WORKS JUST WON'T WORK!

"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.  Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name, and in Thy name have cast out devils, and in Thy name done many wonderful works?'  And then will I profess unto them, 'I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity'" (Mt. 7:21-23).

The Lord's first recorded sermon, the "Sermon on the Mount" (Mt. 5 - 7), was given before an audience of Jews who had spent their entire lives trying to earn their way to heaven.  They had been taught all 613 laws of Judaism to the letter, but they had missed the whole point of the Law.  According to the Apostle Paul, the Law was not given as a means of achieving righteousness, but was given to teach man that righteousness was beyond his grasp (Gal. 3:21-24).  Paul went on to write, "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3:26)!  We are saved, not by works of the Law, but by calling out to Jesus (Rom. 10:13; Eph. 2:8-9). 

Those who try to work their way into God's favor, fail to realize that God does not expect man to be righteous; He knows that we are incapable of living a holy life.  In fact, because He is fully aware of our inability, He has provided the source for us to become righteous:  Jesus!  The work of the Holy Spirit is to make us aware of our sinful state, and cause us to long to be cleansed (Jn. 16:8-11). 

Matthew's Gospel says, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled" (Mt. 5:6).  Even when we seem to be righteous, we are only fooling ourselves.  Isaiah 64:6 says, "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags...."  The only righteousness that is acceptable to God, is His own, and He offers it to us freely.  Matthew wrote:  "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Mt. 6:33).  Paul wrote:  "For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor. 5:21)!  True righteousness is only possible by faith in God's Son (Jn. 3:16; Rom. 4:5; Eph. 2:8; Heb. 11:7; etc.).

Works cannot make one righteous, but the righteous work out of gratitude!