“Righteousness” and its counterpart, “righteous,” appear 540 times in 520 verses of the Bible. In contrast, “faith,” “faithfulness,” and “faithful” are only used 348 times in 328 verses. This means that there are 1.5 times as many scriptures about righteousness as there are about faith. Righteousness is important.
A layman’s definition of righteousness is simply, “right standing with God.” Righteousness is the condition of being in right relationship with the Lord. This can only happen through TOTAL faith and dependence upon Christ. There is no other way, and there is nothing we can add to our faith to obtain right relationship with the Lord.
The Greek New Testament word for “righteousness” primarily describes conduct in relation to others, especially with regards to the rights of others in business, in legal matters, and beginning with relationship to God.
The Greek word is dikaiosune {dik-ah-yos-oo’-nay} ; equity (of character or act); specially (Christian) justification:–righteousness. Dikaionsune comes from from dikaios {dik’-ah-yos } equitable (in character or act); by implication, innocent, holy (absolutely or relatively):–just, meet, right(-eous). And dikaios comes from from dike {dee’-kay}; right (as self-evident), i.e. justice (the principle, a decision, or its execution):–judgment, punish, vengeance.
The noun righteousness has meanings in the New Testament related to two sources. The major one is the Hebrew Old Testament word sdq [q;d’x], which means God’s gracious, covenant relation to his people and the appropriate behavior of the covenant partners (Yahweh and Israel) toward each other. The other is the regular use of the words in everyday Greek as spoken in New Testament times, which means a life in conformity to a known standard or law thus honesty, legality, and so on.
It is contrasted with wickedness, the conduct of the one who, out of gross self-centeredness, neither reveres God nor respects man. The Bible describes the righteous person as just or right, holding to God and trusting in Him.
To really reap the benefits of reconciliation, we must have an understanding and a revelation of God’s righteousness. The major problem in the church today, is “sin-consciousness.” Sin consciousness is that state of being, that makes you feel inadequate. You feel inferior, and you feel unable to do that which the righteous requirements of God require. Whenever you feel unable to do what God requires of you to do, you’re in a state of sin-consciousness. “Spiritual death” produced the sin-consciousness in man. Man lost his close fellowship with God in the fall. Through the fall, he became separated in his consciousness from God; he lost the awareness of his oneness. Sin-consciousness makes man reason and go into philosophy. All the religions of the world have been produced by man’s sin-consciousness. He feels separated from God, knowing that somehow he needs to get back to God. He needs to have that sense of righteousness that he lost in the garden. Man has through the years developed one religion after another trying to get back to God. But before we can be restored to fellowship as Adam had in the beginning, God had to give us His righteousness. This is not just another doctrine or theory. He has to impart to us by revelation, a conscious reality of the righteousness of God.
- Righteousness a Gift.
Righteousness is a gift that comes from the Lord to those who accept Jesus by faith.
Romans 5:17-18 For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
We were made righteous when we were born again. Every child of God has the same standing with the Father.
You must come to realize in your consciousness that there is no sin, there is no separation, and there is no barrier that can keep you from being righteous before God. Righteousness is not based on man’s efforts, but on God’s provision. Before man can ever be righteous and have the righteousness of God in subjective experience, he must first realize that righteousness comes through a right understanding of what God has already provided for him, and not what he can do by his performance.
2 Actions don’t bring righteousness. Even one sin makes us unrighteous.
What is the basis of righteousness? If the basis of our righteousness, is based upon our actions, and our actions are always inferior to God, we are in trouble. Do you know that if you pray an hour everyday and are feeling justified in yourself, it won’t be long until you’ll be convinced that you have to pray two hours a day, then you have to pray three hours a day, then you have to read twenty chapters a day. You will never ever justify yourself in the sight of God by your actions. It will never happen. Righteousness cannot be based upon man’s conduct.
The gift of salvation produces a changed heart that, in turn, changes our actions. Actions cannot change our hearts. It’s the heart of man that God looks upon, and not our actions.
1 Samuel 16:7 But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.
We have all sinned, and therefore we needed a way out of that sin. We cannot obtain our own righteousness. Jesus took that sin on himself for us.
