“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” – Mt. 7:21
The who, what, when, where and how of entering the Kingdom… A Now and Later Compilation
Who: Not everyone that saith unto me Lord, Lord
Not everyone that calls Christ his Lord and Master, professes subjection to him, or that calls upon his name, or is called by his name; or makes use of it in his public ministrations. There are many who desire to be called, and accounted Christians, and who make mention of the name of Christ in their sermons, only to take away their reproach, to cover themselves, and gain credit with, and get into the affections and goodwill of the people; but have no hearty love to Christ, nor true faith in him: nor is it their concern to preach his Gospel, advance his glory, and promote his kingdom and interest; their chief view is to please men, aggrandize themselves, and set up the power of human nature in opposition to the grace of God, and the righteousness of Christ. Now not everyone of these, no, not any of them,
shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.
This is to be understood not of the outward dispensation of the Gospel, or the Gospel church state, or the visible church of Christ on earth, in which sense this phrase is sometimes used; because such persons may, and often do, enter here; but of eternal glory, into which none shall enter,
but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
This, as it may regard private Christians, intends not merely outward obedience to the will of God, declared in his law, nor barely subjection to the ordinances of the Gospel; but more especially faith in Christ for life and salvation; which is the source of all true evangelical obedience, and without which nothing is acceptable to God. He that seeth the Son, looks unto him, ventures on him, commits himself to him, trusts in him, relies on him, and believes on him for righteousness, salvation, and eternal life, he it is that does the will of the Father, and he only; and such an one, as he is desirous of doing the will of God in all acts of cheerful obedience to it, without dependence thereon; so he shall certainly enter the kingdom of heaven, and have everlasting life; see ( John 6:40 ) but as these words chiefly respect preachers, the sense of them is this, that only such who are faithful dispensers of the word shall enter into the joy of their Lord. Such do the will of Christ’s Father, and so his own, which are the same, who fully and faithfully preach the Gospel of the grace of God; who declare the whole counsel of God, and keep back nothing that is profitable to the souls of men; who are neither ashamed of the testimony of Christ, nor afraid of the faces of men; but as they are put in trust with the Gospel, so they speak it boldly, with all sincerity, not as pleasing men, but God, and commend themselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God: such as these shall have an abundant entrance into the kingdom and glory of God
Yet our Lord says warily, not “the will of your Father,” but “of My Father”; thus claiming a relationship to His Father with which His disciples might not intermeddle, and which He never lets down.
22. Many will say to me in that day–What day? It is emphatically unnamed. But it is the day to which He had just referred, when men shall “enter” or not enter “into the kingdom of heaven.” (See a similar way of speaking of “that day” in 2 Timothy 1:12 , 4:8 ).
Lord, Lord–The reiteration denotes surprise. “What, Lord? How is this? Are we to be disowned?”
have we not prophesied–or, “publicly taught.” As one of the special gifts of the Spirit in the early Church, it has the sense of “inspired and authoritative teaching,” and is ranked next to the apostleship. (See 1 Corinthians 12:28 , Ephesians 4:11 ). In this sense it is used here, as appears from what follows.
in thy name–or, “to thy name,” and so in the two following clauses–“having reference to Thy name as the sole power in which we did it.”
and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works–or, miracles. These are selected as three examples of the highest services rendered to the Christian cause, and through the power of Christ’s own name, invoked for that purpose; The threefold repetition of the question, each time in the same form, expresses in the liveliest manner the astonishment of the speakers at the view now taken of them.
- And then will I profess unto them–or, openly proclaim–tearing off the mask.
I never knew you–What they claimed intimacy with Christ, is just what He repudiates, and with a certain scornful dignity. “Our acquaintance was not broken off–there never was any.”
depart from me–(Compare Matthew 25:41). The connection here gives these words an awful significance. They claimed intimacy with Christ, and in the corresponding passage, Luke 13:26, are represented as having gone out and in with Him on familiar terms. “So much the worse for you,” He replies: “I bore with that long enough; but now–begone!”
ye that work iniquity–not “that wrought iniquity”; for they are represented as fresh from the scenes and acts of it as they stand before the Judge. - Therefore–to bring this discourse to a close.
whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them–see James 1:22, which seems a plain allusion to these words; also Luke 11:28, Romans 2:13 , 1 John 3:7.
I will liken him unto a wise man–a shrewd, prudent, provident man.
which built his house upon a rock–the rock of true discipleship, or genuine subjection to Christ.
https://www.biblestudytools.com/matthew/7-21.html
What: The kingdom of God is God’s spiritual reign in the life of the believer that resulted in an innerchange affecting moral ethics. This change focused on Jesus’ teachings concerning the universal Fatherhood of God, the infinite value of the human soul, and the love commandment.
Like the liberal interpretation of the nineteenth century, modern attempts to eliminate the eschatological dimensions of Jesus’ teachings by seeing them as symbols to which the present reader gives his or her own meaning, are also impossible to accept. One simply cannot eliminate the eschatological dimension of Jesus’ teachings. The biblical evidence will not permit it.
The “Consistent” or Future Kingdom. Since the kingdom of God was seen by most Jews in Jesus’ day as a future, supernatural kingdom that would bring history to a close, it was logical to think that Jesus thought similarly. Jesus’ sayings concerning the kingdom of God would have been understood by his audience as referring to such a kingdom, and since Jesus made no radical attempt to correct such thinking, we must understand his teachings on the kingdom of God as eschatological.
