By: RL
Prayer Thought
Christ is seeking to reproduce Himself in the hearts of men; and He does this through those who believe in Him. The object of the Christian life is to bear fruit, – the reproduction of the character of Christ living in the believer, that it may be reproduced in others. The plant does not germinate, grow, or bring forth fruit for itself, but to ‘give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater.’ So no man is to live unto himself. The Christian is in the world as a representative of Christ, for the salvation of other souls.
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Jer. 23: 5 – Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a Righteous
Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute Justice and Judgment.
Isa.9:6 – For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isa.9:7 – Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon His Kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with JUDGEMENT and with JUSTICE.
Here we see that righteousness is a relationship comingled between Justice and Judgment, and whenever there is Justice and Judgment, there must be a law that springs forth a set of principles and morals as described in The Book of the Law, sometimes referred to as the Commandments of God, the Moral Law, and the Natural Law. For all Thy Commandments are Righteousness. Ps. 119:172
So, without the Law, there is no Righteousness! No right or wrong. Good or bad. No justice or judgment. No hope, no safety, no obedience, no love… A world without God’s Law can only lead to a life of unbridled liberties, chaos, vanities, self-righteousness, SIN and self-destruction. Only evil can exist in Lawlessness, the antonym of Righteousness.
The Webster dictionary defines Righteous as: doing to that which is right. To be upright, free from wrong or sin. To be virtuous, Godly, guiltless.
Righteousness is defined as “a Quality or State of Being Righteous, just, and Holy,
In French, Righteousness is defined as: Justice, ‘Droiture”; the act of doing what is right and honorable. Keeping on the straight path. Going only forward in a straight line.
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Question: What is self-righteousness? Webster defines this noun as BEING RIGHTEOUS in one’s own esteem. And adds: To be Pharisaical.
Where did the root for “Self-Righteousness” come from?
Isa. 14:13,14 – Thou (Satan) has said in thine heart, “I will ascend into heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit also upon the Mount of the Congregation in the sides of the North. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High
Now, when you read Eze. 28:12-19, you will see Justice and Judgment at work.
In Genesis 3, we see how Eve relied on her own wisdom and trusted her own judgment to decide for herself what was good and right as she defended her self-righteousness.
In Gen. 4:5-14, we see how the self-righteousness of Cain was demonstrated in justifying his offering to God and in the murder of Abel. Again, we see the Lord use Justice and Judgment in Righteousness by cursing him from the land into a wilderness far from home.
In 1Samuel 13, we see Saul forgetting his calling and position when he let the circumstances control his reasoning, which forced him to take matters into his own hands, leading him to self-reliance and into a damnation for the kingship and an end to his family.
In Matt. 16:21-23, the Lord tells His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, priests, and scribes, and be killed and will rise again on the 3rd day. Then Peter took Jesus aside saying, “ be it far from you to go and endanger your life. And Jesus turned and said unto Peter, “get thee behind me Satan!”
John 13: 33,36-38 – Jesus tells His disciples that in a little while, they shall seek Him, and not find Him, for where He goes, they cannot come. Simon Peter asks, “Where are you going Lord? Why cannot I follow you? I will lay down my life before I ever let you go.
Jesus answered saying, “ will you lay down your life for my sake? Truly I say unto you that the cock shall not crow before you have denied me 3 times.”
We see that all of God’s Patriarchs, peoples, even His priests have fallen into the trap of self reliance and self-righteousness. We ourselves often lack the patience to wait, to trust, to believe, to ask and to surrender our wills and our lives into the Lord’s hand. We end-up to fix the problem by ourselves. How often we forget the precious gift of being, of trusting, of believing and surrendering to the Righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ. “For we are all unclean, and our righteousness are as filthy rags.” Isa. 64:6
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LET GO AND LET GOD
We have seen how Lucifer himself planted the seed of self-righteousness in heaven through pride, self-exaltation, and independence from God. This pride deceived and infected Eve, Saul, Peter, Israel, and even the world, as justice and judgment is covered by the grace, mercies and righteousness, in Jesus Christ {Study Paul’s testimony given in Romans, of how he used his righteousness under the Law of God to justify even murder in the name of Jehovah}
I John 3:7 – Let no man deceive you, for he that doeth Righteousness is Righteous,
Even as Christ is Righteous.
The Apostle Paul explains his dilemma in Romans 7. He, being a Pharisee of Pharisees, perfect in his administration, serving and living in the Law of Jehovah, is now faced with the realization that he is a prisoner to sin, and worse, that sin lives inside him, and that he has no power on his own on how to deal with this condition. He is well aware that Justice and judgment as found in the Law of God finds him guilty, separating him from his Savior, condemned to death. He cries out in desperation, “Oh wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” “ I THANK GOD through JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD ”
In Romans chapter 8, we are given the remedy, “ that there is no condemnation for us who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit; for God sent His own Son to condemn sin in the flesh, that THE RIGHTEOUSNESS of the Law might be fulfilled in us. And if Christ be in us, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is alive because of RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Eph. 5:9 – For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, Righteousness and Truth.
We now see better how Righteousness {N} is Christ {PN}, as Love {N} is God {PN}. 1John 4.
Let us review:
- Righteousness {n} is the state of BEING rightful or just.
- Righteous {adj.} is DOING that which is right.
- {Faith without works is dead} Be not hearers of the Law, but doers…Rom 2:13
James 2:17, COL 312-314.
