God is Righteous!

August 31, 2010

I have to admit that I have been putting off writing about this next definition of God because I am at a loss for words. This word that defines God is so hard for me to define in words. It is hard for me to capture it in a picture. I believe that is exactly how God wants it to be. Because God is indefinable, indescribable, unimaginable.

So, today I am going to let God’s Word define what this word means. I am going to dig deep into scripture, and see what God has to say about His character trait. I am going to start with the psalm.

Psalm 7
O LORD my God, I take refuge in you;
save and deliver me from all who pursue me,

or they will tear me like a lion
and rip me to pieces with no one to rescue me.

O LORD my God, if I have done this
and there is guilt on my hands-

if I have done evil to him who is at peace with me
or without cause have robbed my foe-

then let my enemy pursue and overtake me;
let him trample my life to the ground
and make me sleep in the dust. Selah

Arise, O LORD, in your anger;
rise up against the rage of my enemies.
Awake, my God; decree justice.

Let the assembled peoples gather around you.
Rule over them from on high;

let the LORD judge the peoples.
Judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness,
according to my integrity, O Most High.

O righteous God,
who searches minds and hearts,
bring to an end the violence of the wicked
and make the righteous secure.

My shield is God Most High,
who saves the upright in heart.

God is a righteous judge,
a God who expresses his wrath every day.

If he does not relent,
he will sharpen his sword;
he will bend and string his bow.

He has prepared his deadly weapons;
he makes ready his flaming arrows.

He who is pregnant with evil
and conceives trouble gives birth to disillusionment.

He who digs a hole and scoops it out
falls into the pit he has made.

The trouble he causes recoils on himself;
his violence comes down on his own head.

I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness
and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High. (NIV)

God is Righteous!

God has always been righteous. He is righteous. And He will always be righteous. Righteousness can only come from Him.

Psalm 11:7 “For the Lord is righteous, he loves justice; upright men will see his face.”

Psalm 37:39 “The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord; he is their stronghold in time of trouble.”

Psalm 116:5 “The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.”

Psalm 118:20 “This is the gate of the Lord through which the righteous may enter.”

Psalm 119:137 “Righteous are you, O LORD, and your laws are right.”

Psalm 129:4 “But the Lord is righteous; he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked.”

Psalm 145:17 “The Lord is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made.”

Proverbs 4:18 “The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.”

Proverbs 10:6 “Blessings crown the head of the righteous, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.”

Proverbs 10:11 “The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.”

Proverbs 10:25 “When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever.”

Proverbs 11:19 “The truly righteous man attains life, but he who pursues evil goes to his death.”

Proverbs 15:29 “The Lord is far from the wicked but he hears the prayer of the righteous.”

Proverbs 20:7 “The righteous man leads a blameless life; blessed are his children after him.”

Ecclesiastes 7:20 “There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins.”

Isaiah 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Luke 5:32 “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

Romans 1:17 “For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."”

Romans 3:10 “As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one;”

James 5:16 “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

1 Peter 3:18 “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit”

1 John 2:1 “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense-Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.”

Is your picture of righteousness becoming clearer? I believe I have discovered some new things about righteousness and what it means to be righteous.

Righteousness and justice go hand in hand.

Only through salvation from the Lord can we be considered righteous.

The Lord is righteous and just. He dispels any evil or wickedness.

Righteousness leads to life and joy!

Blessings come to those who are righteous.

We are born sinners. We can never become righteous on our own. Only God can deem us righteous through the blood of His Son if we accept Jesus as our Savior.

God is Righteous! God sent His Son, Jesus to be righteousness embodied in the flesh.

I am not righteous on my own. I have known from a very young age that I am a sinner, and I needed a Savior. Thankfully, God provided a way for us sinners to become righteous—through His Son. Now, that I have Jesus in my heart as my Savior, I have a stamp across all my sins that says RIGHTEOUS. I am righteous through Jesus, and I will forever be righteous in His sight.