Beware of False Converts

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’" (Matthew 7:21-23).

Not only does the church need to beware of false prophets, it must also beware of false converts. These are people who say Jesus is Lord with their lips but their lives do not match up. They are those who only demonstrate the outward actions of a believer while they still love their sin. There is no repentance from this people.

Jesus said these people will come before Him and say did we not do these great things in your name and Jesus would tell them He never knew them. A study note from the ESV Study Bible says:

False disciples may exercise power in Jesus’ name but their activities are meaningless because they deceive themselves and other believers, desiring attention for their own spectacular displays. Mighty works are not proof of the Father’s will since they can come from sources other than God, including demons and human contrivance.

James does tell us that faith without works is dead (James 2:17), but the faith we have must show fruit (John 15:1-17; Galatians 5:22-23). The fruit of the Spirit in Galatians is the result of the work of God through the Holy Spirit to conform one to the likeness of Christ. Our declaration must match our actions.