Heidelberg Catechism: Lord’s Day 24

The gospel raises a question: If we’re saved by faith alone, does that mean good works don’t matter? Or we might ask, does that make people careless or ungrateful?

The Catechism doesn’t avoid that question. It embraces it. And it helps us understand where obedience fits—not as the price of salvation, but as its joyful response.

Question 62

Why can’t our good works be our righteousness before God, or at least a part of it?
Because the righteousness
which can pass God’s judgment
must be entirely perfect
and must completely conform to God’s law.

Even the very best we do in this life
is imperfect
and stained with sin.¹

¹ Isaiah 64:6; Romans 3:20; Galatians 3:10; James 2:10

Question 63

But don’t our good works earn nothing,
even though God promises to reward them in this life and the next?
This reward is not earned.
It is a gift of grace.²

² Matthew 5:12; 10:42; Luke 17:10; 1 Corinthians 3:8; Hebrews 11:6

Question 64

But doesn’t this teaching make people indifferent and wicked?
No.

It is impossible for those grafted into Christ by true faith
not to produce fruits of gratitude.³

³ Matthew 7:18; Luke 6:43–45; John 15:5; Romans 6:1–2

Why Good Works Can’t Save

We like the idea that God grades on a curve. That if we try hard, or do enough, or mean well, He’ll overlook the rest. But the Catechism points us back to what Scripture says: the only righteousness that can stand before God is perfect. Not mostly good. Not better than average. But entirely without fault.

And we don’t have that.

Even our best works—our most sincere prayers, most generous gifts, most selfless acts—are touched by pride, fear, or mixed motives. That doesn’t mean they are worthless. It just means they cannot justify us.

Only Christ’s righteousness meets the standard. And through faith, it becomes ours.

Why God Still Rewards

So if our good works can’t save us, do they still matter? The Catechism says yes—but not because they earn anything. They matter because God delights to reward what He Himself enables.

That is grace from start to finish.

God crowns the gifts He has given. He sees your small faithfulness, your quiet endurance, your unseen obedience—and He promises joy and reward. Not because you earned it, but because He is that generous.

The Christian life is not a contract. It’s a gift. And the rewards God gives are never wages. They are expressions of His delight.

Why True Faith Always Bears Fruit

But what about the fear that grace leads to laziness? The Catechism faces that concern directly and answers it with confidence: No. It is impossible for those truly united to Christ not to bear fruit.

If you have been grafted into Christ—if your life is now rooted in His—then fruit will grow. Not perfectly. Not instantly. But inevitably.

That’s not a threat. It’s a promise. The Spirit who drew you to Christ is the same Spirit who changes you over time. Gratitude grows. Love deepens. Obedience becomes less a duty and more a delight.

Good works don’t save you. But if you are saved, good works will follow.

A Closing Prayer

Father, I thank You that my righteousness does not depend on my performance, but on the perfect obedience of Christ. You know how flawed even my best efforts are. And yet You still receive me, clothe me in Christ, and call me Your own. Help me never to trust in my works, but always to walk in them. Let every act of obedience be rooted in joy, not fear. Let my life bear fruit—not to earn Your love, but because I already have it. Make me someone whose gratitude shows in how I live, serve, and love. All is grace. And I am Yours. Amen.

Daily Bible Readings

New Testament in a Year
June 15 – John 16:16–33
June 16 – John 17:1–26
June 17 – John 18:1–27
June 18 – John 18:28–40
June 19 – John 19:1–16
June 20 – John 19:17–42
June 21 – John 20:1–18

The Bible in a Year
June 15 – Ezra 9–10; John 16:16–33
June 16 – Nehemiah 1–3; John 17:1–26
June 17 – Nehemiah 4–6; John 18:1–27
June 18 – Nehemiah 7; John 18:28–40
June 19 – Nehemiah 8–9; John 19:1–16
June 20 – Nehemiah 10–11; John 19:17–42
June 21 – Nehemiah 12–13; John 20:1–18