The account of Babylonian kingly invasion in 2 Kings tells us earthly glories are ephemeral. It sheds light on our reading of Matthew 7:21-29. We call on the name of the Lord when we pray, either for ourselves or for others. It is because of divine authority in the name of the Lord. Why then does Jesus say that not everyone who utters the name of the Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven? Does this mean that we should refrain from using God's name? We call, not in vain, certainly.

For this, we need to examine our motives in using God's name. The question that we need to ask is this - who gets the glory when some good is achieved? We may have good intentions in using the name of the Lord to achieve something good but there is the danger of letting it go to our heads, giving ourselves praise and glory instead of God.

Our lives should not be merely an act of lip service. We need to practise what we preach, we do not just utter the name of the Lord but must act as well. Anyone can say the name of God but how willing are we to serve wholeheartedly?

Let us pray for the grace to act out the Will of God in our lives and not just pay lip service to Him.