“Lord, Lord”
Grace to you and peace from
God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
“Not everyone who
says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven.” We need to let these words have their way with us. The
common view of heaven is that all decent people go there when they die. It is
not so. It is not the repository of all the dead minus the Hitlers and Bin
Ladens. It does not matter how pious or sincere or good a Muslim or a Bhuddist
or a Mormon is. No one comes to the Father except through the Son. There is no
other name under heaven by which men are saved. More than that, not even
everyone who is baptized will enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Repent. Heed the warning. Sin is a wily seductress. She
corrupts the hearts of men. She turns fathers and husbands into cowardly, lying
sneaks who seek their thrills in the dark and destroy their children and their
wives. It is not merely the arrogant or the rich or the weak who are
susceptible. It strikes clergy and laity, men and women, adults and children,
rich and poor. It turns them inward, fills them with anger, lust, and greed. It
never delivers. It never satisfies. It only breeds discontentment and hardens
consciences. Repent. Pornography kills. Gossip destroys. Pride crushes all
virtue. “Not everyone who says to Me,
‘Lord, Lord’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Repent. Now is the
hour of Salvation. Tomorrow it may be too late. Repent.
No man can stand against the Law. It is a standard, a
demand, too perfect and holy for us. Any comparison we make with our lives is
damning. It always accuses us. We are fallen, sin-infected. That is why we are
tempted to flee from the Law or make up new Laws that are easier to keep. But
that does not remove the Law’s condemnation. It is just another excuse. It is
just a temporary delusion that will be stripped away in Hell’s fire. Repent.
Those who are saved, those who enter the kingdom of heaven,
are not saved by saying, “Lord, Lord.”
They are saved when our Lord says, “You are forgiven. Take, eat. Go in peace.”
They are not saved by prophesying, casting out demons, or performing other
wonders. Those who are saved are passive. They do not save themselves. They are
saved by the Lord. He is the Actor. He is calling their names.
Where can those weary of the Law’s demands and their
failure find rest? Find your rest here, in the life, death, and resurrection of
Jesus Christ. He has come into the world and taken up your Flesh in order to
fulfill the Law for you. He has not come to condemn or to accuse you. He has
come to save you. He has reconciled you to the Father. He has declared you
righteous. He has intervened on your behalf. He has called you by name, brought
you to Himself through the waters of Holy Baptism. He has planted and nourished
your faith. He pardons your sin, removes your guilt, and welcomes you into the
fellowship of the Holy Spirit, into His kingdom.
The will of the Father for you is that you turn from sin,
repent, confess, and throw yourself upon His mercy. His will is that Jesus does
your work and pays your penalty so that you would get the benefit and reward.
Those who do the Father’s will—that is, those who are washed in Christ’s Blood, who
eat and drink the body and blood of Jesus—enter and abide in the Kingdom of
heaven. By grace they call Him, “Lord,”
but only after He has called them by His name. You are there now, in the
kingdom. For behold, the Kingdom of heaven is within you. It is Jesus Christ.
You are His Temple, His chosen vessel. Jesus Christ abides in you, and He will
not let you go. In the name of the Father and of the Son (†) and of the
Holy Spirit. Amen.
The
peace of God which passes all understanding will keep your hearts and minds in
Christ Jesus always. Amen.
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