But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Rom. 4:4,5.
annalex, what do you plan on doing with your works of righteousness, giving God a bill? He owes you, nor any of us, NOTHING. No matter how nice you are to your neighbor. Or how you strive to keep the Commandments, or the Beatitudes. He owes you NOTHING for your efforts.
It's not a good works outweighs the bad kind of thing. Sinning once is all that it takes to condemn us.
James 2: 8-11
If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.
This is the big problem with works. Once the Law is broken, death is required. We can't pay that obligation.
Even if we sin only once, and he rest of our life is pure as Jesus, we are under condemnation. All the other good works we do cannot cancel out that one sin or pay for that one sin, because the wages of sin is death and by the works of of the Law is no flesh justified. Nothing else can pay for it.
It has to be through faith that God will forgive us in Christ when we throw ourselves on the mercy of the court. Just like the publican praying outside the temple. The Pharisee was bragging on how he kept the Law. The publican knew he hadn't and had nothing left to appeal to but God's mercy.
This can not be stressed enough... Works are to earn salvation, that is not grace, that is not mercy..it is wages due
Thanks for the scripture :)