Sermon June 10, 2018
Overview
Are People Basically Good?
It's a question we hear all the time, and many today insist the answer is yes. Anne Frank, even in the shadow of the Holocaust, famously said she still believed people were good at heart—not because the evidence supported it, but because she felt it. Yet our feelings on the matter are not the final word. Only God's verdict counts, and Scripture's verdict is unmistakable.
In Romans 3:10-18, the Apostle Paul stitches together a chain of Old Testament texts to deliver a sweeping indictment: "There is no one righteous, not even one… no one who understands… no one who seeks God… all have turned aside." The word "righteous" means good, just, right. By nature, we lack understanding of God's holiness and the depth of our own sin (compare 1 Corinthians 2:14). We do not pursue God; our hearts are stone. The image of "turning aside" is the language of desertion—soldiers who abandon their post and become worthless in the process. Paul then traces our sin from head to toe: throats, tongues, lips, feet, and eyes are all marked by corruption. This is not an isolated theme. Genesis 6:5 describes humanity's every inclination as "only evil continually," and Romans 5:12 tells us death spread to all because all have sinned.
How good is good enough? Jesus answers in Matthew 5:48: "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." God deals only in two categories—perfection or not. There is no sliding scale. This doesn't mean we are incapable of doing good things, but as Isaiah 64:6 reminds us, even our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth, tainted by pride and self-regard. The familiar question, "Why do bad things happen to good people?" carries a flawed assumption. The deeper, more honest question is: Why do good things happen to bad people?
The answer is grace—the unearned, undeserved favor and love of God. If it could be earned, it wouldn't be grace. God pours out grace in every breath, every blessing, and supremely in Jesus Christ, the sinless One who bore our sin on the cross, was raised from the tomb, and claims us in baptism. This reshapes how we face hardship. Bad things still come, because we live as sinners in a sinful world. But suffering is not God's punishment for our sin—sin has already been punished in Christ. Instead, God uses hardship to wean us from self-sufficiency, deepen our dependence on him, and discipline us as a loving Father shapes a beloved child. Romans 8:28 holds firm: "all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose." All things—including the bad—remain under his sovereign hand. From head to toe we are sinners, and yet God pours out his grace on the likes of us. That is amazing grace indeed.
Transcript
Would you open your Bible please with me to the third chapter of the book of Romans? 0s
Are people basically good? 5s
Are people basically good? 10s
It's an interesting question, isn't it? 14s
For we hear the advocacy for that position quite often, don't we? 17s
Maybe it's in a news account or a commentary where someone will say, 24s
You know, I just believe that people are basically good. 30s
We want to believe that. 39s
Don't we? 42s
Think of Anne Frank. 43s
Escaping from the Nazis hiding in Holland for two years, 46s
She's tragically, however, put to death in a concentration camp. 50s
And yet Anne Frank, despite all that she saw in her writings, 56s
She maintained the belief that people are basically good by her own admission. 63s
However, she said, I don't really look at the evidence, 73s
But I just feel it. 78s
She maintained. 80s
I just feel that people are basically good. 82s
Well, what we think about the subject in the end is irrelevant, isn't it? 90s
Because the only opinion that matters is God's opinion. 95s
And so how does God respond to the question? 100s
Are people basically good? 104s
The answer that God gives cannot be clear. 113s
Look when they fleece at Romans the third chapter. 118s
We pick up in verse 10. 122s
Here, the apostle Paul writing out of the inspiration of the spirit, 124s
Paul's together a host of portions of Holy Scripture. 128s
He starts by saying, as it is written. 134s
And so you see the weight here of that which is coming forward. 140s
Not only, of course, is this the inspired word of God, 143s
but now God is quoting God. 147s
God is lifting up his own scriptures here to address this very question. 151s
As it is written, there is no one who is righteous, 156s
not even one. 163s
There's no one who is righteous. 168s
That word there for righteous. 171s
It means good. 173s
It means just. 175s
It means right. 176s
That couldn't be clear. 180s
Are people basically good? 184s
And God says, there is no one who is good, 188s
not even one. 196s
Notice the emphasis there. 199s
Because, less we think, well, there is an exception to this, 202s
and you're the exception, or I'm the exception, 207s
it's underscore here, isn't it? 210s
There's no one who is good. 211s
There's no one who is righteous, 214s
not even one. 219s
No exceptions. 226s
Well, how good is good? 230s
How good is good? 236s
Jesus answers that in Matthew 5. 239s
He says, be perfect, therefore, 242s
as your Heavenly Father is perfect. 245s
Notice God only deals with two categories, right? 251s
He either deals with the category of perfection, 255s
