obedience

Matthew 7:21: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”

If you’ll forgive me a little bit of cynicism, my first thought on reading this verse was that there’s been a lot of “Lord, Lord-ing” in our public life lately. Many of us, occasionally including me, have been quick to proclaim a special knowledge of God’s will as it pertains to voting, health care, immigrants, taxes, flags and our national anthem. We confidently align our party and our positions with the needs of God’s kingdom, which, of course, means anyone opposing us must not want God’s work to advance. It’s the reason “evangelical” has become more of a political term than a religious one.

I confess that, while I’ve tried to keep my public comments measured and reasonable, in private I’ve sometimes been as confidently outspoken as anyone. Today, I ashamed to remember some of the things I said.

I’m even more ashamed of the fact that I haven’t done much about the issues I proclaim to know so much about. I haven’t befriended any immigrants, or donated to immigrant relief or resettlement agencies. I haven’t sought out any indigent people unable to pay for their own medical care. I haven’t assisted homeless veterans or worked to ease the concerns of minority communities. I give to and work for other things, but not the ones I argue about.

Jesus was very plain in his words: he won’t care at all what positions I took or even if I did mighty works in his name. If I don’t do his will, he’s going to turn his back on me. There’s only one valid test for the worthiness of what I say and do: is it obedient? Even good works done for disobedient motives won’t count for anything.

It’s a sobering thought, and a challenging one.