Giving Glory

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast." ~Paul

I can't imagine standing before the judgement seat of God and boasting about what great things I've done for him. Sadly, there will be many people that do just that. Some even plan it. They seem to believe that when they die they will stand trial. They don't understand the trial's over, it's a judgement before a holy King. Jesus talks about the religious person's form of this self deception. He gives an example of what he'll hear from them. "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?" Those are some pretty hefty credentials if you ask me! The King will tell them plainly, "I never knew you. Away from me, you evil doers!"

I was puzzled by this passage in Matthew chapter 7 for quite some time. These people seemed to be doing God's work in his name and they called him Lord. It brought a chill to think about them spending their lives prophesying, driving out demons and doing miracles using the name of someone they didn't even know. They were false teachers and prophets. I was drawn to this passage again and again because I was blinded by their credentials until it occurred to me that they were giving absolutely no glory to Jesus. Yes, they called him "Lord" and they did some fine things in his name but when I read the verse again, they stood before him and took credit for those fine things! "Did WE not..." There was no humility as they proclaimed themselves worthy of salvation by their works. I look at what they did compared to my meager service in the Lord's name and it makes me so grateful I was given faith so that through it, I received grace. The good works he's prepared for me to do are just icing on the cake!

"The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love." ~Paul