The Trap of the "Goodness Scale": Why Your Ordinary Christian Life is Extraordinary

 

Have you ever felt that your efforts to be a good person just don’t "count" enough?

In our digital age, a new kind of legalism has emerged. It’s a fast-growing notion that there is what I would call a catalogue of compassion—a precise scale that measures the effectiveness of your kindness. A new form of justification, where moral worth is earned by visible causes rather than received by grace.

In this modern moral economy, acts of service are ranked like Olympic events. In this hierarchy, changing your child’s diaper or being a diligent employee ranks near the bottom. To move up the scale, the world tells us we must pursue "nobler" endeavours: travelling to distant continents, championing global social causes, rescuing street dogs, adopting the latest mandatory language of the day, advocating for the right pronouns, or sharing social media posts about preserving koalas from extinction.

These things can be genuine acts of love. What has changed is not that people care, but that caring has been turned into a scoreboard. 

And, of course, if you don't take a selfie while doing it, did it even happen?

Is Your Kindness "Enough"? (And Why That’s the Wrong Question) 

When people ask, "What are you doing to help the world?" it often feels like an interrogation rather than a question. We often fall into the trap of trying to justify our existence by listing our "big" accomplishments.

People who challenge us in our "good doing" aren't usually looking for a good answer—they're looking for the challenge itself. Why? Because there is no end of need in the world, and we cannot tend to them all. The moment we try to defend ourselves, listing our charitable activities like credentials at a job interview, we've already lost. We've accepted the premise that our worth must be proven, our faith justified by a performance review. The world’s needs are infinite, you will always "fail" their test. You cannot tend to every wound in the world, and trying to prove you are "doing enough" is a race with no finish line.

The Sanctity of the Ordinary 

 As Christians, we view "goodness" through a different lens. We aren't climbing a ladder; we are bearing fruit. The Epistle tells us:

"I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge..." (1 Corinthians 1:4-5)

Everything begins with faith. As Hebrews 11:6 reminds us, without faith, it is impossible to please God. Therefore, a "good work" isn't defined by its scale, its distance from your home, or its "trendiness" on social media. A good work is simply the fruit of faith in Christ. Because we are already saved, justified in Christ, our lives are free to become fruitful rather than frantic.

We often overlook the "small" things that hold the world together. If you are a Christian living your vocation, everything you do helps the world. This includes:

• Keeping the Ten Commandments.

• Caring for the people physically closest to you.

• Paying your taxes and being an honest neighbour.

• Teaching your children to pray.

• Attending Church and sharing the Word.

Is travelling to a poor country noble? Yes. Is rescuing an animal wonderful? Absolutely. These can be beautiful fruits of faith. But not the only ones, and neither the ones we need to prioritize at all costs. But they are not more holy than the quiet, hidden faithfulness of a parent, a worker, or a friend.

How to Respond to the World

When faced with the pressure to justify your life, remember two things:

• Acknowledge our limits: We all fall short of fulfilling God’s will perfectly. We don't need to pretend we are saving the world on our own strength.

• Trust your vocation: Everything done in Christ matters. From the largest mission trip to the smallest act of patience with a difficult neighbour, you are acting as the hands and feet of Jesus.

The next time someone challenges you with that loaded question about what you're doing to save the world, remember: you don't owe them an inventory of your charity. You don't need to compete in the moral Olympics. What you need is faithfulness in the small things, love for your neighbour (starting with the one closest to you), and the humility to acknowledge that all our righteousness is as filthy rags without Christ.

We don't need to justify ourselves. Instead, we need two things: first, to acknowledge that we fall short of fulfilling God's will (as we all do), and second, to recognize that as Christians, everything we do helps the world—starting with sharing the Word and having a Church, and extending into every single thing, small or big, that we do in faith.  

The world doesn't need more viral acts of charity performed for the camera. It needs more Christians quietly, faithfully living out their vocations—loving God and loving neighbour, one unglamorous day at a time. Your life lived in faith, small or big, is exactly what the world needs.

That's not settling for less. That's understanding what true goodness actually is.