The Good Person Dilemma
Do you strive to be a good person?
What makes you a good person?
Have you done many good things for others?
When was the last time you talked about yourself being a good person?
Well, there is a difference between...
(a) A believer saved by God's grace and forgiven of their old life of sin who then lives righteously afterward vs.
(b) A person who thinks they can sin and still be saved under God's grace.
Christians in the Bible are called saints and not sinners saved by God's grace. For there are those who turn God's grace into a license for immorality (Jude 1:4).
A righteous man (or good person of God) is not going to boast in their own goodness.
For who ultimately does the "good work" in a believer's life?
Is it God?
Or is it the believer?
Well, Scripture tells us that God (Christ) is the One who ultimately does the work within a believer.
Philippians 1:6
Philippians 1:11
Philippians 2:13
Philippians 4:13
1 Corinthians 15:10
Hebrews 12:1-2
Hebrews 13:21
Isaiah 26:12
1 John 4:12
Galatians 5:22-24 (cf. Matthew 7:16-18, Matthew 19:17)
John 15:5
Ezekiel 36:26-27
For that is why the 24 elders cast their crowns down before Jesus (Revelation 4:10). For the crowns they received for their good work was all the result of Christ working in them.
Yeah, but doesn't a believer do the work, too? Now, yes, it is true; A believer is created unto Christ Jesus for good works (Ephesians 2:10); And a believer is indeed held accountable by their "good works" here upon this Earth at a Judgment. But we must also realize that true believers are not ultimately doing these "good works" alone or of their own power, though. For in 1 Corinthians 15:10 Paul said that he labored more than all of his brethren, yet he said it was not him that labored but it was the grace of God that was within him. So true believer's are just choosing to allow God's "good work" to flow within them or not.
So no. I do not believe in Man Directed Works Alone Salvationism. I believe if someone truly has accepted the LORD and Christ lives within them, then good fruit (And not bad fruit) will be evident in their life to prove that the One who is salvation itself abides within them (1 John 5:12) (See also 1 John 2:3-4). So a believer who does good gives praise unto the Lord or God because it is the Lord doing the good work in them. A believer will not boast in their own goodness because there is no such thing. Only God alone is good, and a believer cooperates with God so as to allow God to work in them.
You said:
Is any of this true about us as humans?
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Just got off the phone with my mother who is 60 years old.
She talked about something how we try to be good person, and never mentions anything about God.
She asked told me 'Why wouldn't you try to be a good person'.
I mentioned to her, that I am not a good person, and she disagree yet wonder how is it possible to come this conclusion.
She said ' What if someone says hey you know matthew ? ' and someone responds, ' yeah he is a good person' wouldn't you want that?
I said ' It doesn't matter what they say about me if I am a good person '
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The run down of my explanation of Truth to my mother.
Every time you do something good for another person, it's I.
Look at what I did for xxxx, I am a good person.
Look at when I helped with xxxx, I am a good person.
The truth is mom, we are all broken human beings, and my heart is bad. Everything I mentioned has me at the forefront of being good, look at me, look at what I did, me me me me.
Nothing is ever mentioned about look at all the Good things that God is doing through matthew. It's never me that is doing good things because all my heart is bad.
She said what does that make you then if you are not a good person?
My response: A sinner saved by grace through faith.
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The good person dilemma, it ain't all about us.
Right, a person cannot be saved by good works alone without God's grace. So your mother would be wrong if she is suggesting that a person can be good without God and without His grace. First, we need to have our past slate of sin wiped out before we can even walk uprightly. Two, most folks of this world (Who have not accepted Christ) trivialize sin. So they see good people, and bad people in terms of their own sense of morality and not in God's sense of morality according to His Word.
Now, we all have sinned as a part of our old life before being saved by God's grace. No doubt about it. However, the problem today is that popular candy coated Christianity believes it is impossible to put away
grievous sin (i.e. mortal sin or sins that lead to spiritual death) within this life. They think they are slaves to sin in this life. But Jesus said, he that sins is a slave to sin (John 8:34). Being a slave to sin means it is your master. But Jesus said you cannot serve two masters (Matthew 6:24), so the one who thinks they are a
sinner (currently by their present behavior) and yet they also believe they are saved by God's grace is faced with a real dilemma that forces them to either face the truth of what God's Word says against the popular sin and still be saved camp of Christianity or they put on a blind fold to such a truth. Paul said we have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). Did Christ ever think he was a sinner saved by God's grace? No. Then neither should we. Well, that is if you believe the verses I have put forth here. Most today just bury their head in the sand to such verses and or they attempt to change them because they don't like them. I pray that you will not do that.
For many in Christianity fail to understand the purpose or goal as to why Jesus died for us.
For they don't accept these below verses at face value in what they plainly say.
“...even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” (Ephesians 5:25-27).
“Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.” (Titus 2:14).