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Doing The Will Of The Father - Matthew 7:21
Doing The Will Of The Father - Matthew 7:21
“So, who DO you think is going to heaven?”
Whoever DOES the will of God.
Legalist! You are teaching salvation ‘by works’.
The problem with this conversation, is that it is Jesus who is giving the answer! It is Jesus who said: "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter” (Matthew 7:21)
Sin is lawlessness (1John 3:4) [transgression of law KJV]. For one to know the will of God and not do it, it is sin (James 4:17). In fact, Jesus stated that ‘If you love me, you will keep my commandments’ (John 14:15). The great commission was not only to make believers, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but also ‘to teach them to observe (keep, do, obey) all things that I (Jesus) have commanded” (Matt. 28:18-20).
God’s teaching show us how we can do what is right. It specifies what is wrong and forbids us from doing such. It also specifies what is right and demands that we do such. Thus, we strive to walk with God by obeying all his teachings. We partake of the Lord’s supper, we love our wives, we flee fornication, we study our bibles, we pay our bills.. All of this is RIGHT and is what we OUGHT TO DO.
BUT we fail, we fall short, we sin. In all our striving to do right, we find that we sometimes sin. NOW we turn to God thru Jesus for forgiveness. There are conditions that God has stipulated for such forgiveness.
Believe in Jesus: "Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." John 8:24
Confess our faith: “that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation” (Romans 10:9-10).
Repent and Be baptized in the name of Jesus: “Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38
Having become disciples, we STILL find that we sometimes sin. To deny such is to deceive ourselves: “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8). BUT, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1John 1:9). When Simon sinned after he had believed and was baptized, he was instructed: "Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord that, if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you” (Acts 8:22). In addition to these conditions, Jesus also stated: "For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions” (Matthew 6:14-15).
Having been forgiven, we again set out to glorify God by following His teaching and keeping His commandments. When we yet again find we have sinned, we don’t despair. Rather, we again turn to God for forgiveness. In the end, after all our striving to live righteously, we are saved by the grace and mercy of God who forgives us thru Jesus. Are you forgiven?
Hugh DeLong
