Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.
Many will say to me on that day,o ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?’
Then I will declare to them solemnly, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.’ (Matthew 7:21-23 NABRE)
What distinguishes a true follower of Jesus? And why does it matter? In today's passage from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us something about his expectation of us as Christians.
This statement is an indictment of those disciples who perform works of healing and exorcism in the name of Jesus but live evil lives. On the day of judgment the morally corrupt prophets and miracle workers will be rejected by Jesus.*
A true follower of Christ takes care to keep his own heart clean and his lifestyle pure. Christians seek to understand and do the will of God the Father. Jesus tells us it is only by this means we will enter the kingdom of heaven.
Today, I will continue to seek and discern the will of God for my life so that I might do as he intends.
Blessed Jutta of Thuringia, who disposed of your wealth after your husband’s death and devoted your life to caring for those who had no means, pray for us.
No comments:
Post a Comment