Good Works All The Time!

Feature 3 – October 2010 – Grace & Truth Magazine

GOOD WORKS All The Time

The term “good works” may be regarded both as a statement and a subject. For that which is good always works towards good, as a good seed produces good fruit: “Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?” (Mt. 7:16 KJV ). In contrast, evil produces all kinds of idleness, mischief and misfortune. While the term “good works” appears in 11 books of the New Testament, it is absent from the Old Testament. The first New Testament use of the term is by the Savior Himself: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Mt. 5:16). The nearest Old Testament equivalent is in 1 Samuel 19:4 where “Jonathan spoke good of David unto Saul his father, and said unto him, ‘Let not the king sin against his servant, against David; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his works have been toward thee very good.’” However, the absence of the term by no means implies Old Testament ignorance of good works. The Law of Moses is occupied with good works towards God, fellow man and stranger.

The Roll of Honor
The Old Testament emphasis upon good works is displayed in the New, for in Hebrews 11 we are presented with a list of good works achieved by Old Testament saints. Indeed, Hebrews 11 is essential to our understanding of what the Bible means by “good works.” Hebrews 11:6 tells us that “without faith it is impossible to please ... God.” Every good work is an act of faith. Since salvation is by faith alone, it is impossible to achieve biblical good works before conversion, as salvation was never the reward of good works. However great our reward may be in heaven for doing good works, heaven itself will never be our great reward (Mt. 5:12). Salvation is the free gift of God offered to those who confess their inability to earn eternal life (Jn. 4:10; Rom. 6:23).

Fatal Faith In Ourselves
The truth that our salvation is “not of works” (Rom. 9:11; Eph. 2:9) is a subject of shock, scandal and horror to those who are reluctant to recognize their wretched sinfulness. Indeed, those who think they can gain favor with God through keeping His commandments are frequently insulted by the charge of sin. The point is that the gospel lays an axe to the root of human pride. There is no salvation apart from faith in Christ. This is true even if there are some who will never forgive God for disqualifying unrepentant battle-scarred heroes, selfsacrificing nurses and charitable philanthropists. Nor do unsaved religious teachers have an assured place in the kingdom. For as the Son of God told Nicodemus, the leading religious instructor of Israel, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (Jn. 3:3).

Temporal Merit And Reward
While all this is true, God will also judge ungrateful nations who fail to honor their noble and brave sons and daughters. Temporal goodness demands temporal reward. For this reason we must never forget those who have given their lives or their lifetimes in service and sacrifice for their fellows. All such excellent individuals must be compensated in this life or commemorated after death. But we dare not presume that God will open the gate of heaven to those who have never opened their hearts to “His only begotten Son” (Jn. 3:16). For what the world commonly classes as “good works” is far removed from the scriptural definition of the term. In this respect, a good work is only achievable by a person whom God has cleansed from sin and to whom He has imputed “the righteousness which is of God by faith” (Phil. 3:9).

The Son of God also condemns the heart of the natural man out of which proceed all kinds of evil thoughts (Mt. 15:19). The idea that if we dig down deep enough we’ll find good in all of us is a dangerous heresy. For as Isaiah observed “we are all as an unclean thing” (Isa. 64:6). If we accept that Christ “died for all” (2 Cor. 5:14) then He bore the sins of all classes of human beings. Romans 3:23 tells us that “all have sinned.” None is exempt from the implications of Calvary. Without prejudice the shadow of the Cross covers both the billionaire’s hotel and the homeless shelter. As a result, any person who rejects the pre-conditions of repentance and faith will die in his or her sins.

Dead In Trespasses And Sins
If those who follow Christ sin by exception, so those who do not follow Christ sin without exception. In this regard Paul describes the unconverted as being “dead in trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1). Dead men and women cannot rise up and perform acts of righteousness. On the contrary, the dead can only go to greater corruption. And so it is written that the manna stored in defiance of God’s command “bred worms and stank” (Ex. 16:20). Thus God through Moses expressed His fury against those who disobeyed Him.

The Reward Motive
God has promised to “reward” good works with proportionate eternal glory and power (1 Cor. 3:11-15). For God can only reward good works with more abundant life, glory and kingdom-power (Mt. 6:1-4; Rev. 2:10; 22:12). Anything done for sheer gain will earn nothing. For this reason Paul writes of “your work of faith, and labor of love, and patience of hope” (1 Th. 1:3). If duty rather than love be the basis of our obedience then we shall earn only the praises of our peers. The Good Samaritan did not respond to a “call of duty” but was compelled by compassion to relieve the suffering victim (Lk. 10:33). A good work done for the sake of another who can never repay the doer is a pure act of Christ in one of His members. For as “there is none good but one, that is, God” (Mt. 19:17), then anything other than the sincere imitation of God is no good. Unbelievers who do good works receive no reward beyond this world. We must learn the difference between spiritual good works and social responsibility.

Good Works Towards Enemies
In Genesis 1 when God reviewed all His works He saw that they were “good” and “very good” (Gen. 1:10,12,18,21,25,31). While the first application of this was in respect of creation, we know that God blessed our first parents with overflowing goodness, kindness and love. What God had done became the standard of all goodness thereafter. In the Old Testament a good work could be defined as “that which is right and good in the sight of the LORD” (Dt. 6:18). Despite man’s disobedience God continues to make “His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust” (Mt. 5:45). While it is easier to love our brethren more than our enemies, God requires that we imitate His kindness towards unbelievers. Paul writes, “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith” (Gal. 6:10).

Unlimited Opportunity
While there is diversity of gift among Christians, there are no limits to the amount of good works which the least of saints may achieve. For example, we read “Now there was at Joppa a certain disciple named Tabitha ... full of good works and alms deeds which she did” (Acts 9:36). Compared to Peter this woman could neither heal nor raise the dead. But this did not prevent her showing Christ’s compassion to the sick, sad and poor. Those who cannot heal the sick can still minister to them. Those who cannot raise the dead can at least weep with those who mourn. And those who cannot rain bread from heaven can help relieve the plight of the poor. In God’s eyes these acts of love are as good as healing the sick, raising the dead and raining bread from heaven. The principle of “she hath done what she could” (Mk. 14:8) is enough to please God who will do the rest according to His will.

Called To Good Works
While most disciples suppose that salvation is all about avoiding Hell, the Scriptures teach otherwise. Whereas hypocrites pursue “good works” for reputation’s sake, the children of God do good that they may glorify their “Father which is in heaven” (Mt. 5:16). Paul writes that we should “walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Col. 1:10). He also tells us to be “always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58).

By Tom Summerhill