False Professions

Matt. 7:21-23

We continue to look at the closing words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. He has begun His invitation. He commands His hearers to enter into by the narrow gate. His words are sobering in that they reveal that very few will actually obey His command. He closes with three things that make coming to Christ even more difficult. There are false prophets teaching false doctrine. This diverts many from the narrow way. There are also false professions. There are many that will not enter the narrow road because they think they are already on it. Finally, there are many who will not enter because they are too busy building on a false foundation. Today we will look at those who have made a false profession.

Their Confession

These are some of the most fearful words in the entire Bible. This text proves that mere belief does not secure salvation. What we have here is a classic example of faith without works. James said in James 2:17, 19 “Even so, faith if it hath not works is dead… Thou believest that there is one God, thou doest well: the devils also believe and tremble.”

A person can believe all the facts about Jesus and still perish. This group of people calls Jesus “Lord, Lord”. This proves that they were orthodox in their faith. They were not led astray by some false prophet or cult group. They had no problem with giving Jesus the glory for who He truly is. These are Bible believers. They believe in creation. They believe in the prophets. They believe in the miracles of the Bible. They believe in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. These are believers from an intellectual standpoint. They go to Sunday school. They come to church regularly. They raise their hand when the teacher is encouraging the class to speak. I can’t think of a more appropriate text to describe the present state of the church in America than these verse right here. Especially living in the South. In some towns virtually everyone will know the basics of the gospel message. A great majority of them will have been scripturally baptized. Most everyone will belong to some type of an evangelical church as well. Yet many of these people will die without Christ.

These are people that want to go to heaven. That is why they called on Christ. They have heard the reality of hell. They knew eternal punishment waits for those without Christ. They called on Christ for the purpose of salvation. Yet they are not saved. They will tell you they are saved. They often have some type of affection for Christ. If you were to ask them if they loved Jesus they would probably tell that they do. They bow their heads when it is time to pray. They respect the church. They don’t cuss around the preacher.

These are people that pray. They talk to Jesus. They say “Lord, Lord”. They may have been taught to pray since they were a small child. They may pray before they eat and when they go to bed. They may pray when times are tough. They may thank God for the blessings in their life. Jesus is talking about religious people who believe in Him but will not make it to heaven.

The reason is revealed in verse 21. They believed the facts but they did not do the will of the Father. In other words, their faith did not lead to a transformed life. I believe that these are people that came to Jesus for fire insurance. They deceived themselves into thinking they were saved. We are not saved by our works but our works do reveal our salvation. The person who believes the gospel, invites Christ into their life, but has no change of direction in their life has no reason to believe that they are saved. We are continually warned against self deception in the Scripture. 1 Cor. 6:9-10 says “Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God”. Ephesians 5:5-6 says “For this ye know that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience”. No matter how orthodox our faith may be, if it does not lead to a changed life, it is useless. To confess Christ does not mean to possess Christ.

Their Confusion

Verse 22 shows that these people will be confused on the day they are judged. They will be completely caught off guard. They were certain that they knew Christ. It is interesting that the works they claim are not works of righteousness but miraculous works. They based their assurance on the miraculous. They claimed to have prophesied, cast out devils and done wonderful (miraculous) works all in the name of Jesus. How could this be? Let’s consider a few options.

1) God allowed them to do miraculous works. We will give them the benefit of the doubt. Let’s say a person does do miraculous works in the name of Jesus. Does that mean that they are saved? Absolutely not. Balaam was a false prophet in the Old Testament yet God spoke prophetically though him (Numbers 23:5). God also used the evil king Saul to prophesy (1 Samuel 10:10). In the New Testament the High Priest, Caiaphas prophesied (John 11:51). Just because God allows a person to do or see miraculous works, that does not mean that person is saved. I have actually had people tell me they knew they were saved because some miraculous thing occurred in their life. They saw a vision, someone was healed, God answered a prayer, etc. None of these things mean a person is saved. God makes the rain fall on the just and the unjust.

