Now in all religion the one that exasperates me most is the religion of good deeds. It’s so wide-spread, it’s so popular. Millions of sincere people believe that if they do good deeds and live a respectable kindly life and don’t break any particular laws and don’t do anybody any harm, then God will be pleased with them and everything will be alright and they will have earned some kind of earthly or heavenly reward.
Now the entire New Testament shouts aloud that that kind of religion is a lie, a satanic lie.
Ronald Biggs, the great train robber, was re-arrested in Brazil, and after about seven years of avoiding the world’s police, his wife joined him and said, “He’s shown he’s a respectable man now, he’s proved he’s not a criminal he’s had a hard time, why can’t they leave him alone? In other words, just forget that two million pounds that was stolen and that now dead train driver and his grieving family.
The New Testament says we are all sinners, not discharged, escaped, running away, on the run, and God offers a free pardon and the uncountable riches of Christ, not because we have gone all respectable and proved that now we’re good boys and girls, but because we’ve been to the cross and accepted God’s judgement on our sin. Christ took the sentence in our place so that we could be free, and that’s really exciting, but it’s quite the opposite from the religion of good deeds.
If you don’t believe me, read Paul’s letter to the Ephesians Chapter 2 tonight, and you will see what I mean.