Can a person be moral without believing in God? You might expect a religious person to say “no,” but surprisingly, many respected theologians acknowledge that morality exists apart from faith:

“Men, though fallen, still have some understanding of virtue and justice.” — John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion

“It is, of course, possible to live a moral life without believing in God. Many do.“ — Tim Keller, Making Sense of God

“Atheists can certainly behave in ways that are ethical, compassionate, and just.” — Alister McGrath, The Twilight of Atheism

In my city, groups can adopt a spot or street to keep it litter-free. One year, a sign near my house announced that a local atheist group was keeping a section of road clean. So, yes, humanists, agnostics, and people of other faiths can do moral things.

But is morality enough? The Bible suggests that there’s something deeper and eternal: righteousness. While morality is about good and bad actions, righteousness is about a genuine connection with God. And that runs much deeper than surface morality.

Morality vs. Righteousness: What’s the Difference?

Morality functions on the horizontal plane — doing what’s minimally good and right in our everyday interactions. Righteousness, however, extends both horizontally and vertically. It’s about being right with God first, which then radically shapes how we view and treat others.

The Hebrew and Greek words for righteousness carry a judicial meaning. Think about a courtroom. A judge or jury determines the guilt or innocence of the accused. Their word is law. Their decision is final.

The Bible tells us that God is the ultimate judge. Those who humble themselves, confess their sin, and accept His righteousness are declared guiltless. Those who reject Him remain condemned by their own actions. Jesus, Himself, delivered this verdict in John 3:19–20:

Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.

Righteousness, then, isn’t just about doing good things; it’s about being made right by God and living in gratitude to Him.

More Than Just Good Deeds

C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity noted that morality alone can’t bridge the gap between humanity and God. He wrote:

“A world of nice people, content in their own niceness, looking no further, turned away from God, would be just as desperately in need of salvation as a miserable world — and might even be more difficult to save.”

Lewis points out that people who are content with their moral goodness often see no need for God. This can make them harder to reach than those who, weary of their own efforts, are more likely to seek divine intervention. Being good in our own eyes does not guarantee salvation — in fact, God sees our human righteousness as “filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6).

The Pharisees: Moral but Not Righteous

Consider the Pharisees, the ultra-religious keepers of God’s law. They were highly moral: they tithed, they fasted, they wore scripture on their arms and foreheads, they paused to pray at certain hours of the day. Yet, Jesus blasted them as “sons of hell” (Matt. 23:15). Clearly, their public morality would not earn them a place in Heaven. Because their outward behavior masked inward corruption, Jesus compared them to whitewashed tombs packed with rot and stench (Matt. 23:27).

That is a word-picture that should sober any of us.

Paul’s Perspective: More Than Just Good Deeds

The apostle Paul was, himself, a Pharisee, boasting about his moral accomplishments. He proudly stated that he hailed from the right nation, belonged to the right tribe, and did all the right things. Then he encountered Christ, causing a tectonic shift in his attitude. In Philippians 3:7–9, he writes:

“But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ… I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ — the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.”

Paul realized pride-based morality is worthless — comparing it to filth, as the word he used for “garbage” literally refers to waste or excrement. Just as refuse has no value, human effort alone cannot achieve true righteousness. Instead, righteousness is a gift from God, received through faith.

True righteousness not only transforms our relationship with God, but also reshapes how we treat others. Rather than performing self-righteous acts to please or impress people, we are called to follow Jesus’ example through the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus preached truth, extended grace to sinners, healed the sick, and served the needy. When we live this out, we reflect God’s goodness to the world.

The Problem with Morality Alone

Morality has serious limitations:

• Subjective: It changes across cultures, periods, and even groups. In ancient Rome, gladiatorial contests were considered entertainment. An entire region of the United States believed that slavery was morally justified. Today, some still practice honor killings and others tout Nazism as the ideal system. What is unacceptable to some may be acceptable to others. Who decides?
• Performance-Based: Morality, when measured solely by external behavior, often turns into a system of performance. In such a framework, people gauge intrinsic worth by their actions, leading to two dangerous outcomes: self-righteousness or works-based despair. The question then becomes: “How many deeds do you need to accomplish to know you’ve arrived at ‘goodness’?”
• It Can’t Solve the Heart Problem: Morality can modify behavior but can’t soften our hearts. Only God can “give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you” (Ezekiel 36:26).

The Better Way

Should we abandon morality? Not at all. It plays a role in promoting a well-functioning society. But righteousness — true right-standing with God — offers far more. It changes not just our actions but our hearts, aligning us with God’s will and allowing us to experience true peace and purpose.

So yes, you can be good without God. But the bigger question is: Is goodness enough? The Bible suggests there’s something greater — an invitation not just to live morally, but to live in the fullness of fellowship with the One who created us.

And that, in the end, is far better.