Depart From Me, I Never Knew You - Part 2

Let's look again at the Judgement Day passage in Matthew 7 and see if we can gain some more insights about who is being rejected from heaven. Here are the verses again, and I'll add some emphasis on words I want to pay extra attention to this time around:

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. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’" (Matthew 7, NIV)

Prophetic Visions

For those of you who are interested in reading the latest prophecy news (like me), I have one piece of advice. Test what you read against what God has revealed to us in Scripture. We know that there are many deceiving spirits leading people away from God's truth--even "Christian" prophets are led astray by the whisperings of the devil and his angels.

So, how can we know if a prophet is truly from God? It is fairly easy to tell, actually: if the prophet acknowledges Jesus as God's Son who came in the flesh to atone for mankind, then the prophet is from God. True prophets speak truth that comes directly from the heart of God the Father, so the message will contain the truth about who Jesus is so that the people who hear the message will acknowledge him as Lord.

There are a few simple messages that God repeatedly sends us through prophets: encouragement (revealing how He loves a person or nation uniquely), instruction (a.k.a., a call to obey His Word), and warning (= these bad things will happen unless you obey). Plus, the messages that come from a prophet of God are always accurate. If a prophet gives a prophecy that turns out to be false (or if he goes back to re-interpret its meaning after it appears to be false), then pay no attention to that person, for he is deceived.

I've discovered some features that are similar in messages from false prophets. One is that the message itself is unclear ("like viewing through a fog") or can't be remembered fully. Another is that the prophet gets his visions from "spirits of light" that don't acknowledge Jesus (...if you have to ask who sent them, they're probably not from God). The most common thread, though, is that the message is either one of world harmony (usually accompanied by an encouragement to seek "the power within") or of world catastrophe (along with instructions for how to protect yourself and survive the ensuing chaos). The "world harmony" message is usually given to a person who doesn't acknowledge Jesus as Lord. On the other had, the "world catastrophe" message is panned off to people who are within Christian circles of influence. The latter case is harder to distinguish from true prophetic messages, since these people acknowledge Jesus as their Lord--but, when we test their message against God's Word, it doesn't line up.

What sorts of things should we expect a true prophet of God to say in these last days before the return of our Lord Jesus? I believe they would tell us to spread the love of Jesus to as many people as possible before it's too late. I also believe they would tell us to stop lusting after our worldly desires and start submitting ourselves to God's Will! Our primary goal is not to get rich, fat, and entertained--it's to love people the way that Jesus did while on Earth. We are to imitate Him! So, what about the coming trials and tribulations described in the book of Revelation? What will the prophets say about that? Well, the Bible says things like "whoever loves his life will lose it" and "those beheaded for the name of Jesus will reign with Him in glory." Jesus also tells us not to worry about what we will eat, drink, or wear because our Heavenly Father will provide what we need just as He does the birds of the air. In other words, prophets who tell you to stock up on food and ammunition in preparation for the battle of Armageddon are NOT from the Lord! Let's start studying the truths that God has given to us in His Word so that we will not be deceived by false prophets in the days ahead!

End Times Transfer of Wealth

There's an idea floating around that in the end times, the righteous will inherit the wealth that the wicked have been hoarding. Some Christian leaders have started preaching that the time is drawing near for this "end times transfer of wealth," since the American economy is in for a major collapse. Their message is to remain faithful to God and be responsible with your money so that you will be a beneficiary of the supernatural redistribution of wealth. Ironic that the leaders purport this message have invested their money into real estate, exchanged their money for precious metals, used their money to stockpile goods, and/or taken the pains to get themselves free from all credit (debt-based) accounts. I'd be wary of believing a message that the preacher doesn't seem to hold any stock in himself.