Why Do Good Works?
“And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. Whoever keeps his commandments abides in him, and he in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.” I John 3:23, 24
How do we keep the commandments of God? I John 3 gives us a simple recipe. Believe in Jesus Christ and love those around us. To believe in Christ fulfills the first of the Ten Commandments. The first commandment is “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me.” This command teaches us not to worship other gods. It also commands us to believe in God and place our faith in him. For us this means to trust in Jesus Christ for our salvation. I John 3 says that our whole duty is to believe in Jesus Christ and love one another.
Every good work follows from this pattern. It begins with faith in God. When we have faith in God, all our works are pleasing and acceptable to God. Jesus illustrated this in his own life. He said, “I always do the things that are pleasing to him” (John 8:29). Since Jesus used the term “always,” he must have included times in which he was eating, drinking, sleeping, and so forth. Are these pleasing to God? Since Jesus did all these things, and he never sinned, the answer is yes. All things done in faith and with love are pleasing and acceptable to God.
Good works can be done by sinners. People with no faith can feed the hungry, clothe the poor, and care for others. As Christians, we do not reject these works. That is, it is better for people without faith to do good rather than evil. We would rather that those without faith feed the hungry than rob them of their goods. The distinction between the good works of the faithful and sinners, however, is great. No work is acceptable to God apart from faith. The good works of non-Christians do not earn them salvation, just as the good works of Christians do not earn us salvation.
There can be great good works. That is, if I can feed 100 poor, it is better than only feeding one. This is what Jesus meant when he said that to whom much is given, much is required (Luke 12:48). We should do as much as we can to further the kingdom of God. It is also true that faith makes all works equal. Through faith, a good work is pleasing to God, even though it is small. This was the case with the poor widow who gave two small coins for the temple offering. Jesus commended her, not because of the size of her gift, but the faith and love with which it was given (Mark 21:41-44). When done with faith, a small thing is just as pleasing to God as a big one. We serve God in simple things when we do them with faith, love, and a good heart.
This is meant to encourage us. We can serve and please God in the simple things of ordinary life if we trust in God, seek to do good, love our neighbor, and follow Jesus. Mother Teresa said, “We cannot do great things for God, only small things with great love.” Do not forget that your simple good works have value. Don’t fret that you cannot do a great work. Do a small one with faith and know that it is pleasing and acceptable in God’s sight.