I LOVE RIGHTEOUSNESS

Part 3

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33).

 

Jesus commanded us to seek after righteousness because His kingdom is a righteous kingdom. Let's keep seeking to understand more of what it means to walk righteously.

 

Righteousness is associated with Boldness

Proverbs 28:1 says, "The righteous are bold as a lion." Don't you love that? Righteousness is the opposite of timidity and fear. If we are walking in righteousness we will not fear, but will be bold to proclaim God's truth and salvation. We will speak out like Peter and John did when they were commanded not to speak about Jesus, "Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard" (Acts 4:18-20).

We will be like the disciples who spoke boldly for the Lord, whether they were in the synagogue or in the market place. Check out the following Scriptures: Acts 4:13; 9:27, 29; 13:46; 19:8 and 18:26. We never have to apologize for speaking God's truths, even when it is counter-culture to society around us. We never have to be intimidated. God's truth is worth speaking boldly.

Righteousness is associated with Hating Evil

Psalm 45:7 RAV says, "You love righteousness and hate wickedness." If we are walking in righteousness, we will hate evil. We will hate evil like God hates it. We will not only hate it, but stand up against it and expose it. See also Ephesians 5:11; Psalm 40:9-10; 94:16 and Proverbs 13:5. It is the opposite of compromise. There is too much tolerance of evil today. It is amazing how we can begin to accept things in our humanistic society as if they were normal. When prayer was taken out of public schools, did God's people rise up, take action for righteousness and take their children out of the public school? No, we carried on as usual.

Recently, while having to sign some forms in Australia, I found no place to state my status as a wife. No place for Wife! No place for Husband! Only Partner! When a nation does not honor the sacred institution of marriage, the first institution that God set into being, it stands in a dangerous place. But somehow we get used to doing it Satan's way instead of God's way. Unless we speak out against evil, it becomes more and more entrenched in our way of life and accepted as normal.

The standards that are regarded as normal for Christians today were considered horrific when I was a child. If a husband committed adultery with another woman, he was looked upon as an outcast in our little town. And yet today, Christians accept this behavior without blinking an eye! Do we take a stand against abortion and homosexuality or do we accept it as part of our culture? Do we really hate evil like God hates it?

Righteousness is associated with Justice

 

Psalm 97:2 says, "Righteousness and justice are the habitation of his throne." See also Psalm 33:5; Jeremiah 23:5 and  33:15.Justice is "the use of authority to uphold what is right. It is acting as a judge and rendering the proper verdict-God's verdict." So often we judge according to our own verdict instead of God's verdict. But if we walk in righteousness we will have true discernment. It is the opposite of situational ethics where we decide on a matter according to our circumstances and how it suits us at the time. True justice makes a decision according to God's Word, even when it doesn't fit in with our lifestyle.

Righteousness and justice are twins. They are constantly coupled together. Just as righteousness and justice are part of God's character, He wants them to also be part of our character. That's why He commands us in Jeremiah 22:3 NASB, "Thus says the Lord, ‘Do justice and righteousness."

Psalm 106:3 NASB says, "How blessed are those who keep justice, who practice righteousness at all times!"

 

Love from NANCY CAMPBELL

 

PRAYER:

"Oh God my Father, I pray for righteousness to return to this land. Pour down righteousness upon the earth. Give me the courage to stand up against evil and to hate evil the same way you hate evil. Amen."

 

AFFIRMATION:

I will not keep silent in the face of evil.

 

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