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" The thing you must understand is, as part of the triune Godhead, He created everyone. But by no means does Christ recognize everyone as His Father’s children. That distinction is reserved only for those who are truly born again. “For everyone else, His words ‘I never knew you’ were meant in a relational way. Only those who truly belong to Him relationally, will get to spend eternity with Him. “In the end, we will be content to hear Christ’s words found in Matthew twenty-five, thirty-four: ‘Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. "
― Patrick Higgins , I Never Knew You
66
" The king said, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave all your debt, yet you couldn’t show mercy on your fellow-servant for the small amount he owed you!’ So the king became furious and delivered him to his tormentors, until he should pay all that was due.’” Charmaine raised her hand in the air. “Wait! I’m confused. What does this have to do with saying a sinner’s prayer?” “This man took the king’s forgiveness for granted. Being forgiven by God is at the heart of the Gospel. Instead of a life transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit, the instant the servant was away from the king, he went back to his old ways just like a dog returns to its vomit, or a pig runs back to the mud after just being cleaned. “The same is true for all the unconverted in the world. After hearing the Gospel preached at church or on the internet or TV, many feel a certain conviction in their souls to be forgiven. “They’re told if they repeat a simple prayer, it will make them square with God. Initially, many shout Jesus from the rooftops. You know, honoring Him with their lips. "
― Patrick Higgins , I Never Knew You
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" Which takes us back to your question. These people have been enlightened, they’ve tasted the heavenly gift, shared in the Holy Spirit, tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, only to fall away. “This doesn’t mean they were saved, Charmaine. All it means is that they were exposed to God’s goodness, yet they remained unconverted. “Scripture is clear that it would be better for them to have never been exposed to His goodness than to taste it only to depart from it. It would be better for them had they never been exposed to it at all. “Nothing’s changed since the days these scriptures were recorded. Judas Iscariot wasn’t the only one who walked away from Christ two thousand years ago. John six, verse sixty-six states that many of Jesus’ followers, after personally witnessing the many great miracles He performed, not to mention the perfect life He lived, ultimately turned away and no longer followed Him. “There’s that word ‘many’ again. Think about it, if so many left Jesus after experiencing miracle after miracle while in His presence, why should we question that ‘many’ since that time, including in our present age, have done the same? "
― Patrick Higgins , I Never Knew You