That’s
what it says in Psalm 11 verse 7.
God
loves righteousness, so I want to love righteousness, and
live a righteous life.
If you want to write off the Old Testament, don’t forget 2 Timothy 3:16. All Scripture is profitable for instruction in righteousness.
Psalm 119:172 says that all God’s commandments are righteousness.
So read your Bible, Old and New Testament, and learn about God’s righteousness.
We
should hunger and thirst for righteousness. 1
We
should seek first the kingdom of God...and His righteousness. 2
His
righteousness is like the great mountains! 3
It endures forever! 4
So we don’t toss out all those righteous laws in the Bible. They come from the heart and mind of the righteous Lord who loves righteousness!
Of course the problem is that we have a sin nature and can’t live up to God’s high and holy standard of righteousness. Isaiah 64:6 says, “...all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags...” And Romans 1:18 says that the wrath of God comes against all the unrighteousness of humanity.
The good news is...that’s where Jesus comes in. He took our unrighteousness upon Himself on the cross, shedding His blood and paying the price for us to be made righteous before God.
Now, through faith in Jesus, we can receive the righteousness of God apart from keeping the law. In Romans 3 and 4 we see that God’s righteousness is imputed to us by our faith in Jesus. We receive the free gift of righteousness.
But don’t stop there. God still wants us to LIVE righteously...not in order to be saved, but since we are saved!
1 Peter 2:24 says Jesus bore our sins in His own body...that we might live for righteousness!
Romans 6:13 tells us to present ourselves to God as instruments of righteousness.
Romans 6:19 goes so far as to tell us to present ourselves to Him as “slaves of righteousness.”
And what if we don’t? First John 3:10 says, “Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God...”
So how do we do it? How can we live a righteous life?
Romans 8:4 tells us to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. On our own we won’t live a righteous life, but as we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, we will.
The righteous Lord loves righteousness. He gave us the law, spoken out of His righteousness. We sinned, so He sent Jesus to pay the price for our righteousness. Then to all who receive Him, He gives the Holy Spirit to empower us to, once and for all, live the righteous life He intended for us from the beginning.
Yes, we are saved by the grace of God...AND...Titus 2 says that the grace of God teaches us to live righteously.
The gospel of grace and living a righteous life go hand in hand, one follows the other. We are saved by grace, and then we live a righteous life, empowered by the Holy Spirit.
The
Good Shepherd leads us in paths of righteousness. 5
Because You are the righteous Lord, and You love righteousness.
May God bless you today...as you seek to live a righteous life in the power of the Spirit.
I’m Doug Apple.
1
Matthew 5:6
2 Matthew 6:33
3 Psalm 36:6
4 Psalm 111:3
5 Psalm 23
Other verses:
Psalm
145:17, “The
Lord is righteous in all His ways...”
Zephaniah
2:3 says, “Seek righteousness...”
Proverbs
2:20 says, “...keep to the paths of righteousness.”
Proverbs
11:8 says, “...he who sows
righteousness will have a sure reward.”
Isaiah
32:17 says
that righteousness brings peace and quietness and assurance.
1
Corinthians 15:34, “Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for
some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.”
1
Timothy 6:11, “But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue
righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness.”
Ephesians 5:9, “...for
the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and
truth...”
1 comment:
Excellent exhortation!
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