Not As Good As We Think

In my last post, I thought about what it means to be radically corrupt. Today I want to think on that concept further by distinguishing between civic virtue and actual goodness. We all think we’re basically good according to Proverbs 20:6. I think it’s fair to say that we see goodness as a continuum with Mother Theresa and our saintly Grandmother at the high end, let’s say close to 100. The other end, near 0, is populated with folks like Jeffrey Dahmer, Hitler, and possibly that guy who cut you off in traffic this morning. Almost no one will place themselves below 50 on this scale. Seriously, ask a few people and you’ll be convinced. We like to think about all the good things we do and especially all the bad things that we haven’t done… at least recently. The problem with our reasoning is our misconception of goodness and our stubborn refusal to acquiesce to Jesus' declaration that no one is good, but God. I think the best way to illustrate the differences in our thinking and God’s may be with a chart:

Man’s View of Goodness	God’s View of Goodness
Being polite  Self sacrifice Charitable giving Following rules Peaceable	His own character, nature, and attributes Perfect conformity to His moral perfection and obedience to His law.
Man’s View of Evil	God’s View of Evil
Killing Stealing Cruelty Oppressing the weak	Any and all violations of His law in word, thought or deed.
Man’s Self - Assessment	God’s Evaluation of Man
Done a few bad things Done some good too	…There is none who does good, No, not one. Psalms 53:3

Being radically corrupt doesn’t mean we are as bad as we can be, but it does mean that we’ve never done anything good.  Oh, we may behave extremely well occasionally and even pagans will perform works of kindness and self sacrifice, but in our unregenerate fallen condition, all charitable acts are no more than civil virtue.  We score no points for civil virtue because it “is like filthy rags” (Is.64:6) to God, who examines our heart and knows our motives and our native enmity toward Him.  He sees our selfishness, our lack of love for Him and makes the pronouncement of Psalms 53:3.  We aren’t 50 or higher on the scale; we’re all zeros.   

I’ve really only looked at half of our problem so far.  It’s true; we aren’t good, but just how bad are we?  In the words of Michael Jackson, “you know I’m bad, I’m bad, you know it!”  That will be a discussion for another day.


.