It is common in our day and age to think that the good things we do make up for the bad, thus making us acceptable before God. This is wrong and reliance on good works is futile.
First, we must consider "good." Good makes sense only if there is a God. He is the standard of good. And it is by His standard we are judged.
"Evil" or "bad" is a lack of the good. It is missing the amrk, falling short of the standard, which is of God.
So the bad things we do should be considered falling short of that standard
The next thing we need to make clear is the nature of duty. When we do our duty, we don't deserve reward. We have just done what we should. If a soldier follows an order, he is not special. Nor has he gained merit. He has done his duty.
Now, our conception that our good cancels out our bad has two flaws. First, we lack understanding of the standard by which we are judged against. Secondly, we don't understand how bad we are.
Let's examine the standard upon which we are judged. WE are up against goodness which is rooted in the character of God. This is perfection. Perfection at first seems too harsh a standard.
God is holy. As such, He cannot tolerate sin, which is falling short of the standard. Our sins must be punished. Good words cannot counterbalance sin. Analogies are in order to explain this.
I incurr a debt. For the rest of my life I am not a debtor. I just break even, but do not incur any more debt. I will always be in debt. The one time event of being in debt has made me a debtor for life, unless I can make a profit to pay off my debt.
We are expected to do good things. We are required to do good things. So good works cannot make up for our punishment. Unless you do better than doing good, you will never make up the debt of sin. But we can never do better than doing good because it is required of us. What we need is someone to pay our debt for us.
The second problem, that we are not as good as we suppose, I am faced with quite a problem. Seeing God clearly alleviates this problem.
He is the Creator and Sovreign Ruler of everything. This causes many to squirm already, thinking of someone who crimps one's style. Breaking His rules is tantamount to treason. The One who has breathed life into you is dreadfully provoked by sin. Sin is not simply failing. It is rebellion.
Relying on one's own good ness only further compunds one gult. We should be running to God, asking for His forgiveness. Instead we try to hide from the gaze of God, so we can pretend we have no guilt.
This too is futile. But we can see how sinful man is by his feeble attempts to flee God.
What shall we say for works? Good works can't atone, for good works is the standard we fall short of. And we are in rebellion to God. (There is a Christian Catch-22. God has decreed you are a sinner. To deny this would be sin.)
Sin takes many forms. Its affects can be seen all throughout society. Our rebellion and inability to atone for our rebellion should drive us to our senses. We should cry, "what must I do to be saved?!?"
At the point we realize we lack all ability, we are closest to salvation.
The core of the good news is that Jesus takes the punishment for our sins, our sins are on Him, when we place our lives in His hands by faith. Through His resurrection, His righteousness is imputed to us, by faith. Amen. Good news.