Not Good Enough
FEAR OF ETERNAL suffering in hell and hope for
everlasting bliss in heaven lead many to strive in doing good works. The belief runs that as long as people
perform good works such as acts of charity, being kind and compassionate to one’s
fellowman, and lead a righteous way and means of living, they can already
please God and hope to be saved regardless of the church or religion they
belong to.
But is it correct to think that doing good works is enough for one to be saved? To answer this, we must consult the final
authority on what is good—the Bible.
Man’s inability to do good
Can man by
himself do what is good? Apostle Paul
enlightens us on this regard:
“I know that good does not live in me--that is, in my human nature. For even though the desire to do good is in me, I am not able to do it.” (Rom. 7:18,
Today’s English Version)
Speaking not
only for himself but for all mankind, apostle Paul said that he could only
desire to do good yet wasn’t able to do it.
He explained why:
“My inner being delights in the law of God. But I see a different law at work in my body--a law that fights against the law which my mind approves of. It makes me a prisoner to the law of sin which is at work in my body.” (Rom.
7:22-23, Ibid.)
Since Adam,
man has rejected the law of God in various ways. He let the law of sin reign over him. Man is, by nature, weak and as such, he has
easily been enslaved by sin. Not even
those whom society considers as righteous are free from this imprisonment. The Bible attests:
“Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins.” (Eccl.
7:20, New International Version)
No matter how
careful a man may be with his thoughts, words, and actions, in one way or the
other, he still falls into blunders, temptations, and even neglects to think,
say or do what is lawful.
Hence, he sins
(I Jn. 3:4). A man may be righteous by
human standards but not before God. All
men, except our Lord Jesus Christ, have sinned and fallen short of God’s
expectation (Rom. 5:12; I Pt. 2:21-22).
Thus, the whole world of sinners cannot avoid God’s justice:
“Now we know that everything in the Law applies to those who live under the Law, in order to stop all human excuses and bring the whole world under God's judgment.” (Rom.
3:19, TEV)
God’s decree
is to destroy all ungodly men by fire on the day of Judgment (II Pt. 3:7,
10). Man’s goodness and good works which
he has done by himself cannot be used as justification or basis for his
salvation. Otherwise, it would be as
though God is indebted to him:
“Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.” (Rom. 4:4,
New King James Version)
Salvation is
by grace and not as payment for debt.
God does not owe any man his salvation just because man has done good
works. Quite the reverse, it is man who
owes God because, however upright he may be, man still has sins which he must
pay through death (Rom. 6:23). He will
be punished in the lake of fire called the Second Death (Rev. 20:14).
The work pleasing to God
This must not
lead us, however, to think that we had better do away with goodness and instead
set our eyes on evil. The good works
that man does by himself have some value, but the Bible mentions of good works
that have great value before God:
“that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” (Col. 1:10,
NKJV)
Apostle Paul
tells us that there is a way by which we can be fruitful in every good work,
that we “…may have a walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him.” But how can we do such good work when we are
by nature weak and sinful? Apostle Paul shed light on this, too, as he taught
the first Christians to be “filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes
through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.” (Philip. 1:11, NIV)
The good works
that bring glory to God are the fruits of righteousness which can be done only
through our Lord Jesus Christ. These are
not the works conceived according to man’s design, but “good works which God
predestined (planned beforehand) for us” (Eph. 2:10, Amplified Bible; Titus
3:5).
How can man be
fruitful in every good work through our Lord Jesus Christ? Christ Himself explains:
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” (Jn.
15:4-5, NKJV)
Just as a
branch separated from the vine cannot bear fruit, neither can a person apart
from Christ do righteousness in God’s sight.
Therefore, one has to be connected to Christ as His branch for his works
to be accepted and made worthy.
“You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.” (Jn. 15:16,
Ibid.)
But, merely
believing or having faith in Jesus and accepting Him as Lord and personal
Savior is not enough for one to belong to Christ. One has to be chosen or appointed by Christ
to become His branch.
The “branches”
of Christ whom He chose or appointed to serve the Father those called into the
one body, the Church (II Thes. 2:14; Col. 3:15; 1:18). As Christ is the vine or in the illustration
of Apostle Paul, the head of the body, His chosen ones—the branches—are the
members of the Church of Christ (I Cor. 12:27; Acts 20:28, Lamsa Translation)
To have a true
personal relationship with Christ is to join His Church. The Apostles further illustrate Christ’s
inseparable relationship with the true Church:
“Because we are members (parts) of His body. For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is very great, but I speak concerning [the relation of] Christ and the church.” (Eph.
5:30-32, Amplified Bible)
Only in the Church of Christ
Our good works
are acceptable to God only when we are in the Church of Christ. Our good works or obedience to the
commandments of God will result in our sanctification (Rom. 7:12; Jn.
17:17). We will be among those presented
to Christ holy and without blemish (Eph. 5:26-27).
The Lord God
greatly values the worship and service offered to Him by the Church of Christ
members because they have been redeemed by Christ. The Bible declares:
“Even before the world was made, God had already chosen us to be his through our union with Christ, so that we would be holy and without fault before him. Because of his love. ...For by the sacrificial death of Christ we are set free, that is, our sins are forgiven. How great is the grace of God.” (Eph. 1:4,
7, TEV)
Those redeemed
through the sacrificial death of Christ were forgiven of their sins. Christ paid the price of their sins and,
thus, they are now spared from condemnation.
They were purchased from being slaves of sin to being servants of God.
That which was
redeemed or purchased by Christ is the
Church of Christ:
“Take heed therefore to yourselves and to all the flock over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you overseers, to feed the church of Christ which he has purchased with his blood.” (Acts
20:28, Lamsa Translation)
We can only
benefit from Christ’s redemptive act if we are in the Church of Christ. Outside this Church there is no
redemption. Christ cannot answer for the
sins of outsiders or nonmembers of His body.
They will have to pay for their own sins with the Second Death as the
ultimate punishment. Any good or service
they would offer to God will be rendered worthless. This is why Apostle Paul said that many man
by his own self cannot do good.
For a person’s
good works to be counted worthy, he must first be united with Christ as his
branch or as part of His body which is the Church of Christ. Unless he is redeemed through Christ’s blood,
all his noble works and services to God will not be good enough to ensure him
of salvation. As emphasized by the
inspired writer of Hebrews, “And according to the law almost all things are
purged with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission.” (Heb.
9:22, NKJV)
Pamphlets/Pasugo God’s Message/January 2001/Pages 21-22
