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.
Matthew 7:21-23
Daniel Ludwig deliberately kept a low profile, so few people were aware that he was one of the richest men in the world. He had business interests in nearly two dozen countries, including shipping lines, hotels, paper plants, and salt mines. As far as is known, Ludwig only gave one interview to the press in his entire life, so many people learned his name when the very first Forbes 400 List published in 1982 ranked him number one in the world. Knowing that his wealth could make his estate a target, Ludwig had blood and DNA samples taken before his death. When a woman named Patricia Ludwig, the daughter of Ludwig’s ex-wife, came forward claiming to be his rightful heir, the DNA evidence quickly disproved her claim and revealed there was no relationship between them at all.
Jesus warned that there would be many people who would claim to be part of His family without truly having a relationship with Him. While God does not want us to live in fear and doubt concerning our relationship with Him, He also does not want us to be presumptuous of our standing in His eyes, claiming to have something we do not actually possess. “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” (2 Corinthians 13:5).
Those who have received Christ by faith need not live in uncertainty. God’s Word promises, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12). Our confidence rests not in our works or our profession, but in the finished work of Christ and His promise to all who believe. The most important thing in life is not whether we claim to know God, but whether He genuinely knows us, not just as people but as true members of His family through Jesus Christ.
