Good works are only such as God hath commanded in his holy Word, and not such as, without the warrant thereof, are devised by men out of blind zeal, or upon any pretense of good intention. - WCF 16.1

Introduction

If you were asked “what is a good work?” you would probably answer “being obedient to the Lord” without missing a beat. And of course, you’d be right. But this answer leaves much to be desired because it seems right on its face, but it leaves room for many other answers to creep in. In other words, if you leave out the adverb “only” then you miss the appropriate modification of your answer. So, when asked the same question, “what is a good work?” and you answer “doing only what the Lord has commanded,” you have given a different answer entirely. It is the inclusion of this small qualifier, that is the spark of so much hot debate, and a mark of faithfulness. 

Christ As Our Example 

In John 10:32 Jesus tells the Jews that it was the Father’s intention to make known to them His distinguished benefits through Christ, and those benefits were confirmed through Christ by way of his “good works.” John Gill describes Jesus’ good works this way:

[His works were] healing the sick, and all manner of diseases; dispossessing devils, cleansing lepers, giving sight to the blind, causing the dumb to speak, the deaf to hear, and the lame to walk; which were not only works of power, but of mercy and beneficence; and therefore are called good works, as well as they were great and miraculous ones[1]

Certainly, much of what Christ did was miraculous, but it is the underlying compassion, mercy, beneficence, and obedience to the Father that accompany them for which we are called to have as the underlying motivation in our own good works. In other words, in Christ, we are shown what good works are by way of his example of expressing the Father to us. Being an imitator of God as a beloved child, and walking in love as Christ loved, is therefore our framework for our good works (Ephesians 5:1-2). 

What Are Good Works?

This question may seem difficult to some, and rather obvious to others. In either case, having a firm grip on how the scripture guides us and the categories it makes for us is very helpful. 

In the epistle of James, we are given a very helpful and direct example of what good works are. He writes, 

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? James 2:14-16

Here, James is speaking particularly of brothers or sisters within the communion of faith: those of a spiritual sense. However, this does not exclude those in a natural sense but merely sets our priorities. The practicality of this passage, however, is striking. James is explaining that our hopes for people, or the kind words we say to them, are simply not enough. If mere words are all that we offer, James asks, “what good is that?” because in this instance our faith is not shown. The words themselves neither warm nor fill. 

He continues by saying that faith by itself without being accompanied by works is dead. In other words, the faith one claims to possess is inactive, and impotent by its own standard. This is because good works are a requirement of those who profess faith in Jesus Christ. Here, it is made clear that acts of faithful and helpful service and meeting the needs of others is one category of good works. 

Likewise, in another place we are shown what good works are:

He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? -Micah 6:8

Micah asks the rhetorical question, “will the Lord be pleased with offerings?” because the obvious answer is “no!” The Lord desires obedience rather than sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22). And here we are given great insight into what the Lord desires. It is interesting, however, that two of the three things mentioned are directly related to our relationship with other people: doing justice and loving-kindness. In the first instance to deal justly whether in public or private settings is “​​to hurt no man's person, property, and character; to give to everyone their due, and do as he would desire to be done by; which as it is agreeable to the law of God.”[2] In the second instance, it is not simply to show mercy to those in misery or distress or to feed the hungry or warm the cold, but it is to love doing so. It is to delight in the exercises of mercy. 

The reason this is interesting is because we observe the same pattern in the New Testament. We are taught, the whole law of God is fulfilled when you love your neighbor as yourself (James 2:8, Galatians 5:14). This is because the second table of the law (the last six commandments) cannot be rightly fulfilled unless the first table (the first four commandments) is being fulfilled. In other words, we cannot walk justly or love mercy, unless we are already walking humbly with our God. 

Blind Zeal and Pretense 

It will often be said, “look at what zeal she has for the Lord”, or people will shout “look what we are trying to accomplish,” as if zeal and intention make for faithfulness and goodness. These simply do not, unless they have the proper substance; unless they’re made of the right “stuff.” 

Blind Zeal:

Blind zeal is really a miserable condition. It is miserable because those heaped up in it are either deceiving themselves, or they are deceiving others. In either case, misery will result. The Lord says that his people are destroyed, and they perish because they lack knowledge (Hosea 4:6). But this is not an innocent lack of knowledge - the kind that a 2-year-old has, but this was a deliberate lack, a rejection of the knowledge of God. The people were deliberately blind - they volunteered to be that way. This is the same admonition that we see Paul give in the book of Romans. Paul says about the Jews, that their zeal for God is not according to knowledge. This is striking, because if it isn’t according to knowledge, what on Earth is it according to? Well, at this point it is a zeal for religion without any knowledge of who the true and living God is. It is a belief determined by personal experience and feeling, rather than a proper understanding of the Lord, his word, and knowing what he requires. 

Pretense:

Pretense is basically to make-believe, or to put on an act or a show - you are making yourself appear better than you really are. Isaiah prophesies, “...[these] people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me…” This is an example of what Jesus calls a white-washed tomb (Matthew 23:27). The forms and functions are beautiful, the speech and body movements are all correct. From the outside, you would look at these people and be amazed at their commitment and devotion. But God sees their hearts, and he knows that they are giving lip service. Also, upon pretense of good intentions, men will do what their own will desires and call it good, or according to God’s word. Jesus tells his disciples that a time is coming when people will try to kill them, and claim that it is in obedience to God (John 16:2). And they will attempt to kill the disciples, precisely because they do not know God the Father or Jesus, his Messiah. 

Conclusion

It becomes an obvious answer for us then, that the scripture lays out for us what good works are. It does not tell us every single solitary good work that could ever be done, but God has left us with a rubric, a gauge if you will, to determine if what we are doing is “good.” We must strive to be diligent to show our faith, and be like Christ and have a sincere heart in all that we do. This does not mean that we will be perfect, for sin still persists and we live in its presence here on Earth till’ glory. So, we strive, and run the race, looking to the one who only did good and did it perfectly, in our place and on our behalf! He is the truly good one, and we are mere servants, who strive to be obedient out of love for him! 

S.D.G.

[1] John Gill Commentary on John 10:32

[2] John Gill Commentary on Micah 6:8