I Never Knew You

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.

SUMMARY: So then, let us not only call Him Lord, because that will not save us, and let it be understood that those who are not found living the way He taught are not Christians, even if they say with their lips the teachings of Christ. It is not those who only make a confession, but those who do the works, who will be saved according to His word. He loves Christ Jesus who does His will and keeps His commandments, and it is necessary that those who do this will, not those who only hear it; they must enter into the kingdom of heaven. Now, those who believe in Him are the ones who walk in the straight and narrow way. This way leads to life, and only a few find it. Not everything that people brag about in the name of Christ should be accepted right away and taken as true; only those things that are done in the truth of Christ should be accepted. He showed how reckless it was to believe in signs and wonders. These were very easy to do, even by false Christs. He says that even some who live wicked lives will do miracles in the name of Jesus and drive demons out of people. To prophesy, to cast out devils, and to do great acts on the earth is certainly a high and admirable thing, but a person does not reach the kingdom of heaven even if he is found doing all these things unless he walks by obeying the right and just way. The ignorance of God, that is, "I never knew you," is His disapproval. Ignatius: Only ask on my behalf for both inward and outward strength. Ask that I may not only speak, but also truly will. Ask that I may not merely be called a Christian, but really be found to be one. For if I am truly found a Christian, I may also be called one, and then I will be considered faithful when I no longer appear to the world. Nothing visible is eternal. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal, for our God Jesus Christ, now that He is with the Father, is revealed even more in His glory. Christianity is not only a work of silence, but also a work of clear greatness.

2 CLEMENT: Since He has shown such great mercy to us, especially in this way, we who are living should not offer sacrifices to gods that are dead or worship them. Instead, through Him, we should come to know the true Father. In this way, we will show that we really know Him by not denying the One through whom this knowledge has come. For He Himself declares, "Whoever confesses Me before men, I will confess before My Father." So, this is our reward: if we confess Him by whom we have been saved. But how will we confess Him? By doing what He says, and not breaking His commandments. We confess Him by honoring Him not only with our lips, but with all our heart and all our mind. For He says in Isaiah, "This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me." So then, let us not only call Him Lord, because that will not save us. For He says, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will be saved, but the one who does righteousness." Therefore, brothers and sisters, let us confess Him by our works, by loving one another, by not committing adultery, by not speaking evil of one another, and by not holding on to envy. Instead, let us be self-controlled, compassionate, and good. We should also care about each other and not be materialistic. By works like these, let us confess Him, and not by works that are the opposite. And it is not right that we should fear people, but rather God. For this reason, if we do such wicked things, the Lord has said, "Even though you were gathered together to Me in My very bosom, yet if you did not keep My commandments, I would cast you off, and say to you, 'Depart from Me.' I do not know where you are from, you workers of iniquity."

JUSTIN MARTYR: Moved by the desire for eternal and pure life, we seek the home that is with God, the Father and Creator of all. We hurry to confess our faith. We are persuaded and convinced that those who have shown God by their works that they followed Him, and who love to live with Him where there is no sin to cause trouble, can receive these things.

JUSTIN MARTYR: He persuaded us that we should worship God alone. He said, "The greatest commandment is, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve with all your heart and with all your strength, the Lord God that made you.'" And when a certain man came to him and said, "Good Master," he answered, "There is none good but God only, who made all things." And let those who are not found living as he taught be understood to be no Christians, even though they say with their lips the teachings of Christ. It is not those who only say they believe, but those who do the works, who will be saved according to his word. Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven. For whoever hears me and does what I say, hears him that sent me. And many will say to me, "Lord, Lord, have we not eaten and drunk in your name and done wonders?" And then I will say to them, "Depart from me, you workers of iniquity." Then there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth when the righteous shall shine as the sun, and the wicked are sent into everlasting fire.

JUSTIN MARTYR: The things that matter in our religion are shown by what we do, not just by what we say.

TATIAN: not everyone who says to me, "My Lord, my Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven. Only the one who does the will of my Father, who is in heaven, will enter. Many will say to me on that day, "My Lord, my Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name cast out devils, and in your name do many mighty works?" Then I will say to them, "I never knew you. Depart from me, you servants of iniquity."

CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA: Not everyone, therefore, who says, "Lord, Lord," will enter into the kingdom of God, but the one who does the will of God. This is the Christian worker. He has control over worldly desires, even while he is still in the flesh. And about future things that are still unseen, which he knows, he has a sure confidence. So he thinks of them as more real and more present than the things he can reach right now. The skilled worker rejoices in what he knows, but he feels held back because he is caught up in the needs of everyday life. He is not yet considered worthy to take an active part in what he knows. So he uses this life as if it belonged to someone else, as far as that is necessary.

CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA: He loves Christ Jesus, who does His will and keeps His commandments. For not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father.

HIPPOLYTUS: The Savior has said, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter into the kingdom of heaven. Only the one who does the will of my Father, who is in heaven, will enter." And it is necessary that those who do this will should enter into the kingdom of heaven. They must not only hear it.

ORIGEN: Now, when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover during the feast, many believed in his name. They saw the signs he did, but he, Jesus, did not trust himself to them, because he knew all people. He did not need anyone to tell him about a person, because he himself knew what was in a person. Someone might ask, how did Jesus not believe in those people when we are told that they believed? We must say this: it was not the people who believed in him that Jesus did not trust. It was the people who believed in his name. Believing in his name is different from believing in him. The person who will not be judged because of his faith is kept from judgment, not for believing in his name, but for believing in him. The Lord says, "He that believes in me is not judged," not, "He who believes in my name is not judged." The person who believes in his name does believe, so he is not worthy to be condemned already, but he is less than the other person who believes in him. That is why Jesus does not trust himself to the one who believes in his name. Therefore, we must hold on to him rather than only to his name. Otherwise, after we have done wonders in his name, we might hear words spoken to us. He will speak these words to those who brag about his name alone. With the apostle Paul, let us gladly try to say, "I can do all things in Christ Jesus strengthening me." We also need to notice something else. In an earlier passage, the evangelist calls the Passover that of the Jews. But here he does not say that Jesus was at the Passover of the Jews. He says Jesus was at the Passover at Jerusalem. In the earlier case, when the Passover is called that of the Jews, it is not called a feast. But here it says Jesus was at the feast. When he was at Jerusalem, he was at the Passover during the feast, and many believed, even if only in his name. We should clearly notice that many are said to believe, not in him, but in his name. Now, those who believe in him are the ones who walk in the straight and narrow way. That way leads to life, and it is found by few.

CYPRIAN: Again, no one has any basis to oppose us by using the name of Christ to get around Christian truth. No one should say, "All who are baptized everywhere and in any way in the name of Jesus Christ have received the grace of baptism." When Christ Himself speaks and says, "Not everyone that says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven," and again He warns and teaches that no one should be easily fooled by false prophets and false Christs who use His name. "Many," He says, "shall come in My name, saying, 'I am Christ,' and shall deceive many." And afterward He added, "But take heed: look, I have foretold you all things." From this it is clear that we should not accept and assume everything right away, just because it is bragged about in the name of Christ. We should accept only those things that are done in the truth of Christ.

JUSTIN MARTYR: For he alone taught openly those powerful plans that the Father designed. He designed them both for all who have been and will be pleasing to him, and also for those who have rebelled against his will, whether people or angels. He said, "They shall come from the east and the west and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, but the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness." And many shall say to me in that day, "Lord, Lord, have we not eaten and drunk and prophesied and cast out demons in your name?" And I will say to them, "Depart from me." Again, using other words by which he will condemn those who are unworthy of salvation, he said, "Depart into outer darkness, which the Father has prepared for Satan and his angels."

TERTULLIAN: He said that many would come and show great signs and wonders, trying to lead even the chosen people away. But even so, they were not to be accepted. He showed how careless it is to believe in signs and wonders, because even false Christs can do them very easily.

