Not Everyone

Not Everyone

“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.  
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. Away from me, you evildoers!’” 
                                                                                 Matthew 7:21-23.
If there is one thing that bothers me as a Christian it’s those who would call themselves Christians but are not. Men and women who claim to be doing the work of God yet are not coming close to doing what Christ wants.
Someone who has the spirit of Christ will exhibit what the apostle Paul when writing to the Galatians calls the fruit of the Spirit,
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  
gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”  
                                                                       Galatians 5:22,23.
A key thing in the Christians life is loving not only God and your neighbour but your enemy as well. It is showing love to those you disagree with no matter who they are or their life style.
Paul defines love as,
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 
Love never fails....
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”  
                                                                                          1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13.
We cannot win a soul to Christ if we are constantly speaking of the evils of the world. It is not our job to speak of the evils of the world. I am quite sure those living in the world know what is wrong with the world.
At the same time we cannot win a soul to Christ by even attempting to restrict the rights of any group. It is not our job to judge the world.
Paul writing to the Corinthians made this clear when he said,
"What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?  
God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.” 
                                                                  1 Corinthians 5:12,13.
When I see and hear some preachers both in the media and out I find it hard at times to see the love. And if I as a Christian can’t see the love I doubt very much that those outside the church can see the love.
We as Christians need to remember the words of Paul to the Romans,
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 
Romans 5:8.
It’s been a long time since I came to know the Lord but I know one thing. If the people leading me to Christ were constantly pointing out what sins were in my life, I would have turned away from them. I would never have made the best decision in my life.
By preachers preaching the evils of the world constantly at people is doing the same thing. They are turning people away. We cannot force Christ or our beliefs on someone it doesn’t work
Yeshuyahu Lebowitz a Judaic scholar wrote,
"You can ‘t force people to do what they don’t want to do, to feel what they don’t feel.  If someone wills one thing, you cannot tell it to will another.  It has to come from within."
                                                Yeshayahu Leibowitz,
                                                        (quoted in “Of Thorns, Idols,
                                                         and Prophecy,” Hadassah, May 1990).
What we as Christians need to do rather than constantly preaching about the evils of the world is to present the life changing message of Christ to the world.
Tony Campolo the American evangelist said,
"Let us preach Christ, let us be faithful to proclaiming the Gospel, but let's leave judgment in the hands of God."
                 Tony Campolo
Francis of Assisi said,

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace, 

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

where there is sadness, joy;

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; 

to be understood as to understand; 

to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive; 

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; 

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

                                                                                      The Prayer of St Francis of Assisi.
Think about it