or the category of not good, or bad. 258s
There's no gradation here that God gives. 262s
You're either perfect, or you are bad. 268s
There is no one who is righteous, not even one. 275s
Then he continues on with this stinging indictment of us. 283s
Look at verse 11. 289s
There's no one who has understanding. 291s
There's no one who has understanding. 294s
In other words, by nature, we do not have an understanding of the goodness, 298s
holiness, perfection, and justice of God. 301s
By nature, we do not have an understanding of the depths of our sinfulness. 305s
We think of ourselves as pretty good people. 310s
We do not have an understanding. 314s
That shows the depth of our sin. 317s
Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 2, 319s
those who are unspearachual, do not receive the gifts of God's spirit. 322s
They're foolishness to them, 327s
and they are unable to understand them 330s
because they're spiritually discerned. 334s
God says, there is no one who's good. 339s
No one who's right. There's no one who is just. 344s
And there's no one who has understanding. 348s
The third aspect of the indictment is the second part of verse 11. 351s
There is no one who seeks God. 356s
There's no one who seeks God. 361s
When we are born, we want nothing to do with God. 364s
Our confessional writings echoing scripture, 369s
say that our heart is the heart of stone. 371s
If there is not one inkling in us that moves towards God, 376s
wants to be in relationship with God, 381s
we want nothing to do with Him. 384s
There's no one who's right. 386s
There's no one who understands. 388s
There's no one who seeks. 389s
Here's the fourth aspect now of the indictment. 391s
Verse 12, 395s
All have turned to sign together. 397s
They've become worthless. 400s
There's no one who shows kindness. 402s
That word there is better translated goodness. 405s
So in other words, there's no one who manifests goodness. 408s
It's the same original point. 411s
There's not even one. 413s
Verse 12, again, all have turned a sign. 417s
That word there is the word for desertion. 422s
The image is someone who is in the military who deserves the military 424s
and goes their own way and becomes worthless then in the process. 431s
It's amazing. 437s
Picture of us, isn't it? 437s
That indeed, none of us are good. 441s
None of us have understanding. 443s
We don't seek God. 445s
In fact, we have deserted God. 447s
Are people basically good? 452s
What's God's answer to that? 459s
No. 463s
No. 464s
And to make sure we get the point, he goes on. 467s
In fact, he shows our sinfulness from head to toe here. 473s
Pick up please in verse 13. 477s
Their throats are opened graves. 479s
They use their tongues to deceive. 482s
The venom of viperes is under their lips. 486s
Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. 490s
Their feet are swift to shed blood, ruin and misery are in their paths. 494s
And the way of peace they have not known. 500s
There is no fear of God before their eyes. 503s
Throats, tongues, lips, feet, and eyes. 509s
From head to toe, we are a sinner. 513s
And what is manifest lies in curses and threats and hurtful and murderous acts? 515s
And no respect for God? 522s
And to make sure we get the point, this isn't the only place we hear that. 527s
Let me give you two examples. 533s
Genesis 6 chapter. 535s
The Lord saw that the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth and that every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil, continually. 537s
Romans 5. 549s
Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man and death came through sin. 551s
So death spread to all because all have sin. 557s
The pervasive nature of our sinfulness. 562s
That doesn't mean, however, that we can't do good things, right? 573s
While even in our prayer this morning, it references doing good. 581s
Who doesn't mean that we can't do good things, but the point is, is that even when we do good things, it is so tainted by sin. 589s
We are sinners and therefore even the good that we do is tainted by sin. 600s
Isaiah, the 64th chapter, says this, 608s
we've all become like one who is unclean and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth. 611s
So it doesn't mean here that we can't do good things, but it does mean that even the good things that we do is tainted by sin. 621s
Who among us has never done a good thing and thought to themselves. 629s
That was really nice of me to do. 634s
Who of us here have never gone a good thing and thought to ourselves, I bet they noticed that. 638s
You see, even the good that we do is tainted by our sinfulness. 648s
Are people basically good? 658s
How clear is God with regard to the answer? 668s
I think of the famous question that. 678s
Why do bad things happen to good people? 683s
Why do bad things happen to good people? 692s
You hear the problem with that question? 695s
You hear the problem with it? 698s
What's the problem with it? 700s
Nobody's good, right? 703s
There's an assumption in the question that we're all good. 706s
But the problem is inherent in the question itself because of our sinfulness. 715s
God says, none of us are good. 724s
But Jesus? 736s
I think of the conversation that a mother had with her six-year-old daughter. 741s
She turned one day to her six-year-old daughter and she said, 746s