ORIGEN: Celsus, a pagan critic, claims that Christians seem to have miraculous power because they use the names of certain demons and use magic spells. He is hinting, I suppose, at the practices of people who drive out evil spirits by using spells, but here he clearly attacks the Gospel. Christians do not seem to win over evil spirits by using spells; instead, they do it by the name of Jesus, along with telling the stories that are about Him. Repeating these stories has often been the way demons were driven out of people. This is especially true when the people repeating them did it with a steady mind and a real believing spirit. The name of Jesus really has this kind of power over evil spirits. There have even been cases where it worked when it was spoken by bad men. Jesus himself taught that this would happen when he said, "Many shall say to me in that day, 'In your name we have cast out devils and done many wonderful works.'"

ORIGEN: And in another passage, "Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not eaten and drunk in your name, and by your name have cast out demons and done many wonderful works?" And then I will say to them, "Depart from me, because you are workers of iniquity." He says that even some people who live wicked lives will do miracles in the name of Jesus and drive demons out of people. In the case of these individuals, any idea of sorcery or even any suspicion of it is, so to speak, completely removed, and the divinity of Christ is established, as well as the divine mission of his disciples. This is because it is possible that someone might use his name, that person might be acted on by some power in some way unknown, and pretend that he is the Christ. Then he might seem to do miracles like those of Jesus. At the same time, others through his name might do works that look like the works of his true disciples.

CYPRIAN: To prophesy, to cast out demons, and to do great acts on the earth is certainly a high and admirable thing, but a person does not reach the kingdom of heaven, even if he is found doing all these things, unless he walks in the right and just way. The Lord warns us and says, "Many shall say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, and in your name have cast out demons, and in your name done many wonderful works?" And then will I profess to them, "I never knew you." Depart from me, you that work iniquity. We need righteousness so that we may be approved by God the Judge. We must obey His commands and warnings so that our good deeds may receive their reward. The Lord in His gospel, when He wanted to point out the way of our hope and faith in a brief summary, said, "The Lord your God is one God, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength." This is the first commandment, and the second is like it: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

ANONYMOUS: He says, "Whoever denies me before people, I will also deny him before my Father, who is in heaven." Its meaning is certainly about the future. It is about the time when the Lord will begin to judge the secrets of people. It is about the time when we must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. It is about the time when many will begin to say, "Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and in Your name cast out devils, and in Your name done many wonderful works?" And yet they will hear the voice of the Lord saying, "Depart from me, all you who have worked iniquity; I do not know you." Then what He says will be fulfilled. I also will deny them. But who will the Lord Christ mainly deny, if not all of you heretics, and schismatics, and strangers to His name? For you who were once Christians, but now are Novatians, no longer Christians, have changed your first faith by later deceitfulness in the calling of Your name.

MELITO: The ignorance of God is His disapproval. In the Gospel: "I do not know you."

TERTULLIAN: I must, however, on my side, drive out one mistaken idea with another: I argue that even leaven is fit for the kingdom of the Creator, because after it comes the oven, or, if you prefer, the furnace of hell. How often has he already shown himself as a judge, and in the judge, the Creator? How often, indeed, has he pushed people back, and by pushing them back, condemned them? In the present passage, for example, he says, "When once the master of the house is risen up"—but what does that mean, except in the same sense Isaiah said, "When he shall arise to terribly shake the earth"? And has shut the door, meaning he shuts out the wicked, of course. And when these people knock, he will answer, "I do not know from where you are." And when they tell how they have eaten and drunk in his presence, he will also say to them, "Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." But where will this happen? Outside, no doubt, when they have been shut out, with the door closed on them by him. Therefore, punishment will be given by the one who shuts them out for punishment. This will happen when they see the righteous entering the kingdom of God, but they themselves are kept outside.

ORIGEN: It says in another passage: "Depart from me, workers of iniquity; surely the right punishment for the wages of iniquity is paid out to them." This is also why the same apostle says in another passage: "The wages of sin is death." And he did not go on to say in the same way: "But the wages of righteousness is eternal life." Instead, he says: "But the gift of God is eternal life." He says this in order not only to teach that wages, which are clearly like a debt and a reward, are a repayment that brings punishment and death. He also says it to show that eternal life is based on grace alone.