“And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?”  (Luke 6)

“…Lord, when saw we [T]hee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto [T]hee?…..And these shall go away into everlasting punishment…”  (Matthew 25)

 

The first thing to note in both of these passages is the term, Lord.  These persons who are in dersision, addressed Christ as Lord…it is shameful that those who are actually His servants, do not address Him with respect….it is shameful that God’s people address the Son of God as “Jesus” as if He were on our level. We have written on this neglect before and (DV) we will again, but it is not our focus in this article.

Again, the first thing to note is those in derision address Christ as Lord.  However, the Lord does not recognize them as true servants and He dispatches them as He does those He has never known.  To be sure, Christ has known these wicked liars as their very prayers were an abomination in His holy ears.  What does He then mean?  How can He say, “I never knew you?”  The same way a man can say he never knew his neighbors wife.  The same way Abraham cannot say, “I never knew you,” to his wife, Sarah. The same way God can say He knew His elect from eternity past.

Those that are the focus of Christ’s derision think they have done well, they think they have served God or do they?  Reader, a person can deceive others for so long that they deceive themselves.  The Scriptures speak of those that deceive and are deceived!!!  These persons in divine derision believe themselves to be true. The alternative is they believe they can deceive God as they have deceived God’s people….”Be not deceived, God is not mocked…”

In the first (1st) passage, Christ asks those that follow Him, why they refer to Him as Lord, Lord, but do not then obey Him as Lord.  Christ states elsewhere, “He that keeps [M]y [W]ords is my disciple, indeed.”  and “He that loves [M]e will keep [M]y commands.”  Reader, these are positive statements, but let us look at the negative side to glean His full meaning.  The person who does not keep His Word is not His disciple and he that does not keep His commands does not love Him….simple doctrine.

Professing, but false believer,  We write this to you.  We write this not in the spirit of judgment or anger but in the spirit of tenderness and in the desire to see you “stand in faith.”  What it is you have been pretending can be real and true and sound.  We have known many false believers over the years.  These have been nice persons, good persons (by human standards), these were persons we enjoyed being around and spending time with. These were persons that were better “Christ-ians,” in some cases, than the real thing!!!  They attended church. they sang the hymns, they attended the pot lucks, they loved the church family…the only thing that was missing was salvation and a true love for Christ.  The church may have forgiven their past wrongs, but God had not.
Sometimes a false believer is benign and causes no damage, other times a false believer, like a false teacher can cause great damage.  The false believer will use worldly standards and ways in their dealings with Christ-ians.  A great harm is done when a false believer is voted in as a memeber and given a vote.  This dynamic has split many a church.

Ways that a false believer can damage a church:
*The church members may really love the f.b. (False believer) and other church members may see right through the f.b. and recognize that f.b. as unsaved.  This will cause a division among the church members. Words like Salvation Police and Super-Saint, Legalist and unloving will be thrown around.
*When a subject that requires a vote comes up, a f.b. can really cause trouble as they will take a stand and get others to stand with them until an empasse is arrived at.
*The f.b. can cause the Christ-ian community to lower their standards to include other f.bs.
The list could go on, but this should suffice.

We have actually felt embarrassment for others who pretend to be a saint.  We have been dumbfounded when a person has betrayed themselves to be a f.b. and either no one noticed or no one cared.

Who is at risk of being a f.b. or at risk of being taken in by a cult?
*Preacher’s family members
*Persons born into a Christ-ian family
*Lonely persons
*Illegal Aliens
*Newly legalized citizens
*Those new to a community
*Those in need of financial aid or other types of help
*Borderline personalities
*Members of the occult
*THose looking for acceptance
*Those pushed, conned or guilted in to professing faith in Christ
*Former atheists
*Convicted criminals
This list is not exhaustive.

What should one do if they find themselves to be a false believer?  One should continue to attend church services, one should read the Bible, one should call upon God to grant them repentance and faith.  One should not take part in church business that requires a vote, one should not try to get others to see things their way.  One should go to the pastor and confide in him but do not take part in the bow your head and say this prayer…you already know that didn’t work for you before because God wasn’t in it.  Wait for God to initiate your true quickening.
A word of comfort…if you are concerned about this you are either *At the door step of the kingdom or  *you are saved and you are being too hard on yourself.  The wicked does not concern themselves with these matters, only those who are being dealt with by God concern themselves with this matter.

We know a women who is a pastor’s daughter and said the sinners prayer as a child and for years knew she was not saved.  We were present the day she stood up and confessed this before the church body and then gave herself to Christ.  She pretended for twenty-four (24) years.  I know many others with the same experience…if this is you, Reader, you are not alone.
There is a man in Scripture that came to Christ seeking help. Christ asked him, if he believed, the man cried out, “I believe, help [T]hou my unbelief….”  Many a person believes the Gospel with all their head….they even live according to God’s Word, but in their heart they are missing something….love for the Saviour.  Others may love the idea of Christ but they cannot bring themselves to believe cognitively in such a great thing.  yet others may live according to God’s commands, but neither truly love Him or even really believe in Him.

You see, reader, all lost persons are subject to the above and that is why salvation requires a Work of God, it is God Alone that can take our whole person, unite our whole person, and bring our whole person to an understanding, a belief, and a true love for the Saviour, “with man it is impossible” “but with God all things are possible.”  It is God Alone that will bring our thoughts, our feelings, and our will together in unison and cause them to be subject to His thoughts, feelings, and will.

Reader,
Do you love Christ?  Do you obey Him?  Do you keep His Words?  Do you keep His commands?  Do you love His Word, the Bible?  Do you love the Lord’s people?  Is the Saviour your Lord?  He will not save anyone who will not submit to Him as Lord…that is what repentance and belief is, Reader.
Reader, Do you long for His return? Do you look for His return?  Do you love the thought of His return?
Reader, Do you pray…do you commune with Him?  Do you walk with Him as Abraham did?  As Enoch did?  as Noah did?  as the eleven (11) did  or as the other one (1) did? or Do you walk with Him as Paul did?

Reader, When all is troublesome, can you say, “It is well with my soul?”  When everything seems dark and dreadful, can you say, “It is well with my soul?”  When the sea billows roll, can you say, “it is well…it is well…it is well with my soul?”

God will not be mocked, tricked, or fooled.  God will, however love and honour those that love and honour Him…in truth and purity.