Quote:
Originally Posted by bearbear
Assuming you are right about the knowing part, we also have to deal with the other words "you workers of lawlessness" in Matthew 7:21-23
The word for lawlessness is anomia in Greek: "lawlessness; the utter disregard for God's law (His written and living Word)." ( https://biblehub.com/greek/458.htm)
When Jesus expected Nicodemus to know about the new birth in John 3:10, he was likely referring to Ezekiel 36:26-27 which describes the process of being born again:
"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws."
Someone who is truly born again with God's spirit will follow the law of Christ in the New Covenant to love God, love neighbor and practice Jesus' teachings. That Jesus labeled the false disciples as "lawless" shows that they did not participate in this new birth.
I also didn't make this up. I'm just paraphrasing what the Apostle John wrote in his epistle who described "lawlessness" in the same manner. He also flips the direction of "knowing" in Matthew 7:23 from Jesus to us to us to Jesus.
1 John 3:4-8
Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning.
Even the Antichrist is labeled as "the man of lawlessness" (2 Thessalonians 2:3). |
Both the histories of Israel and the Church are filled with leaders who were "workers of lawlessness." That's just a fact. Yes, indeed, there will soon be a "Man of Sin," but there will be many, many more. One of the Original Apostles was also "a devil," and he was chosen by the Lord Himself after praying the whole night!
Had the Gospels been written chronologically as they were witnessed, the record would have spoken quite well of Judas, would it not? Did he not recline next to Jesus at the Lord's Supper? John leaned on the Lord's breast, but the Lord leaned on Judas' breast. Judas was the Lord's personal assistant, His Valet. He had the money bag because he made all the daily arrangements for food and lodging. Yet no one knew Judas' true character under fire, perhaps not even Judas himself. What was recorded in John 13 was totally unknown to all of them except the Lord Himself.
This is the dilemma we all face. Are we seeking the approval of God or man? I'm sure all of these "workers of lawlessness" were loved and appreciated by man, by their congregations. Will not the eventual "Man of Sin" also be viewed as the "savior of the world" establishing "Peace and Security?"
Matthew 7 is a warning to us all, especially those in leadership. I am named after a Franciscan Monk who gave his life to serve God, living a life of poverty, yet he never once spoke to me of Jesus, the Gospel, or the Bible. When I first got saved I was so excited about the Lord, yet my namesake informed the family that I was a radical, and must be in a cult. Who do you think they believed? Yet before my salvation, I was the lawless one, and he was the "holy, Man of God." So ironic.
My point is to not look at these verses simplistically. These verses warn and expose the thoughts and intents of the heart. For all of us. Not just the so-called "bad guys," the obviously unrighteous "sinners," but even those who are deceived by their own works.