Isaiah 53:6 “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all”
Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
Romans 3:10 “There is none righteous, no, not one” .
Religion has subtly instructed people to trust in their own goodness instead of God’s. This will never work.
Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
Is. 64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
- Jesus is the only way we can have righteousness, because he gave us his righteousness in exchange for our sin.
Jesus was in right relationship with God as no one else can be. He is the Son of God. He is God manifest in the flesh.
1 Timothy 3:16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
He is holy and pure and without sin, yet He became sin for us
2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Through no wrongdoing on His part. He took our sin in His own body on the cross.
1 Peter 2;24Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
Isaiah 53:4-5 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
- Faith not works makes us righteous.
In return for Jesus taking our sin, those who put their faith in Him get His righteousness instead of their own. It’s not our actions that make us acceptable to the Father. It’s our trust in Jesus that imparts the righteousness of Jesus into our born-again spirits that makes us in right standing with God.
Those who don’t understand this righteousness, which comes from God as a gift, become frustrated trying to establish their own righteousness through good works
Rom. 10:3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
It won’t work. It’s an all or nothing situation
Rom. 11:6 And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.
We must trust completely in what Jesus did for us to obtain right relationship with God. Any trust in our own goodness will void the atonement Christ made for us
Gal. 5:4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.
Works do not save…only faith does.
Romans 3:21, “But now the righteousness of God without the law is (revealed) manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; even the righteousness of God which is by faith (Oh, how we want to read that “by works”, but it’s not.) Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference.”
Colossians 2:6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him.
That means if you were saved by putting faith in God’s grace alone, then you maintain that relationship in the same way.
Christians possess the righteousness of Christ, because “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is an amazing truth. On the cross, Jesus exchanged our sin for His perfect righteousness so that we can stand before God and He does not see our sin, but the holy righteousness of the Lord Jesus. This means that we are made righteous in the sight of God; that is, that we are accepted as righteous and treated as righteous by God on account of what the Lord Jesus has done. He was made sin; we are made righteousness. On the cross, Jesus was treated as if He were a sinner, though He was perfectly holy and pure, and we are treated as if we were righteous, though we are defiled and depraved. On account of what the Lord Jesus has endured on our behalf, we are treated as if we had entirely fulfilled the Law of God and had never become exposed to its penalty. We have received this precious gift of righteousness from the God of all mercy and grace.
Rom 8:29-30.“For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.”
This is our security. It is His work. He is working in us to bring us into the awareness of what He has already completed. We keep trying to perfect Adam instead of learning to live by Christ within us.
The book of Hebrews tells us we have a better covenant. The old covenant was based on faith in the coming Messiah, not upon their conduct and efforts, but upon the offerings and the shed blood of the animals. The offerings pointed to the coming of Jesus who would take away sin. Even in the Old Testament sins were only remembered for one year.
And the Apostle Paul says we have a better covenant – Why? – Because your sins aren’t covered anymore, they are forgotten, and they are not even in the mind and heart of God.
Heb 8:12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.
What is your righteousness based on? If it’s based upon your conduct, then every time you fail, you will have an inferior feeling. Every time you miss God, you’ll be condemned. But if your righteousness is based upon the Word of God that declares you to be righteous, when you fail you will simply say, “Father I thank you that I’m cleansed by the blood of Jesus. I thank you that you are filling my consciousness full of your righteousness, and I know that I am forgiven.” We simply need to turn to Him when we fail knowing that He does not hold us accountable for our sin. He does not impute sin. He imputes righteousness.
Rom 4:6-8 Even as David also describes the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputes righteousness without works, Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin”.
Everything you need is within you. Your spirit is one with His spirit. Begin to speak the truth from your spirit and watch how quickly revelation will come to you.
1 Cor 1:30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.”
Confess this:
I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. I do not rely on my own righteousness or goodness, but rely on the righteousness that God gives me. Therefore I can come boldly into the throne of grace and receive mercy in the time of need. I thank you, Jesus, for all that you did for me on the cross, taking my sin so that I may be the righteousness of God. I fully rely on your righteousness as I live my Christian life. I thank you that I have your righteousness and am free from sin-consciousness.
Goode Christian: learning how to be a good Christian in today's world. 