes us back to the simple parables so we don’t have to judge anyone. We can just simply look at the fruit that is being produced and let that knowledge speak for itself. I’m not intentionally picking on Mr. Pence but if you see your brother in Christ going down a questionable pathway you have a duty to let them know what you see and it is up to them to alter their path or to continue if that is their choice. You can only lead a horse to the water but you cannot make that horse drink. The horse has to make that decision on its own.
By that same token the Evangelical Community for the most part fully supports this president in spite of the fruit we clearly see coming from him. How they justify this support is questionable to me but again, I am not their judge. But I do know they will have to answer to the real Judge. That is also between them and their Lord. You cannot dine with both at the same table. You must pick one to follow and distance from the other. When the fruit is as clear as it appears that should be an easy decision. However, I am only a sinner so do not take my word for it, just look at the fruit and see if that makes your choice a bit more clear.
As one who frequently studies and practices my faith on a daily basis, I only worry about the ones who are caught up in the trap of deception. A lot of people, even those in the church leadership are crying Lord, Lord but when I see their fruit it causes me to doubt their motives. If it makes me doubt I wonder what it does to people just on the outside trying to make a decision to follow Christ. If they see people who clearly claim to represent Christ essentially following someone that has no kindred with what Christ teaches then I know many innocent sheep are being lead to the slaughterhouse. I pray that the eyes of their understanding are opened so they can distance themselves from the den of evil before they are slaughtered. For this, I pray my dear Lord… Selah!