one day when you die and you are standing before the Lord, 750s
if God turns to you and says, why should I let you into heaven? 756s
What will you say? 761s
The little girl through her shoulders back looked right in her mother and said, 764s
well, I will just tell God that I tried really, really hard to be good. 769s
And she was proud with her answer. 778s
Mother just let silence. 782s
And then a puzzled look came on the face of the little girl. 786s
She realized what she had said and her answer was deeply theological. 791s
She said, well, well, maybe not that good. 801s
Maybe not that good. 810s
What did she come to the understanding? 814s
She came to the understanding of her own lack of perfection. 816s
She had the understanding here that even though she may have tried in all of her six years, 821s
to be really, really good, there was no way to be good enough to stand in the presence of a holy and perfect God, 826s
who commands not us being good. 838s
But commands us to be perfect. 843s
God, the sinless one. 855s
God, the perfect one. 859s
The Lord Jesus Christ. 862s
The good one went to the cross. 866s
Crucified a bad act to a good person, perfect person. 873s
And out of that action comes the good. 886s
See, the question is not really. 896s
Why do bad things happen to good people? 900s
The question is, why do good things happen to bad people? 905s
That's the question, isn't it? 910s
It's not why do bad things happen to good people. 913s
It's why do good things happen to bad people? 917s
Us, in the answer is the amazing grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. 921s
The amazing grace of God. 933s
Grace is the undeserved, fever, the undeserved love of God. 937s
If you earn something, it's not grace. 944s
Because that defies the very definition of grace. 948s
Grace is the un-earned, fever, and un-earned love of God. 952s
And God pours out His grace upon us. 957s
He pours out His grace and simply giving all of us one more breath. 961s
He pours out His grace in the blessings that He surrounds us with each and every day. 966s
And chiefly, He pours out His grace in the Lord Jesus Christ, 972s
who takes our sin upon Him, paying the debt, 978s
reconciling us to Him. 984s
Jesus being raised out of the tomb so we know that the sacrifice has been accepted. 988s
That indeed we have been reconciled unto God, 994s
claiming us in the waters of baptism. 997s
Why do good things happen to bad people? 1003s
That transforms then, doesn't it not? 1018s
How we think about when bad things happen to us, right? 1021s
We are sinners living in a sinful world, 1026s
and so bad things will happen. 1030s
But when bad things happen to us, 1034s
that is not God punishing us. 1037s
Why? Because God has punished sin in His Son. 1041s
We bring upon bad in our lives, 1048s
we experience bad from others. 1049s
We are in a sinful world, and we are sinners ourselves. 1052s
But when the bad things happen in our lives, 1056s
it is not God punishing us for sin has been punished in Jesus Christ. 1059s
That means when God in His sovereignty allows the bad in our lives, 1069s
God uses that for His purpose. 1076s
How does God use the bad? 1080s
God uses the bad to ween us off of our self-dependency. 1083s
He weens us away from our self, 1088s
and continually pulls us more and more, 1091s
lifting our eyes unto His grasp, 1095s
instead of our own clutching, 1099s
and our own grasp. 1102s
He weens us away from our self-sufficiency 1104s
into dependency upon Him. 1109s
He uses the bad in our life to discipline us, 1115s
like a loving parent disciplines their child. 1119s
The parent does not or should never punish out of anger. 1123s
The parent should punish out of wanting to shape. 1128s
The direction of the child. 1133s
You see, when God disciplines us, 1136s
it is not out of anger. 1139s
It is God shaping us, 1141s
and He disciplines us, 1143s
shaping our walk with Him. 1147s
He disciplines us through bad that He allows in our lives. 1151s
He deepens our walk with Him. 1159s
We become more dependent upon Him. 1161s
He disciplines us and shapes us, 1164s
like a loving parent does with the child. 1167s
Why do good things happen to bad people? 1175s
And even the bad is under the sovereign control of God. 1185s
I think of the promise of Romans 8. 1192s
We know that all things work together for good 1196s
for those who love God who are called according to His purpose. 1201s
All things work together for good 1207s
to those who love God who are called according to His purpose. 1210s
All things. 1217s
All things then includes bad things, right? 1219s
Because bad things are included in all things. 1225s
Because all means all. 1230s
We know that even when the bad comes in our life, 1236s
it is still under the sovereign control of all mighty God. 1241s
There's no one who is righteous, not even one. 1253s
There's no one who has understanding. 1257s
There's no one who seeks God. 1259s
All of turn decide. 1260s
Together they've become worthless. 1263s
There's no one who shows kindness. 1265s
There's not even one. 1268s
Head to toe. 1273s
We're sinners. 1276s
And yet God pours out His grace on the likes of God. 1279s
And so we sing this morning. 1293s
The Lord has promised good to me His word, 1298s
My hope, 1305s
Secures. 1308s