According to this view Jesus taught that the kingdom of God, which would bring history to its end, was future. Yet this event lay not in the far distant future. On the contrary, it was very near. It had not yet arrived, but it was to appear momentarily. Signs and powers of the kingdom were already at work, and pre-figurements of its glory were already present. Soon the Son of Man would come, the final judgment would take place, and world history as we know it would cease. During this in-between period believers were to live ethically. They were to avoid divorce, refrain from marriage, love their enemies, turn the other cheek, not retaliate, give to whoever had a need.
It is clear that this interpretation takes seriously the future dimension of Jesus’ sayings concerning the kingdom of God. On the other hand, it ignored another kind of saying found in the Gospels, which involves the announcement that the kingdom has already in some way come. These sayings involving the arrival of the kingdom of God were usually seen as inauthentic and later creations of the church by advocates of this view.
When: The “Realized” or Present Kingdom. Jesus did announce the coming of the awaited kingdom. However, he did not announce that it was coming in the near future. On the contrary, he announced that it had already arrived. Now in Jesus’ ministry the kingdom of God had already come. There was therefore no need to look for something in the future. The Son of Man had already come, and he had brought with him the kingdom. Nothing is still awaited. In its entirety the kingdom of God was realized in the coming of Jesus.
The Biblical Evidence. It is evident that there is biblical evidence to support both the “consistent” and “realized” views. In certain passages, for example, it is clear that the kingdom of God is future. In the Lord’s prayer we pray”Your kingdom come” ( Luke 11:2 ), and the kingdom must as a result be future. Jesus’ saying that “Not everyone who says to me‘Lord, Lord, ‘ will enter the kingdom of God” must also refer to a future event, for he continues “Many will say to me on that day” ( Matt 7:21-23 ). Other passages associate the coming of the kingdom of God with the final judgment ( Matt 5:19-20 ; 8:11-12 ; 25:31-46 ; Luke 13:22-30 ).It cannot be denied therefore that there are numerous passages in the Gospels that indicate that Jesus understood the kingdom of God to be still future.
Where: In other passages, however, it is equally clear that the kingdom of God is already present. Jesus told his hearers “if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you” ( Luke 11:20 ; cf. Matt 12:28 ). In four of the other instances where the same verb “has come” (ephthasen) is used in the New Testament it clearly means “has arrived, ” is “now present” ( Rom9:31 ; 2 Col10:14 ; Php 3:16 ; 1 Thess 2:16 ).In the other instance where it is future, however, the tense is future (phthasomen, 1 Thess 4:15 ).Elsewhere Jesus declared that his coming marked the end of the old era when he said”The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached” ( Luke 16:16 ). Here two distinct periods of history are distinguished. The former is referred to as the period of the Law and the prophets. The second is the period of the kingdom of God. John the Baptist is seen as a bridge who both brings the “old” to its conclusion and announces the breaking in of the “new.” This “new” thing, which cannot be mixed with the old ( Mr 2:21-22 ),which gathers the outcasts ( Matt 11:4-6 ) and the lost tribes of Israel ( Mark 3:13-19 ; Matt 19:28 ), which manifests signs and marvels ( Matt 13:16-17 ),which inaugurates a new covenant ( 1 Cor 11:25 ), is nothing other than the arrival of the kingdom of God. Jesus also announced that now already the long-awaited messianic banquet had begun ( Luke 14:15-24 ).The kingdom of God was now in their presence ( Luke 17:20-21 — “among” is a better translation than “within” )
However, the consummation of the “already now” still lies in the future. The coming of the Son of Man, the final resurrection, faith turning to sight, are “not yet.” The kingdom of God is both now and not yet. Thus the kingdom of God is”realized” and present in one sense, and yet “consistent” and future in another. This is not a contradiction, but simply the nature of the kingdom. The kingdom has come in fulfillment of the Old Testament promises. A new covenant has been established. But its final manifestation and consummation lie in the future. Until then we are to be good and faithful servants ( Luke 19:11-27 ).
Implications... If, the kingdom is both already now and not yet, the believer must be on guard against the danger of emphasizing one aspect of the kingdom at the expense of the other. A one-sided emphasis on the “already now”, which emphasizes miracles, healing, victory over sin, and gifts God has given his church, and ignores the “not yet” may result in disillusionment. Jesus’ teachings concerning the tribulation (s) that lay ahead (Mark 13; Matt. 24-25; Luke 21) warn against such disillusion. The symbol of discipleship Jesus gave to his disciples is that of bearing a cross! The crown awaits the consummation. The enjoyment of the firstfruits of the kingdom must be tempered by the fact that we still live by faith and not sight. We still long for the perishable to become clothed with the imperishable, the mortal with immortality ( 1 Cor 15:53 ). In the meantime we are called to endure to the end.
https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/kingdom-of-god/
Bases of entering the Kingdom of God…The New Birth– (John 3(NKJV) The WORD of the Lord…
1There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”
How: 3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born [a]again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”
5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
9 Nicodemus answered and said to Him, “How can these things be?”
10 Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things? 11 Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man [b]who is in heaven. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should [c]not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”
- Must (Whoever) believe in Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, and His finished work for Salvation
- Must be born of the water and the Spirit
- Must observe and practice biblical truth by faith
“For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.”–Romans 1:17, KJV
Compiled by,
Dr. Clara Malvin
Leave a Reply