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"Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the LORD, Till He comes and rains righteousness on you."
“ Rain down, you heavens, from above, And let the skies pour down righteousness; Let the earth open, let them bring forth salvation, And let righteousness spring up together. I, the LORD, have created it." (Isaiah 45:8)
The Word of Righteousness
What’s with the use of these BIG words?
Don’t you just love these un-ordinary words that we Christians use! Well, if your tongue twists at the pronunciation of them you are not alone. Long uncommon words though are often the ones that have the most importance to us and - yes, they are often the ones frequently misunderstood. An old trait of a former business professor was to inject these long uncommon words into a topic that he really was not too versed in just so he could continue being deemed the authority. Unlearned listeners would naturally assume that he must be correct then because they never understood his vernacular! We don’t want to do this here so lets break it on down into more common English so that the rest of us in the real world can understand too. In simplest English the word ‘Righteousness’ means ‘Right Standing’.
‘Righteousness’ means ‘Right Standing’
Most modern dictionaries, as with many other scripture words, now render the meaning of the word ‘righteousness’ toward a common understanding propelled by the religious world. They include as their first meaning – “strictly observant of morality”. We do not want to adopt a change in definition simply to satisfy modern thought; instead we want the most simple and intended meaning of the word.
So, simply put the word may be broken into syllables like this:
right – eous – ness
‘Right’ includes the idea of being right – that is simple;
‘eous’ simply means ‘belonging to’ or ‘having’; and
‘ness’ describes a state of being or expression.
So when you come across the word “righteousness” in your reading just break it on down and expand it to mean “being in right standing with God” whenever the application fits.
With this in mind we will still use the word “righteousness” on this website as is most fitting. But as I mentioned earlier, these uncommon words also are the most misunderstood. Why?
Because they become a euphemism for what they most commonly describe in the world and religion! And because of this they lose their power! Righteousness may very well be the most powerful word in the Bible and we are at risk of missing the impact of it altogether!
Righteousness – the most powerful word!
The gospel of Christ is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for in it the righteousness of God is revealed. Paul, the writer of most of the New Testament, put it this way:
“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.””
The reason that the gospel is so powerful is this – it reveals our right standing with God – and this is powerful!
Everything that God the Father did throughout the old covenant, and in the life of Jesus, finds meaning in this one thing – bringing us into right standing with Him. This IS the love story of the Gospel. This has been His purpose, His aim, goal, plan, objective, and intent through all of biblical history leading to the cross.
And the good news is that He has got the job done!
Be prepared by reading here that the unraveling of the truth and the impact of this righteousness on us comes with some warning –you may be in danger of losing your religion!
Understanding Righteousness is the most important thing you will gain as you experience the Work of God Today! It forms the basis of all of your Christian life. Without righteousness we would just be another world religion but with it we are truly His own!
First let’s answer the faq’s (frequently asked questions) concerning righteousness.
Continue to FAQ's
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