If I get one I will not count myself worthy because it belongs to Christ.
It'll be Christ who gives you the reward, dingbat!
Take heed, trial by fire to receive a reward for the good one has done..
Take heed lest you say something that makes no sense whatsoever.
If your definition evil is sin then yes we do evil by sinning multiple times every day. If we say we don't sin then the truth is not in us.
I didn't say that we don't sin.
This is why no one cares what you have to say, Cntrysner!
Pay attention to what people say, it helps the conversation move along.
Not that you care to have it move along. You're clearly not here to have rational discussions.
We are God's instruments in Christ and should strive to His will by His direction and can not claim any righteous work or it's outcome as our own.
Should I believe you or the word of God, which I directly quoted and which you ignore in favor of your pet doctrine?
One truly saved and in Christ still has not escaped the carnal.
No one has suggested otherwise.
PAY ATTENTION!!!!
Any good we as Christians can do is stained by the law of sin and unacceptable to God.
That's your doctrine, not the word of God, which I've already shown you.
The problem for you is that unless you're God, saying it doesn't make it so and since you seem allergic to both the plain reading of scripture and to rational arguments, you have no chance of correcting your error.
Only His Son's righteousness is acceptable.
Then tell us all what is being discussed in I Cor. 3
We are members of His flesh and bones can't escape the me, myself, and I, as Paul explained above. Paul is striving to avoid sin but can't escape his body of sin. If the stain of sin is on a righteous work it is not acceptable to God. Christ is our mediator an thank God when He looks at us He sees Christ and our sins covered.
You are conflating righteous actions with being righteous. We are not made righteous because we do rightly. We are made righteous by grace through faith in the righteous act of Christ and faith in His death and resurrection. That faith is what causes God to impute Christ's righteousness to us. We are righteous, right now! That is not so because we act righteously but because the Judge of all Creation has accepted Christ's righteousness on our behalf and has therefore declared us to be righteous.
All of that you agree with! Right?
So, if we are righteous then why do you think it impossible for us to do anything that is good? Even the unrighteous do good things from time to time (Luke 11:13). Indeed, there are a lot of unrighteous people that do good things most of the time. Sure, of course, everyone sins and they probably sin every single day and perhaps even multiple times a day but that doesn't mean that every act that they perform is an act of evil!
When I go to work and earn a living to provide for my family, that is not evil!
When the Christian activist talks a woman out of murdering her unborn baby, that is not evil!
When the unbeliever helps an elderly woman carry a sack of potatoes into her house, that is not evil!
When the atheist rightly explains how private property rights are a corollary to the right to one's life, that is not evil!
When Solomon threatened to cut a disputed baby in half in order to see which woman had the appropriate response, that was not evil!
When the government executes a duly convicted murderer, that is not evil!
Not every act that people do is evil! There's lots of things that people do that are perfectly good, right and just! That doesn't qualify them for heaven because in addition to the good things they do, they also do evil, harmful and shameful things. But just because we are not saved by our works, doesn't mean that we don't ever do anything right!
How is that not just common sense? How many times are we told throughout the bible, including by Paul, to do rightly, to practice justice, to love God and to love our neighbor.
“When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers" (Proverbs 21:15).
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).
“To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice” (Proverbs 21:3).
“This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another’” (Zechariah 7:9).
“Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow” (Isaiah 1:17).
“Thus says the Lord: ‘Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon my salvation will come, and my righteousness be revealed’” (Isaiah 56:1).
"Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." (Romans 12:21)
"For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same." (Romans 13:3}
"Therefore do not let your good be spoken of as evil;" (Romans 14:16)
"See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all." (1 Thessalonians 5:15)
That's not even 2% of what I could have quoted! The opening post, which you shamefully ignored completely, references Ezekiel 18 which is an entire chapter all about the fact that you are wrong to think that human beings are incapable of doing righteous actions.
Don't be a stubborn fool! You are wrong! The bible proves you are wrong. If you fail to repent, that will be wrong too!
Have the courage to drop false doctrines when one has been shown to be false! Where's the profit in clinging to demonstrably false doctrines! Are you more humble than Christ? Are you wiser than God who wishes to give you a reward for the righteous things you did in His name during this life? That's stupidity in the extreme! I mean, talk about false humility! Good grief man!
Clete