By Claudius
Years ago, there was a preacher who said, “Teenagers often come to me and ask, ‘how far can we go and still be saved?’” In his thick Eastern European accent, he would reply, “If you have to ask how far is too far… IT’S TOO FAR!” It was humorous and we all laughed. But isn’t it true? We just want to know exactly what is required from us to enter heaven. We want to know what behaviors and attitudes we should cultivate to secure our salvation. If someone would just give us a list of requirements for salvation, it would be such a relief! Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. In fact, what we are called to do is to look past the rules and laws completely. We are called to look past distractions created by our desire to conform to the model of the kingdom accepted by man. We are even called to look past the eternal life offered to us. Although it may strike us as counterintuitive, we are simply called to know and walk with God. To fulfill this calling, we must forget the list.
Table of Contents
‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’”
Jesus predicts that many will approach Him at the end of days with a list of deeds and works that they believe will grant them access to paradise in one of the most terrifying passages in the Bible: “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’” (Matt. 7:22-24). What list might we bring with is when we meet Christ? Some proud souls might say, “Lord, look at me. I didn’t curse, drink, smoke, or hang out with non-Christians. I went to church, youth group, sat front row, even took notes! I only listened to worship music! I prophesied in Your name, I drove out demons and performed miracles in Your name. LOOK at the LIST! LOOK at how much good I did!” But Jesus will look at these people and say, “Depart from me, I NEVER KNEW YOU.”
‘I Followed All The Rules and Laws’
Can you imagine that? Can you imagine the pain you would feel, knowing that all your life you tried your best to be a good, well-behaved Christian for nothing? You tried to follow the rules and obeyed the laws and behaved the way you thought a Christian should behave and it was all for nothing! It was all in vain! Now the God that you served your whole life says, “I never knew you.” Does that anger you? Does it frustrate you? Does it bother you to think that all the good you have done could be useless? If this makes your blood boil, it’s probably because you find yourself in this group of ‘believers.’ You probably find yourself alongside many of us who have at one point been deceived to focus on behavior and rules rather than relationship.
Will You Still Follow Jesus if Heaven or Hell Didn’t Exist?
The other day, I asked a friend these questions: “If heaven and hell didn’t exist, if there was no afterlife, would you still follow Christ? Would you still want to serve Christ? Would you still want to tell the world about Christ?” The answers to these questions can be revealing. Are you a follower of the Christ because you want paradise? Are you striving every day for some sort of spiritual perfection because you wish to avoid an eternity suffering in hell? In other words, does your faith originate from fear rather than love? If it does, scripture states that you are in danger, my friend. You are in danger of arriving at the gates of Heaven with the list. You are in danger of wasting a lifetime abiding by rules in the flawed hope of getting your passport stamped for entry into the eternal city of God, only to find out that your passport is invalid, the stamp doesn’t exist, and your self-imposed obedience to the artificial rules on your list was futile because you didn’t pursue a relationship with Jesus and He never knew you.
Our Creator Wants Intimacy
God has been so good to me, so wonderful to me, that my loyalty to Him and my desire to serve him eclipses any promise of heaven or fear of hell. Even if I would find out that there is no afterlife, my loyalty to Christ and what He did for me would propel me to serve Him without any expectations. Our Love for Christ is what matters; our concerns for abiding by a code of conduct or achieving good deeds are a waste of time without a love and adoration for the Law-Giver. Our creator wants communion with us. He wants a relationship with us. He wants to know us and for us to know Him. Our creator wants intimacy with us. Like Enoch, He wants to walk with us, and He wants us to walk with Him. We are called to follow Christ because He is worthy and loves us unconditionally. We are called to express this same love in return.
Does Your Love for God Radiate Towards Others?
In his letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul exemplifies the form of love every Christian is called to practice in a passage that once destroyed my worldview. You see, Paul was so in love with God, and who God is, that he was naturally compelled to love others more than himself. Paul’s love reflects how God selflessly and radically loved us, offering His Son as a sacrifice to atone for all the sins that we might proudly claim to have avoided on our list. Paul also refused to put any value in his accomplishments relating to his calling. He’s unfazed by the thought of God not recognizing the number of people he successfully reached through his ministry. The list he might have compiled recording these accomplishments would’ve been irrelevant. We are called to practice this kind of love, to love Him without regard for ourselves. Paul actually says that he desires to be isolated from Christ in order to see others know the salvation offered through Christ Jesus: “For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race” (Rom. 9:3). His love for God is so incredibly strong that his radical brotherly love supersedes his concern for himself! As a result, his love for God made him Christlike: He loves others in the same selfless way as Christ, who desired to give up His heavenly throne and sacrifice himself for the salvation of the world.
A Higher Calling
CS Lewis once wrote, “A man is never so proud as when striking an attitude of humility.” When we look at ourselves, at our lives, at our behaviors and deeds, we can become proud and feel secure in them and end up missing out on a relationship with our creator. A concern for the list is rooted in pride. We have a higher calling than following a list of rules or recording a list of deeds. We are called to put our faith, trust and belief in the Lord Jesus Christ. Our calling is communion with the Holy God. We are called to know Him. We are called to serve Him, to trust Him, to love Him. We are called to live in His presence.
Forget The List
My friends, I encourage you today, forget the list. Forget the deeds. Forget your obsession with behaving a certain way or playing a certain part. Look past all of that nonsense and look directly into the eyes of Elyon! The Most High God! The God of gods and the King of kings! Know Him. Walk with Him. Serve Him. And above all, Love Him.
