Bible Study
The Righteousness of God
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.” Romans 1:16-17 NKJV
This portion of scripture is often used to emphasize the need to preach the good news so that those who hear it may believe and become transformed through the power of God is released through preaching.
In this scripture, Apostle Paul also makes a strong point about the power of the gospel in revealing the righteousness of God. As we said in the previous part, the gospel of Christ is everything the Word of God is about and the whole Word of God is about Christ. Christ is the gospel of God. Jesus Christ is the Word of God.
The next thing we see in Romans 1:16-17, is that the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith.
If I want to write Romans 1:16-17 in my own words it will read something like this- ‘I will preach the word of God unashamedly because (1) it is powerful to save everyone who believes, (2) it reveals the righteousness of God as I move from one walk of faith to another walk of faith. In fact, I am constantly in a circle of faith walks because as a righteous person faith is a way of life for me’ – 🙂
So whenever I walk in faith by acting on the Word of God (which should actually be at all times and in all situations), I have an opportunity to experience the righteousness of God. Halleluyah!
Naturally for me, the next question that comes to mind is; ‘What is the righteousness of God? If my faith is going to reveal the righteousness of God, then what is the righteousness of God? What should I expect to see every time I act in faith in accordance with the Word of God?
What is the Righteousness of God?
As used in Romans 1:17, the righteousness of God speaks of the nature and character of God.
In 6 intrinsic attributes of God we saw that God is sovereign, God is merciful, He is love, God is Good, God is faithful.
Righteousness is an intrinsic attribute of God.
The righteousness of God tells us about the truthfulness of God (that God is true and whole), tells of the faithfulness of God (the consistency of the nature and promises of God) and it tells us that God is just (He is constrained by His own Words to do right always). The righteousness of God tells us that He is just and right, without blame or fault and incapable of wrongdoing.
God is True
God is Just
God is Faithful
‘From faith to faith’, from one act of faith to another, from one level of faith to another, from faith to faith, the righteousness of God is revealed/uncovered/manifested.
So if we go back to ‘faith reveals the righteousness of God’ it means that every time I act in faith I will find out that God is true (He is whole; does not change), God is faithful (steadfast, trustworthy, reliable), and God is just (there is no wrongdoing in Him).
Sadly, what this also means is that if I do not act in faith I may never reveal and experience the righteousness of God which is always available to me.
We are unlikely to experience God’s power without faith. You cannot have victory without faith. Faith is what reveals the righteousness of God.
For something to be revealed implies it was; 1. Concealed 2. Always present (selah).
The righteousness of God is a constant, it does not change. All of God’s attributes are innate to Him, they do not change, He does not change. Faith is what reveals or uncovers God’s righteousness to us. Faith is what manifests the righteousness of God.
How can you apply this in your life?
Faith reveals the righteousness of God.
Faith is: God said it, I believe it and therefore, I say so and I act like it.
There is an opportunity in your life today to uncover the faithfulness/truthfulness/justness of God in your work, health, academics, business, ministry, family, etc. Will you take God by His Word? BELIEVE and you will see the glory of God manifested.
To be successful at doing this, you must first answer the question: ‘do you believe the Word of God?’ Because effective faith is based on the Word of God.
You are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus
According to second Corinthians 5:21, an exchange takes place at the new birth, that is, whenever someone makes Jesus the Lord and Saviour of their lives. Man’s unrighteousness/sin nature is exchanged for God’s righteousness….
“He made Christ who knew no sin to [judicially] be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we would become the righteousness of God [that is, we would be made acceptable to Him and placed in a right relationship with Him by His gracious lovingkindness].”
2 Corinthians 5:21 AMP
Hmmm….
Christ became sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God.
….You are the Righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. Jesus is true, just, and faithful and so are you, and so am I.
Oh yes! I have integrity, I am reliable, and there is no wrongdoing in me. I am FREE. Halleluyah! God said so, and I BELIEVE and SAY so.
That sounds too hard to believe and almost blasphemous, doesn’t it? It does, even to my own ears. But in the ears and eyes of God, that is what it is. I am righteous. That’s what the Word says and by faith I BELIEVE.
And God did it, He made us righteous so that …..”we would be made acceptable to Him and placed in a right relationship with Him by His gracious lovingkindness.”… 2 Corinthians 5:21 AMP
…..so that I will become ACCEPTABLE in Him and be placed in the right position to enjoy RELATIONSHIP with Him.
Halleluyah! I am Acceptable in the beloved. And I’ve been made right to relate with God.
To learn a bit more about “Your Righteousness in Christ Jesus” you can read up on our study on “The Whole Armor of God“.
You will find that….
1. Man could not and cannot become righteous on his own merit or works (Isaiah 64:6, Romans 10:3).
2. God imputes His righteousness into man at the new birth (Ephesians 4:22-24).
3. Righteousness is a free gift from God and is received by faith (Romans 5:1-2, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Galatians 3:1-7).
4. The truth that we are righteous is no excuse to live in sin. We are to live righteous and holy lives; depicting of our changed status in Christ.
“but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”
I Peter 1:15-16 NKJV
The fruits of righteousness
“being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”
Philippians 1:11 NKJV
God made us righteous in order that we might be acceptable to Him and to also relate with Him freely.
We must also live as righteous ones; letting our good works visible and to be experienced by all. Do you reflect integrity, truthfulness, trustworthiness in your dealings? Can people see Jesus in you? Are your actions in your relationships guided by the Word of God? Can it be say of you (albeit literally), ‘this is a just man’?
Our righteousness must exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees; who though knowledgeable about God’s righteousness lived nothing like it.
It’s exciting and liberating to be shouting ‘the son has made me free, so I am free‘, I shout and scream same myself, it is even more important to live as free ones, changed people, called-out ones such that the fruits of our righteousness is a good testimony to someone else.
Our fruits of righteousness can be a lifeline for an unbeliever, someone can become interested in the Christian faith because of how we live and deal with others, and someone can lose interest in the Christian faith because of how we live or deal with others. It takes wisdom to win people over to the Lord….
“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise.“
Proverbs 11:30 NKJV
“Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God.”
2 Corinthians 7:1 NLT
Prayer
Help us dear Lord to live in the consciousness of our righteousness in you and to exhibit the fruits of righteousness in all our dealings in Jesus name. Amen.
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As always, thank you so much for joining me today on this study. Indeed, the Word of God is Profitable. Do join me next time as we continue this study on “Victory Through Faith” by considering “The Stimulus for Faith”
Remember that you can access previous parts of this study as follows; Part 1: Study Background. Part 2: The Scope of the Christian Victory. Part 3: How Christians Gained Victory. Part 4: How Faith, Love and Hope Mix Together for Victorious Christian Living. Part 5: The Nature of God’s Love. Part 6: Characteristics of God Kind of Love. Parts 7 and 8: Winning Through Love. Part 9: How to develop our love nature. Part 10: Giving Is Not (always) Love. Part 11: Victory Through Faith: Understanding Faith.
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Blessings & Love Always
