I Never Knew You

That answer comes directly after

Not the hearers of the word are justified, but the doers

Faith is living and active, faith without works is dead

We are justified by faith, not by works, but we show our faith by works

‭Matthew‬ ‭7:24‭-‬27‬ ‭KJV‬
[24] Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: [25] and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. [26] And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: [27] and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

Jesus is saying that many call him "Lord" (that is, master), but their actions prove the He is not their Lord (rather they are). Simply acting religious (eg. going to church, tithing, doing good deeds) does NOT make one a follower of Christ. In Jesus' time, the Pharisees were the most "religious" people around. They tithed (to the exact penny), fasted, kept the law (even added things to make sure they followed it "to the letter"), were the most learned teachers of the law - yet Jesus repeatedly condemned their "religious efforts". Today many people go to church, give to the poor, and do good deeds (as if doing these things will somehow "earn" them a better standing with God), but in their hearts they harbor hated or envy towards their neighbor, they cheat others, they slander, and lust after the flesh. Sure, they may know [i]OF [/i]God, but they don't really "know" God; and because of that they are not "known" by Him ("I never knew you").

I feel like we all experience God's call and it makes us renew our promises to God (through his most holy spirit) hence we cannot just speak faith, we have to also prove it by our works. We are born to serve, and we have to try and do so during our existence on the planet while trying to walk the path righteously as well. God will reward us by saying 'Well done Good and faithful servant" if we do all of these things. And remember God gets the glory, because yes, it's his good pleasure to give us the kingdom.