Righteousness For Our Wrongness
But we are all as an unclean thing,
and all our righteousness are as
filthy rags… The Prophet Isaiah
When we come into the world, we are going in
the wrong direction. God understands this, because
He has seen it from the beginning of time. He
knew when He created mankind, that man would go
off in the wrong direction trying to live life
on his own power and that man would need to be
rescued. God had this plan, because He knew that
man would need help. God not only set forth a
plan for man to become right again, but sent forth
the power for him to stay right and produce righteousness
in this world. God's plan shows us that we just
can't live life depending on our own power and
strength, but must depend on Him.
HIS LIGHT BRINGS RIGHTEOUSNESS
It does not take much to see that we need the
ability to do things right. We have failed, and
we need help. God is our righteousness. He is
much more; but for now, we just need to see that
He is our righteousness, through whom we get things
right and do right.
Righteousness means straightness, which results
in, holy and upright living. It is God Who makes
us right-eous and gives us the ability to live
a righteous life. Righteousness is given to us
by God.
The Psalmist David praised the LORD concerning
this gift, "And he [God] shall bring forth
thy righteousness as the light…"
(37:6); "Blessed is the people that know
the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in
the light of thy countenance. In thy name shall
they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness
shall they be exalted" (89:15, 16); "Light
is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the
upright in heart" (97:11); and "Wealth
and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness
endureth for ever. Unto the upright there ariseth
light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full
of compassion, and righteous" (112:3,4).
From the praises of David's heart, we see that
God's light brings righteousness. It is the light
that straightens us up and causes us to walk upright.
The Apostle Paul declares, "For God, who
commanded the light to shine out of darkness,
hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of
the knowledge of the glory of God…"
(2 Corinthians 4:6). It is the power of God's
light, "Who hath delivered us from the
power of darkness, and hath translated us into
the kingdom of his dear Son" (Colossians
1:13).
Isaiah prophesied, "Arise, shine: for
thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is
risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall
cover the earth, and gross darkness the people:
but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory
shall be seen upon thee" (60:1,2).
The prophet Micah says, "…he will
bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold
his righteousness" (7:9b).
Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist prophesied
of Jesus, saying, "…whereby the dayspring
from on high hath visited us. To give light to
them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of
death, to guide our feet in the way of peace"
(Luke 1:78,79). Jesus says, "…I am
the light of the world: he that followeth me shall
not walk in dark-ness, but shall have the light
of life" (John 8:12).
OUR WRONGNESS BRINGS DEATH
God desired for man to do what is right since
creation. He gave us the power to do what was
right, but we sinned and turned our back on His
help. We escaped our flood of mistakes in an ark
with Noah. God scattered us throughout the world,
after man tried to build a tower called Babel.
Then, the Lord came to Abraham and blessed his
generational seed forever. He gave man the law
so he could see he was doing wrong, God gave the
way for their sins to be covered by coming to
the tabernacle. Still, mankind turned against
God's way.
Then God said, He must send His Son to make man
right with Him. So He sent His Son, Jesus Christ,
to complete the work on the cross to make man
right with God, our Father. We are unrighteous
before Christ, which means crooked and in need
of being straightened out. Our righteousness is
as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). We are conceived
in sin (Psalm 5:1,5). The Apostle says, we "…were
dead in our trespasses and sin" (Ephesians
2:1). "For all have sinned, and come short
of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).
Those who don't believe in Jesus Christ, "…the
god of this world has blinded the mind of them
which believe not, lest the light of the glorious
gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should
shine unto them" (2 Corinthians 4:4).
The god of this world blinds us to think that
we can reach God by our own abilities, performance
and church membership.
Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Except a man
be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God"
(John 3:3). When we're born of the Spirit of grace
[ability] through faith, our spiritual eyes are
opened to see that only God can put us on the
right path, going in the right direction.
REPENTANCE FROM DEAD WORKS
Repentance is a change of mind, turning from
our sin and dead works toward a relationship with
a holy God. We turn to God, by trusting in the
blood of Jesus for our righteousness, instead
of good deeds. The writer of Hebrews says, "How
much more shall the blood of Christ, who through
the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot
to God, purge your conscience from dead works
to serve the living God" (Hebrews 9:14b).
Our works are considered dead works, because they
do not provide eternal life and light as only
the blood of Jesus can. Determine in your heart,
that nothing but the blood of Jesus Christ can
make you righteous.
Dead works consist of many deeds, but fall under
two basic categories: trying to obtain salvation
by keeping the law of God and trying to be good
enough by our own ability to gain salvation. The
Apostle Paul wrote to the Romans saying, "For
what the law could not do, in that it was weak
through the flesh, God [did by] sending his own
Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin,
condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness
of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk
not after the flesh, but after the Spirit"
(8:3,4, emphasis added).
Since the Fall in the Garden of Eden, people
have been inherently unrighteous (Genesis 3).
The root of our unrighteousness became fear and
unbelief. Because of man's inability to keep the
Ten Commandments and related laws, his relationship
was broken with God, without obtaining righteousness.
We do not become righteous because of our inherent
goodness; God sees us as righteous only due to
our identification by faith with His Son.
As we turn to Jesus Christ, we not only obtain
right-eousness, but peace and joy in the Holy
Spirit (Romans 14:17). On the other hand, when
we trust in the law or in our good works, there
is no peace and joy, only con-demnation. But knowing
that our righteousness comes from God and Him
alone, causes us to be thankful and to praise
Him for this wonderful gift. Will you turn to
God from dead works and receive this free gift?
WHO IS GOD?
God is righteous. He is always right and never
wrong. Ezra the priest fell upon his knees, and
spread out his hands unto the Lord his God in
repentance, praying, "O LORD God of Israel,
thou art righteous…" he went on
to pray saying, "…we cannot stand
before thee because of this [sin]" (9:15,
emphasis added).
The Psalmist David proclaimed, "…thy
right hand is full of righteousness"
(48:10); "…righteousness and judgment
are the habitation of his throne" (97:2);
"Righteous art thou, O LORD…"
(119:137); and "The LORD is righteous
in all his ways, and holy in all his works"
(145:17).
Isaiah the prophet saw the Lord sitting on His
throne in heaven. Seraphim [angels] cried to one
another, "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD
of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory"
(6:3). His response to seeing the righteousness
of the Lord God was to reply: "Woe is
me! for I am undone: because I am a man of unclean
lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of
unclean lips: For mine eyes have seen the King,
the LORD of hosts" (6:5). He could not
deny his unrighteousness, when he saw the Lord's
righteousness. Isaiah was a prophet before this
vision, used by God. His work as a prophet did
not make him righteous. Only God could do that…and
God did.
God's character is the definition and source
of all right-eousness, "He is the Rock,
his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment:
a God of truth and without iniquity, just and
right is he" (Deuteronomy 32:4).
Faith in Jesus Christ declares the believer to
be in a state of righteousness as though he had
never been unrighteous. This is only possible
because of the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ
on our behalf.
As children of the light, we are born of the
Spirit, His seed, His nature, His character and
His righteousness. "For ye were sometimes
darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk
as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit
is in all goodness and righteousness and truth)"
(Ephesians 5:8,9). "For the righteous
LORD loveth righteousness; his countenance doth
behold the upright" (Psalm 11:7).
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