I Never Knew You
Why Not Everyone Who Says “Lord” Truly Knows Him
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew 7:21-23)
Matthew 7:21–23 is a deeply unsettling passage—not only for Christians, but even for those who believe they are Christians. To stand before Jesus, thinking you are on your way to heaven, only to hear Him say, “Depart from me, I never knew you,” is terrifying.
It raises a difficult question: how could people who did so many things in Jesus’ name still be turned away?
This is something every Christian should take seriously. Yet Scripture also shows that there is a way to ensure we are not the ones Jesus is speaking about.
The key phrase in this passage is Jesus’ words: “I never knew you.”
To understand what He means, we must remember that this verse comes from the larger teaching of Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7—the Sermon on the Mount. In this sermon, Jesus describes the character and life of those in the Kingdom of God. He speaks of inward transformation, not just outward obedience. He calls His followers to be the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world,” emphasizing a life that flows from a changed heart.
This is crucial to understanding His warning: Jesus is not calling for performance, religious appearance, or legalistic effort—He is calling for a genuine relationship with Him.
When Jesus says, “I never knew you,” He is pointing to the absence of that relationship.
It is as if He is saying: When did you truly walk with Me? When did you abide in Me? When did we walk through your struggles together, grieve over sin, endure trials, and rejoice in what I was doing in your life?
The people Jesus describes were doing many things in His name, yet they did not truly know Him. Their actions did not flow from a real walk with Christ, but from a religious effort to reach Him. They were practicing religion rather than abiding in Him.
And if anything they did was blessed, it was for the sake of others and God’s glory, not because their own hearts were right before God.
It is like trying to be a good spouse while living apart from your husband or wife. You might still do kind or thoughtful things, but the relationship itself is missing. The love, growth, and shared life that come from being truly united cannot exist when you are separated.
The branch must be attached to the vine.
So how do you know if you are truly attached to the Vine?
Jesus answers this in John 15:5:
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
There will be fruit.
A branch that is connected to the vine will bear fruit. And as it bears fruit, the Father prunes it so that it may bear even more. This means there will be an ongoing work within you—sin being cut away, growth taking place, and a life being shaped by God.
To abide in Jesus is to grow deeper in the love of God and become rooted in Him. Something begins to change within you. A new desire forms—a desire for God, for His Word, and for His presence.
And from that abiding, fruit is produced that produces Christ-like actions.
This fruit is the evidence that the branch is truly connected to the Vine. It shows that you are in a real relationship with Christ—knowing Him now, on this side of heaven. Walking with Him. Wrestling through life with Him. Following Him along the narrow path.
This is the difference between religion and relationship.
Religion can produce activity, but it cannot produce life. Only a branch that is truly connected to the Vine receives life from Him and bears fruit because of Him.
Jesus is not looking for people who merely speak His name or perform works in His name—He is looking for those who abide in Him.
And if you walk with Him here, you will not stand before Him as a stranger there.
