How good is good? “I mean, I’m pretty good. How do I know if I have passed God’s test?”
STANDARDS
What is the goal? Paul said, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). The glory of God is the ultimate standard Scripture gives for man’s behavior. Jesus said, “You shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48; cf. 1 Peter 1:17). We are to walk in Jesus’ footsteps (1 Peter 2:21–22). The goal is to strive toward the goodness of God and to live like the Lord. He has given an example of what kind of behavior is acceptable to Him.
The predictable bad news is that all come short of the goal of perfection, just as an archer comes short of a target, or a runner falls short of breaking a ribbon. To come short of the glory of God means
- To fail to glorify God (Romans 1:21). Instead of glorifying God, sinners dishonor Him.
- To fail to be glorified by God (1 Corinthians 4:5). A broken law can never justify us.
- Sinners cannot glorify themselves before God. They exalt themselves over men; God remains unimpressed (Psalm 52:1–5).
At this point, it needs to be explained that God does not expect perfection (1 John 1:6–10), but He expects man to recognize his condition and his inability to save himself.
ILLUSTRATIONS
A sinner trying to save himself is like going to the Pacific Ocean and saying, “I will jump to Hawaii.” Even if one were a superior athlete and had trained for months, he could not do it. If a thousand people lined up and got a running start, nobody could do it. Some might make it farther than others, but none would get close to the goal. That is how man’s relative righteousness compares to God’s.
Cornelius was an outstanding man. He prayed, gave to the poor, and encouraged the Jews (Acts 10:2, 22). He was good, to be sure, but not good enough (cf. 11:18). Peter was a good disciple, but he often said or did the wrong thing (cf. Matthew 16:22–23; 17:4–5; 26:33–35, 58–75; Mark 9:5–6; John 13:8). Paul was a better apostle, some say, but he sinned greatly before becoming a Christian (1 Timothy 1:15; cf. Acts 7:57–8:3). Both were good, but not good enough.
Dwight Moody said, “If I have two sour apple trees, and one has five hundred apples, all sour, and the other has two apples, both sour, the nature of the trees is alike: they are sour apple trees. So, with people: one man may be vile, with five hundred evil deeds; another may be relatively good, with a few evil deeds; but both are alike.”1
To be law-abiding, a citizen must keep all laws. To be a lawbreaker, it is unnecessary to commit treason, forgery, speeding, arson, tax-evasion, assault, carjacking, indecent exposure, and murder. Doing any one of these acts causes a citizen to become a lawbreaker (James 2:10). Then a hundred deeds of obedience will not erase one act of disobedience.
Consider two men Jesus raised from the dead. The first was the son of the widow of Nain. He had just died—Jesus interrupted the funeral and rendered it unnecessary (Luke 7:11–15). In that subtropical country, with no refrigeration or embalming, corruption set in fast, so the dead were soon buried (cf. Genesis 23:4). The other was Lazarus, who had been dead four days (John 11:17). Contrast these: one was more corrupt, but they were both dead. So it is with sinners (Ephesians 2:1).
A skyscraper is much taller than a house. From our vantage point, there is a great contrast between the height of these buildings. Which is closer to the moon, though? Sure, the top of one is closer to the moon than the top of the other, but does it matter when both are 240,000 miles from the moon? In the presence of thousands of miles, there is no appreciable difference in a few feet.
So it is with the difference in a bad person and a good person (as we describe them) when compared with God’s holiness. Paul wrote, “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us… through Jesus Christ our Savior” (Titus 3:5–6).
Look at it from the other perspective. All are saved the same way. The ark had one door. Through that door the great elephant lumbered, the little snail crawled, the eagle swooped, the little wren hopped, and Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and their wives, walked. All needed salvation and all were saved through that one door (Genesis 6:16; 7:13, 16). This is true of those entering God’s ark of safety—the church—today (Acts 2:47). There is only one door—baptism (Galatians 3:27). “Whoever” (John 3:16) surely means me.
APPLICATIONS
Most people are simply unaware they are lost. At some point, this must change. Sinners must sorrow before they can be comforted (Matthew 5:4); sin must be felt before it can be mourned. Unless one knows he is in danger, he sees no need for rescue. Without a knowledge of sin and an acknowledgment of sin, no message involving a cross, blood atonement, or a risen Savior sounds inviting. Why fix what is not broken? Why add unnecessary requirements to a busy life?
It is easy to rationalize behavior as acceptable although it differs from Bible teaching. People compare themselves with others and feel they fare pretty well (cf. 2 Corinthians 10:12). The Laodiceans said, “I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing.” Jesus’ assessment differed drastically from their self-evaluation: “You are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:17).
Some dismiss sin as unimportant. Ahab thought sin was a light thing (1 Kings 16:31; cf. Proverbs 17:15). Felix dismissed sin (Acts 24:25; cf. 17:32). This is as foolish as dismissing a pathology report showing cancer. The longer one refuses to deal with it, the more damage. With sin, it becomes harder to leave it, not to mention the constant risk of death or Jesus’ return (Matthew 25:10; Hebrews 9:27).
CONCLUSIONS
“‘Who then can be saved?’ But Jesus looked at them and said to them, ‘With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible’” (Matthew 19:25–26). “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8–10).
God’s plan of salvation must be learned and obeyed by every person before leaving this life. What does this involve?
Each must learn who Jesus, the Savior, is and what He did (John 6:44–45). Read Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John. (Luke is the most comprehensive; Mark is the shortest.)
Each must believe that Jesus is the Son of God (John 1:12; 8:24; 20:30–31). Once one has read the record, he or she must decide if it rings true. Each must ask if the life and deeds of Jesus substantiate His claims. If the answer is yes, one becomes a believer.
A believer is ready for repentance and baptism (Acts 2:38). Repentance involves changing one’s mind about behavior. One must turn from a life of sin and live for the glory of God in righteousness. Life-change begins immediately and continues throughout life.
Baptism is the crucial step when God removes all sin from one’s record (Mark 16:16). It is preceded by a confession of faith that could not be known to others otherwise.
At that point, one is a forgiven sinner, a child of God, a Christian, and a member of Christ’s church. He or she begins to experience a new level of joy, hope, and peace. He or she worships God enthusiastically, serves others sacrificially, and seeks to lead others to find the path to heaven. It is the best way to live (John 10:10).
How good do we have to be? Wrong question. To whom must we belong? That is the right question.
Endnote
1 Henry Davenport Northrop. Life and Labors of Dwight L. Moody. Published by Butler & Alger. Page 363.