Ps. 23:3 “The Lord restoreth our souls, and leadeth us in the paths of Righteousness
for His name’s sake.”
1 Samuel 12:22 – The Lord will not forsake His people for His great name’s sake:
Because it has pleased the Lord to make you His people. {Eze. 36:22}
12:23 – And as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for
you: but I will teach you the good and the right way.
12:24 – Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in Truth with all your heart: for consider how
great things He has done for you.
Prov 12:28 In The Way of Righteousness there is life, and in The Way therein is no death.
In Matthew 4:19, Jesus says to His disciples, “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Those who hear and believe, will be taught to deny themselves, to pick up their cross, and to follow Jesus, that the process of Sanctification begin, “ That Christ might Sanctify and cleanse ‘the church’, with the washing of water by the Word. Ephesians 5:26
Gal.3:6 – Abraham BELIEVED God, and it was ACCOUNTED unto him for RIGHTEOUSNESS.
2TG #35 p.6 – God’s Righteousness is His integrity, and His sure promises; they never fail.
To have the Righteousness of the Lord is to have His integrity and faithfulness,
If we mistrust the Lord, we can never have His integrity and faithfulness, to
Doubt is nothing short of calling God a liar! To doubt is the greatest offense
one can commit. To have the Righteousness of the Lord is to implicitly trust
Him without reservation. “For so long as I have breath, I will trust the Lord.”
II Corth. 5:21 – “ For Christ was made to be sin for us, that we might be made the
Righteousness of God in Him.”
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‘THE THREE PERIODS TO RIGHTEOUSNESS’
(1) RIGHTEOUSNESS BY GRACE is in the infancy period when one has taken their first
step after hearing and experiencing the convicting message of Salvation in Jesus Christ.
Eph. 1:13
(2) RIGHTEOUSNESS BY FAITH is experienced during the period of adolescence, when
our character, relationships, and beliefs, in which lie our safety and eternal interest are
tried and tested, as we are prepared to experience…
(3) THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF CHRIST, pointing to the earmarks of a mature Christian,**
So wonderfully expressed in one of Paul’s many testimonies, declaring; “ Not I, but Christ who liveth in me. And the life which I now live, *I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me so much, that He gave His life for me that I might have life eternal. Gal. 2:20
3SM 172-173: What constitutes the faith of Jesus Christ? Jesus becoming our sin bearer that He might become our sin pardoning Savior… He took our sins that we might take HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS.
* Man is justified by the faith of Jesus Christ, and not by the works of the Law. Gal. 2:16
** Taken from the DSDA Certificate of Fellowship Letter.
Bible Commentary Vol.7a, 671/467 – Only through the Atonement Christ provided could our sins be forgiven. Only through the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ can the repentant sinner stand justified before God without the condemnation of the law, for salvation is through the Righteousness of Christ. S.S. Quarterly 10/8/17 pg. 15
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1-SM 367 – RIGHTEOUSNESS IS OBEDIENCE TO THE LAW. The Law demand righteousness, and this the sinner owes to the Law, but he is incapable to rendering it. The only way in which he can attain to Righteousness is through faith.
By faith, the sinner can bring to God the merits of Christ, and the Lord places the obedience of His Son to the sinner’s account. Christ’s Righteousness is accepted in place of man’s failure, and God receives, pardons, justifies, the repenting, believing soul, treats him as though he were righteous: and loves him as he loves His Son. THIS IS HOW FAITH IS ACCOUNTED RIGHTEOUSNESS, and the pardoned soul goes on from grace to grace, from light to a greater light.
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Math. 5:6 Blessed ate they who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.
Many of us have been tried and tested by having walked through many crucibles and storms and many of us will have more trials to refine us, that we may offer unto the Lord an offering in Righteousness. Mal. 3: 3
Let us close with a comment from brother Victor that is found in 2TG #35 p.30 – as he reflected on what faithfully living in the RIGHTEOUSNESS OF CHRIST is to be like.
Reflecting on the trials, crucibles, storms, betrayals, and testing’s he experienced while faithfully following the Lord in obedience, he writes:
When things go contrary to one’s will and way, most Christians give credit to the Devil. Only when things go according to their liking do they give credit to God! Balaam was happy when the way opened for him to go to Balak, but when the angel of the Lord blocked the road he was traveling on, Balaam became furious as a mad dog, and smote his innocent Donkey.
Nothing but we ourselves can defeat God’s plans for us. Be it our friends or our enemies, be it beast or kings, we will find them all unwittingly or wittingly working for our good rather than for our harm IF WE ARE DOING GOD’S BIDDING.
Remember and take note, that whatever may stand in our way, be it the Red Sea or the River Jordan, be it a mountain or be it a desert,
“ IT SHALL BECOME OUR VERY STEPPING STONE. “
Such as this IS THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF THE LORD, and we can have it at the cost of our own righteousness. Then we will find the Lord’s way as much higher than ours and the heave is higher than the earth. When this happens, then only you will understandingly say;
“THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS”
Isa. 26:3 – “Thou will keep us in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee; because we trust in the Lord for ever.
“ Fear not, for I AM with you; be not dismayed, for I AM thy God: I WILL strengthen you; Yeah, I WILL help you; Yeah, I WILL uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Isaiah 41:10
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Isaiah 5:16 – The Lord of hosts shall be exalted in Judgment,
And God who is Holy, shall be Sanctified in Righteousness.
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Jer. 23: 6 – In His days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is His
name whereby He shall be called, “ THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS ” AMEN