2) Satan’s power gave them the ability to do miraculous works. Satan has miraculous powers. Pharaoh’s sorcerers threw down their rods and they became snakes (Exodus 7:12). Matthew 24:24 says “For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders: insomuch that if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” 2 Thess. 2:9-10 says “Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and in all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish…” A person can be used by Satan without the knowledge that they are being used by him. He is the deceiver. He blinds his subjects to the truth.

3) They were lying. It could be that these people never did nay of these things. Perhaps they thought they prophesied, cast demons out or did miracles, but in reality they did not. Possibly they know they never did any of these things and they are just lying to Christ. Whatever the case, it could be they are simply lying about all the things they did for Jesus.

The important thing to recognize in verse 22 is that the works they were clinging to were not works of righteousness. The narrow road has to do with behavior. Citizens of heaven are not known by the miracles they perform. They are known by the fruit of righteousness they bear. As well, the works they were clinging to were focused on another person. They were prophesying to another person, casting a demon out of another person, or performing a miracle for another person. The truly redeemed person is focused on personal integrity (7:5). The deceived people that Jesus was speaking about are completely confused about their salvation. They believe that it is confirmed by miraculous works rather than a changed life.

Their Condemnation

These workers of iniquity will perish for all eternity. They will be cast out by Christ Himself. The reason is that they are “workers of iniquity”. The phrase describes people that practice lawlessness. They are known by their fruit. They do not do the will of the Father. They say they are a believer but their actions say something else. It’s interesting to note that Jesus says “I never knew you”. These are not people that started off well and then fell away. These are people that never started at all. They didn’t lose their salvation, they never got it. They made an outward commitment to Jesus but He never committed Himself to them (John 2:24-25). Therefore, they are condemned for all eternity. Jesus says that many will go this way. Many in our communities and even in our churches believe they are saved, but they are not. How could this be?

1) They heard the wrong gospel. Perhaps they heard the gospel of easy believism. They were told simply believe in Jesus. Some preacher hurried them along the path, baptized them, and made them a church member. Maybe one day in a Sunday school class the students were told to raise their hand if they wanted to go to heaven. They raised their hand, were baptized and assured they were saved. Perhaps they were told that if they would be baptized they would be saved. Maybe they were told if they joined the church they would be saved. May people are deceived because they either heard part of the gospel or a false gospel altogether.

2) They were told to never doubt. I have actually heard people tell others that if they ever doubt their salvation, that is from the devil. I think that is a ridiculous statement. I am aware that Satan may cay cause us to doubt our salvation. However, to think that he is the only one that would cause us to doubt our salvation is completely unbiblical. Spiritual immaturity can cause us to doubt (2 Peter 1:3-11). The Holy Spirit can also cause us to doubt. In fact He is the One that came to us in the first place and showed us our need of salvation. If The Holy Spirit does not cause us to doubt, why would Paul tell us to examine ourselves to determine if we are saved or not (2 Cor. 13:5). The reality is that people can be deceived into thinking they are saved when they are not. Thankfully, God’s grace sends the Holy Spirit to tell people that they are not saved. If the church goes around telling people that all doubt is fro the devil then the church is working directly against the Holy Spirit. Which means we are working against God.

Folks, we are talking about souls here. This is no time for cute cliques we have heard from preachers. We need to be wise. We should allow God to give people the assurance of their salvation. After all, we can’t see a person’s heart. All we can go on is whether or not a person believes the facts about the gospel. As far as their heart, we don’t know. I am convinced that if a person knows Christ God will give them assurance as they seek Him. Romans 8:14-17 says “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry Abba Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our Spirit that we are the children of God.”

Our society is full of people that believe the gospel but it has not made a change in their life. Some are not involved with religious things at all, but they are intellectual believers. Others are in church every Sunday, but they live sinful lives. Everyone that claims to know Christ should take the advice of Paul and examine themselves to see if their profession is true or false. May who claim to be on the narrow road, and appear to be on the narrow road, and believe they are on the narrow road are actually on the broad road. They are headed for destruction. Let us hear Jesus call and enter in through Him.