Self-Deception is Real

Michael Kelley:

Matthew 7 is one of the most terrifying texts in the entire Bible:

“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 in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name?’ Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbrakers!’”

Now there’s a text that will make you take a second look at your life. What’s truly disturbing is the sense of absolute and complete surprise you find in these people. It never, until that very moment, entered their minds that they might be unknown to Jesus. They had lived – possibly for years, or even decades, under the delusion that they were safe.

Secure.

True servants of Christ.

Self-deception is real. If it weren’t, you wouldn’t find the surprise in these people. Nor would you find Paul exhorting the congregation at Corinth to examine themselves to see if they are indeed in the faith.

We’re all capable of self-deception. Hopefully not to this degree, but the simple truth is that we don’t know ourselves nearly as well as we’d like to think.

But, in His grace, God has given us the medicine for the disease of self-deception.

Read the rest.