‘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 who is in heaven. Matthew 7:21, NIV

 

What are your motives for being a Christian, whether in your everyday life, perhaps in your business or even if you are in a ministry?

 

We must each ask ourselves, “Why am I a Christian and do I follow Jesus Christ? Do I really love the Lord and am I obedient to his desire and expectation of my life? Have I ever been serious about knowing what his purpose for my life is?”

 

Or am I perhaps following Him for ‘what is in it’ for me? Do I want to impress someone with it to gain something from it – acceptance and ‘love’, or even more income and profit, for myself – so that things can go well with me or even better?

 

And if God does not bless it?

 

Do I regard his blessings as the grace of a loving Father – enabling me to serve and be a blessing to someone else in turn – or is it an asset I insist on?

 

I shudder to think that one might subconsciously or even consciously be abusing Christianity – one’s part of Christ’s body and kingdom – and exploiting it for nothing but egoism, selfishness and greed. This means that one wants to use Him only as an ‘assistant’ for one’s prosperity and prestige and to get to heaven. It’s despicable, an abomination.

 

In Matthew 7:21 we read, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Read verses 21-27 as well as Luke 13:25-28)

 

Prayer: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23-24) Amen.