Doing the will of the Father, as Jesus Asks of Us

In today's Gospel, Matthew 7: 21-29, Jesus says to us: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.  Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do might deeds in  your name?' Then I will declare to them solemnly, 'I never knew you. Depart from, me,  you evil doers.'"

"Only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven" will enter the Kingdom of heaven, Jesus tells us clearly, not those who boast of prophesying in God's name, or driving out demons in God's name or doing "mighty" deeds in God's name!  Hear the boasting! Hear the attention seeking, the "look-at-me attitude! 

Am I doing things to draw God's attention and the attention of others? Beware of such pride and self-centeredness! At the gates of heaven, we could hear God say to us: "I do not know you!"  Only those who do the will of the Father will enter the Kingdom of heaven.  What immediately comes to my mind are the young people who intervened to get food that otherwise would have rotted in farmer's fields and finding a way to get that food to the poor all over the country. I think of the doctors and nurses and medical personnel fighting on the front lines of our "war" against the coronavirus. I think of mothers and father's up several times a night to feed a newborn infant or to tend to a sick child. I think of a spouse taking on the responsibilities of a parents too sick to do his/her share to keep the household running smoothly and to provide meals for a growing family.  I think of "essentials workers" doing all they can to protect themselves and their families from the deadly disease that ravages the U.S.  "Those who do the will of my Father in heaven will enter the Kingdom of heaven, says the Lord!"  And God's will, I believe, is that we do whatever it takes to keep each other safe and whatever is needed to meet the needs of our family members, to share responsibilities that enhances life around us, to reach out,  as Christ would reach out,  to the poorest of the poor in our  midst and sometimes those very persons live in our household!