Of Good Works, XVI:7

Works done by unregenerate men, although for the matter of them they may be things which God commands; and of good use both to themselves and others: yet, because they proceed not from an heart purified by faith; nor are done in a right manner,according to the Word; nor to a right end, the glory of God, they are therefore sinful, and cannot please God, or make a man meet to receive grace from God: and yet, their neglect of them is more sinful and displeasing unto God.

There are plenty of things found in the Confession that will stick in the craw of the unbeliever. This is one of those. Conventional wisdom has it that if we are basically good people, mind our own business, do no harm to anyone (or a minimum, at any rate--I haven't murdered anyone, for example), the gates of heaven will swing wide open and a brass band will be there to meet us. We'll get a hearty handshake from God and a paternal pat on the back. And then we're set for eternity.

At the risk of bursting bubbles--no. "All these things I have done from my youth" simply brings the gentle rebuke that we yet lack. Unbelievers may do many outwardly good works, even things that God has commanded in his word (honor parents, extend hospitality to strangers, seek for justice for the poor and the orphan, etc.), even things that benefit themselves and others. Yet the so doing proceeds from ungodly circumstances, to wit:

1. Their hearts are impure; they lack faith in the God Who Is.

2. The manner of their doing does not align with God's word.

3. Their motive is askew--they are not concerned to glorify God.

In all these ways, the "good" works of the unbeliever are, in fact, sin. They cannot please God because they are of sin. They are in no way meritorious (and we have already examined the futility of such thinking) and they impose no obligation upon God to reward them. Far from adding righteousness to his account, the unbeliever's "good" works are marked in the debit side of his ledger.

And yet--and yet--if the unbeliever were not to do these things, so much the worse for him. For the neglect of even outward, selfish obedience* to God is worse than its observance. The unbeliever who would lessen his eternal punishments is exhorted to be diligent in doing "good." Far better for him that he do this than waste his life in obvious sin.

Of course, far better for the unbeliever to renounce his unbelief and turn to God in repentance and faith. Then God will refine and polish all his "good" works and set them as jewels in his eternal crown.

[*We who have, or once were, children know just how this works. Children often obey their parents not out of a sense of it being just and right to do so but because they may expect a whipping for not obeying or they really desire that dish of ice cream being offered as a reward. Examples may be multiplied almost endlessly.]

Tomorrow: The Confession summarized on good works.