Dirty Children

Question:
Jon, I think there's something to be said for the condition of our hearts under the new covenant. In my own life it has been very hard to reconcile my theology and my reality, especially concerning depravity. (For instance, when my nonbelieving friends do something good. What do I make of that? They are indeed good people with charitable hearts. They have morals they strive to maintain and they are compassionate and helpful toward one another.)

Is it possible that we can make too much of "total depravity"? Or is it possible that we sometimes swerve too far to the right or the left when teaching certain doctrines instead of striving for the balance that wholeness of Scripture would offer?

Great Question! In fact, I was hoping someone would ask it.
Here's my answer:

There are two legitimate ways to look at acts done by humans (believing and non-believing).

Obviously there is a sense in which an unbelieving philanthropist giving $20 Million to build a hospital in Africa is a "good" thing. It is accurate to say it is better to be a good pagan nurse who seeks to help people, than be a bomb throwing anarchist. Consequently only Christianity can satisfactorily explain any moral difference between these two chosen professions!

On the other hand when looking at works from God's perspective (as only God can do). He sees a fundamental difference between works done by those who are His and those who are not.

Christians- Yes, every work we do is tainted by sin, even our best actions are like bloody tampons. Sorry to get crude, but that's the way the Bible describes our works (See Isaiah 64:6). Christians are by no means perfect, and as Romans 7 makes explicitly clear, we all live in the reality of abiding and indwelling sin, but there is also another law at work in us. Christians are sinners in whom the Spirit dwells and motivates us to put to death the deeds of the body, this is always the case with believers. We never "arrive." We never get to a point to where we have sin "licked." In this life, sin will be a constant enemy of Christians that must be put to death.

Non-Christians- Yes, every work they do is sinful in God's eyes. Even their best actions are not done in faith. Romans 14:23 says "But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin." and Hebrews 11:6- "And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him." Therefore only works done "in faith" (whatever that means) are not sinful to God. By definition an unbeliever does not have faith, and therefore every work is sinful. Even good works done by Christians not in faith are sin.

Bottom line: Being a Christian does not mean sinlessness, but it does mean that you hate sin, and fight against it. It is good and right to recognize when an unbeliever does something good and even to thank or compliment them. At the same time we should not mislead them into thinking that God is pleased with their "good works" nor that He is pleased with ours. He is pleased with Christ and anyone who is "in Him." That's what it means to do works in faith. We work trusting that God is looking at us through the lens of Christ's work.

Hope this is helpful and it may even spur more questions.