Put On Righteousness
A Change of Conduct
Eph 4:22-25 Since, then, we do not have the excuse of ignorance, everything--and I do mean everything--connected with that old way of life has to go. It's rotten through and through. Get rid of it! And then take on an entirely new way of life--a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you. What this adds up to, then, is this: no more lies, no more pretense. Tell your neighbor the truth. In Christ's body we're all connected to each other, after all. When you lie to others, you end up lying to yourself.
God has been stripping us of our old man especially in the area of pride which is the root behind most of the rotten fruit (evil deeds) in our life. He is now in the process of putting on the new man which is clothed in His character. He had us focus last week on the opposite of Pride which is Humility. If one is not humble, they may change in areas of their character but they cannot be clothed in His righteousness, whatever righteousness they claim to have is self-righteousness, and the bible says that our righteousness is as filthy rags compared to God (Is. 64:6). The Pharisees were thought of as the righteous people of their day, but they were full of pride, they were really the biggest enemy of Jesus, here is His response to the Pharisees.
Self Righteousness
Mat 23:27-28 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which indeed appear beautiful outside, but inside they are full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so you also appear righteous to men outwardly, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity
Since God has stripped us of pride we can now come humbly before Him and be clothed in His righteousness. His righteousness is simply His way of doing things. When one is full of pride, they don't listen, they are know-it-alls, and therefore they are not teachable. Humility is the pre-requisite to righteousness. A humble person is one who has an open heart and listening ears. The bible says the Holy Spirit was given to teach the believer all things, one cannot know what is good, and pleasing and the perfect will of God (Ro 12:2), and therefore be clothed in righteousness without ears to hear what thus sayeth the Lord.
God's Righteousness
Phi 3:9 and be embraced by him. I didn't want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ--God's righteousness
We are not righteous by what we do; we are made righteous by simply trusting Christ. It is through our trust in Him that we are clothed in Him, for we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. It is as we humble ourselves before God that He is exalted in us.
Isa 59:14-17 Justice is beaten back, Righteousness is banished to the sidelines, Truth staggers down the street, Honesty is nowhere to be found, Good is missing in action. Anyone renouncing evil is beaten and robbed. GOD looked and saw evil looming on the horizon-- so much evil and no sign of Justice. He couldn't believe what he saw: not a soul around to correct this awful situation. So he did it himself, took on the work of Salvation, fueled by his own Righteousness. He dressed in Righteousness, put it on like a suit of armor, with Salvation on his head like a helmet, Put on Judgment like an overcoat, and threw a cloak of Passion across his shoulders.
Those who put their trust in Christ are clothed in Him. So again it is not what we do, it is who He is, and where we put our trust in.
Isa 58:1-14 "Shout! A full-throated shout! Hold nothing back--a trumpet-blast shout! Tell my people what's wrong with their lives, face my family Jacob with their sins! They're busy, busy, busy at worship, and love studying all about me. To all appearances they're a nation of right-living people-- law-abiding, God-honoring. They ask me, 'What's the right thing to do?' and love having me on their side. But they also complain, 'Why do we fast and you don't look our way? Why do we humble ourselves and you don't even notice?' "Well, here's why: "The bottom line on your 'fast days' is profit. You drive your employees much too hard. You fast, but at the same time you bicker and fight. You fast, but you swing a mean fist. The kind of fasting you do won't get your prayers off the ground. Do you think this is the kind of fast day I'm after: a day to show off humility? To put on a pious long face and parade around solemnly in black? Do you call that fasting, a fast day that I, GOD, would like? "This is the kind of fast day I'm after: to break the chains of injustice, get rid of exploitation in the workplace, free the oppressed, cancel debts. What I'm interested in seeing you do is: sharing your food with the hungry, inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad, being available to your own families. Do this and the lights will turn on, and your lives will turn around at once. Your righteousness will pave your way. The GOD of glory will secure your passage. Then when you pray, GOD will answer. You'll call out for help and I'll say, 'Here I am.' "If you get rid of unfair practices, quit blaming victims, quit gossiping about other people's sins, If you are generous with the hungry and start giving yourselves to the down-and-out, Your lives will begin to glow in the darkness, your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight. I will always show you where to go. I'll give you a full life in the emptiest of places-- firm muscles, strong bones. You'll be like a well-watered garden, a gurgling spring that never runs dry. You'll use the old rubble of past lives to build anew, rebuild the foundations from out of your past. You'll be known as those who can fix anything, restore old ruins, rebuild and renovate, make the community livable again. "If you watch your step on the Sabbath and don't use my holy day for personal advantage, If you treat the Sabbath as a day of joy, GOD's holy day as a celebration, If you honor it by refusing 'business as usual,' making money, running here and there-- Then you'll be free to enjoy GOD! Oh, I'll make you ride high and soar above it all. I'll make you feast on the inheritance of your ancestor Jacob." Yes! GOD says so!
True Righteousness is trusting God in all that we do, it is not the observance of religious activities, it is following Christ in all that we say and do. Christ said He did nothing without the Father's leading. We all maybe busy but are we being led by the Holy Spirit, is He the guide to everything we do.
1Jo 2:29 Once you're convinced that he is right and righteous, you'll recognize that all who practice righteousness are God's true children.