The unrighteousness of moralists
Paul goes on to point out what the inescapable consequences of such conduct, if not repented, must necessarily be.
But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. 6 God “will give to each person according to what he has done.” 7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.
The self-righteous moralist compares his life and conduct to that of wayward Gentiles and concludes that he’s significantly better than they are. He’s comfortable with his life and actions, and therefore he sees no reason to repent. But his complacency, Paul points out, is a delusion.
“Because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart,” Paul tells him, “you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.”
Taking note of the root of the verb that is here translated as “storing up” yields an interesting insight. Literally, the verb means “treasuring up.” People usually try to accumulate good and useful things, things of value. But in stubborn impenitence, the moralist is treasuring up wrath for himself. The actions he thinks are so good and acceptable are really reprehensible acts of self-righteousness, not things pleasing to God. They’re what the church father Augustine called “glittering vices.”
Why are they vices? Not because the moralist’s actions in themselves are necessarily bad, but because his motive for doing them is wrong. The difference between good works flowing from faith and bad works motivated by selfrighteousness and a self-seeking spirit may not be readily apparent to human eyes at the present time.
The difference, however, is very real and will become obvious to all on “the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.” “For those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.”
From what Paul has already said in this letter, “the righteous will live by faith” (1:17), and from what he says in his other letters, it is perfectly clear that salvation is a gift of God’s grace. The Scriptures consistently teach that salvation comes to the believer by faith, without requiring any merit or any fulfillment of the law.
Good works do not earn salvation, but they are nonetheless important. They are the manifestation of faith, the physical evidence that faith, which is invisible, is in fact present and resides in the heart of the believer. Good works are the proof that faith is living and active. Recall James’ evaluation of the situation when he says, “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (James 2:17).
Note also the place our Savior gives works in his description of judgment day (Matthew 25:31-46). The division between “sheep” and “goats” is made purely on the basis of faith or lack of faith in the heart. Faith, although invisible to us, is clearly visible to the omniscient God. Vindication of God’s just verdict, however, is made on the basis of the fruits of faith that are clearly visible to all.
In the case of the righteous, God defends his placing them among the sheep by saying, “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, . . .” (verse 35).
When the unrighteous complain about the negative verdict against them, the same measuring stick is used. The standard of works as the fruit of faith is applied to them also. Only in this case, their lack of good works verifies the damning lack of living faith that has justly condemned them to a place with the other goats.