Nobody argues with this principle in real life. Almost curing cancer still kills the patient. Almost landing the plane still ends in wreckage. Almost paying attention at the wrong moment still costs lives. Reality does not reward sincerity. It responds to truth.
The Bible says spiritual reality works the same way.
Most people assume the real danger is being wrong. Scripture says the greater danger is being almost right. Close enough to feel safe. Close enough to be confident. Close enough to stop listening.
From the opening pages, this is the problem. The first lie was not atheism. It was adjustment. “Yea, hath God said?” ~Genesis 3:1. Eve did not reject God outright. She softened His words. She stood near the truth and treated it casually. That was enough to bring death into the world.
Cain did not reject God either. He worshiped. He brought an offering. It looked sincere. God rejected it because it was not obedience. Cain was almost right, and God warned him that sin was already at the door ~Genesis 4:3–7. Near obedience was not obedience.
Israel heard God speak audibly. They promised loyalty. “All that the LORD hath spoken we will do” ~Exodus 19:8. Days later they reshaped worship into something more comfortable. They did not abandon God. They redefined Him. Judgment followed ~Exodus 32. Near truth did not protect them.
God later said something chilling about religious people. “This people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me” ~Isaiah 29:13. That sentence alone destroys the idea that closeness equals safety.
Fast forward to Jesus.
When Jesus spoke His most famous sermon, He did not aim it at criminals or skeptics. He spoke to moral people. Religious people. People who agreed with Him. And He did not reassure them. He warned them.
He said false teachers would look harmless and sound right. He said the test was not intention or passion but fruit. “Ye shall know them by their fruits” ~Matthew 7:16. Reality always exposes truth. And then He said something nobody likes to quote. “Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire” ~Matthew 7:19. Jesus was not vague. He was final.
Then He said something far more unsettling. Many would call Him Lord. Many would list religious works. Many would assume acceptance. And He would answer, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity” ~Matthew 7:23. Never knew. Not almost knew. Not once knew.
That statement alone exposes false Christianity. You can say the right words. You can believe the right facts. You can admire Jesus. You can use His name. And still never belong to Him.
Jesus then stripped away every excuse. Two people hear the same truth. One obeys. One does not. The same storm hits both. One stands. One collapses. “Great was the fall of it” ~Matthew 7:27. The difference was not exposure to truth. It was submission to it.
The rest of Scripture agrees without hesitation. God says obedience is better than sacrifice ~1 Samuel 15:22. Ezekiel says people listened gladly but refused to act ~Ezekiel 33:32. James says hearing without doing is self-deception ~James 1:22. Even belief by itself is not praised. “The devils also believe, and tremble” ~James 2:19.
This confronts the non-religious person who thinks Christianity is about moral agreement or cultural identity. It confronts the religious person who thinks activity replaces surrender. Scripture does not care how close you are. It cares whether you belong to God on His terms.
This is not harshness. It is honesty. Eternity is not a theory. It is not a discussion board. It is not a rehearsal.
If you have dismissed the Bible as shallow, read it for yourself. If you assumed being near Christianity was enough, read it for yourself. Start anywhere, but do not skim. Let the words stand. From Genesis to Revelation, the message does not change.
Almost right is still lost.
Discuss This on Biblical Truth Forum →
Start with today’s Bible reading → Know the Bible
Views: 9