Why Is Righteousness Important?
Would you be surprised to know that there are more verses on the Bible on righteousness than there are on faith? Check it out. Find a concordance. It just might surprise you. We all know how important faith is. Heb. 11:1 tells us that faith is the substance of things we hope for, the evidence of things we can’t see.
We know that without faith, it is impossible to please God because we must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him. (Heb. 11:6.) Yet righteousness is what Jesus came to give us. We call it the “great exchange.” (2 Cor. 5:21.) Jesus took our sins and gave us His righteousness.
It is something that righteousness is spoken about more than faith in the Bible. I grew up not knowing anything about righteousness, right standing with God. No one told me about it. Moreover, as I talk to other Christians, many say they have not heard much about righteousness. What they have heard a lot about are faith and grace. Not many even understand grace through faith. (Eph. 2:8-9). While the amazing grace of God produces salvation when we put our faith in what Jesus did for us (Eph. 2:8-9), righteousness is what we should focus on once we are born again.
Why? Because righteousness is what gives us “right standing with God.” Another way to put it would be that it puts us in right relationship with God, by just receiving what Jesus did for us. You become righteous when you are born again. (Eph. 4:24.) As we put our faith in what Jesus has done, the righteousness He earned through His faith becomes ours. (Phil. 3:9; 1 Cor. 1:30; 2 Cor. 5:21.)
Righteousness is a FREE gift. (Rom. 4:5; 5:17,18.) We can’t earn it. We can’t add to what Jesus did for us on the Cross and become more righteous. It’s been said that Jesus plus anything equals nothing, but Jesus plus nothing equals everything. Here’s another saying: Trying to earn righteousness with God without putting your faith in Jesus voids your salvation.
Yes, it is good to attend church regularly – we would love to have you come to our Gatherings and visit our Connect Groups — and it is good to give tithes and offerings, to pray, read the Bible, feed the poor, etc. Doing these things is good. It keeps our hearts soft towards God and gives us an opportunity to fellowship, break bread, and worship together.
We benefit immensely from living our lives doing these things while focused on our relationship with God, the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. However, these things don’t make any of us righteous any more than being baptized produces salvation.
What produces salvation is confessing with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believing in your heart that God raised Him from the dead. (Rom. 10:9,10.) But what produces righteousness is receiving the finished work of Jesus. (Eph. 2:4.)
Both faith and righteousness are FREE gifts. (Rom. 4:5; 5:17,18; Eph. 2:8.) They come out of the arms of a loving heavenly Father who loves us so much. He doesn’t want us to feel condemned. (Rom. 8:1.) He doesn’t want us to feel as though we’re under a curse. (Gal. 3:13.)
The fact of the matter is that we became righteous when we were born again. Receiving Jesus as your Lord and Savior by putting your faith in what He accomplished for you through His death, burial, and resurrection is what makes you righteous. Even when we do something wrong, we remain righteous, because sin never touches our spirit.
Our spirit was sealed with the Holy Spirit as soon as we were born again. (Eph. 1:3.) The right relationship with God that faith in Jesus produces in both our spirits and our hearts can change our way of life and ultimately lead to living a genuinely righteous life with Jesus, and eventually lead to a life set apart for God’s glory. (Rom. 6:19.)
If you want to receive this righteousness, Rom. 10:9-10 tells us that if we will confess with our mouth the Lord Jesus Christ and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. And as soon as you do this, you become righteous.
What a beautiful thing to meditate on: righteousness. We would encourage you to do this. Declare: I am the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ daily. Don’t quit declaring it because it is the truth that you know that you will set you free. (Jn. 8:32.) And He who the Son sets free is free indeed. (Jn. 8:36.)