"LORD, LORD, DID WE NOT...?"
"Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.'" Matthew 7:22-23
What a fearsome condemnation will be meted out to unsuspecting souls when they meet Jesus at the judgment. Though they assume they are 'safe' from censure or shortcomings, and, in fact, believe they deserve commendation for all they have done in the name of Jesus during their lifetime, they will instead meet the worst of words: "Depart from Me!" How final those words are!
In recent days when elaborating on those verses, some trusted ministers on TV have claimed they refer to a person who never was really born again. Seemingly they mimicked true Christians in performing spiritual acts of delivering people from demon-possession or oppression, of bringing about physical healing or other such miracles, and of foretelling future events in this world.
At first blush, their reasoning seems plausible. Jesus said, "I never knew you." Sounds like they were never saved at all. However, closer consideration reveals that their argument is a cover-up for the damning doctrine of eternal security. We cannot stand on this scripture reference alone to ascertain what Jesus really meant. So, the following account of Jesus' healing of a blind and mute man who was demon-possessed provides new insight:
"But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, 'This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.' And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, 'Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.'" Matthew 12:22-28
When the Pharisees saw that Jesus delivered the man from demons and, as a result, restored his hearing and speech, they accused Him of performing such a miracle by the power of the devil! Which argument Jesus countered with the truth that the devil would not cast himself or his minions out of a person already in their clutches! Only by the divine power of God could demons be cast out of a human being, a truth the Pharisees refused to ackmowledge. They were totally unwilling to believe Jesus was the Son of God or divine. Call it by the right name: unbelief!
So, Jesus refuted the possibility that ministers and other believers of the Gospel could ever minister true deliverance to a demon-possessed person if they themselves were not first intimately joined to Him in salvation and Holy Spirit power. Those who laid claim to their good works before Jesus as an avenue to entering heaven really had prayed deliverance from demons for people under their ministry. At the time they did it, they were true disciples of Jesus. God honored their prayers and authority over demonic powers.
We must conclude that between the deliverances and miracles they performed and the day of judgment, something happened that brought only condemnation from Jesus' lips. It is this truth that exposes the heresy of Eternal Security doctrine as found in Ezekiel:
"But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity and does according to all the abominations that a wicked man does, will he live? All his righteous deeds which he has done will not be remembered for his treachery which he has committed and his sin which he has committed; for them he will die." Ezekiel 18:24
When Jesus tells a "good-works-claimer" that he deserves only hell, He says, "I never knew you." Just as surely as He forgets our sins and puts them from His memory as far as the east is from the west, in exactly the same way His forgetfulness holds true for a believer and his good works if and when he allows himself to fall out of love with Jesus in the secret places of the heart. Visibly he or she may appear to be the same in faith and devotion to Jesus, but pride and the love of praise and recognition replace Jesus on the heart's throne. That domination is called SELF! and is idolatry in its worst form.
Jesus on judgment day will say, "I never knew you." All the good works done when the believer was humble and a servant in Jesus' sight will be forgotten when that same individual stands before Him, a proud and self-serving idolator.
Some might argue that if he was backslidden, how could he continue to cast out demons? I would reply that for the sake of the oppressed whom God loves, He would continue to honor the deliverance ministry. One's Spirit-endowed gifts are without repentance on God's part. He honors His own name and His promises unconditionally. But the one who usurps that power and promise for his own aggrandizement will pay the consequences at the judgment. What a fearsome deception!