The Power of Righteousness

I believe that the one thing holding more Christians in bondage than anything else is a lack of knowledge of righteousness. Unfortunately over the years we have developed some religious words and ideas that we place one meaning on at church and entirely some other meaning on in our daily lives. Righteousness is one of these. Gods plan for redemption would be no value to sinful men is it did not included righteousness and its mighty force. This righteousness is the key word to the revelation which the Apostle Paul received from Jesus.

As you read through this  series, I believe you will begin to understand why this is one of the most fundamental messages that are paramount to the growth of many believer, for it is the key to true liberty.

“Therefore if any person is in Christ he is a new creation (a new creature altogether) the old (previous moral and spiritual condition has passed away. Behold the fresh and new has come. Any person who is in Christ is a new creature or a new creation.(The literal Greek says he is a new species of a being which never existed before).He has been completely recreated. Old things are passed away, all things are new, and all things are of God-no part God and part Satan. “

Some people think that a man is schizophrenic when he becomes a Christian-that he has both the nature of God and the nature of Satan-but this is not so in the new Birth, a man’s spirit is completely reborn; then it’s this man’s responsibility to renew his mind to the Word of God use the Word to take control of his body.

Ephesians 4vs 24-25: This scripture makes us understand what God made Jesus, Who knows no sin, to be sin for us to that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. As believes in Jesus Christ, we are the righteousness of God himself.

So I am sure you are asking what is to Righteousne?. Righteousness is not a goody-goody way of acting or something which can be attained .Righteousness is a free gift of God, provided by Jesus at cavalry through grace of God. Now I am not referring to out won righteousness-the bible says that in the eyes of God “all our righteousness are as filthy rags (Isaiah 64vs6).However, we have been given the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ. Through our traditional thinking, we have confused righteousness with holiness. We think righteousness is the way you cat, but this is not true. Holiness is your conduct-righteousness is what and who you are, the nature of God.

Let me make this clearer for you: The word translated righteousness literally means to be in right standing. We have been put in right standing with God. Jesus is the mediator between God and man.When a man accepts Jesus, he is moved into position of new birth. He enters into the Kingdom of God as Gods very own children and a joint-hire with Jesus Christ. Consequently, there are certain privileges, certain rights, certain freedoms, that we as God because we in right standing with Him.

We didn’t get in right standing with God be being good or acting right. We got there through faith in Jesus Christ and His redemptive work at Calvary. When we accepted the sacrifice of Jesus and made him Lord of our lives, then God accepted us. He had to! You see, has already accepted Jesus worked on the cross. He judged is as good, glorified Jesus and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenlies. He called Jesus “God” and inaugurated Him into the highest office in the whole universe. Therefore, the father is obligated to accept us when we accept Jesus .Our conduct has absolutely nothing to do with it!

If you look at verse 19: To wit (or to know) that God was in Christ, reconciling the world into himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them. In other words, God does not hold our sins and trespasses against us. Very rarely has the whole Gospel been preached-only pieces of it. We have heard that God will not forgive a sinner until he confesses his sin, but this is not true. God has already provided forgiveness and is not holding our trespasses against us. This teaching is about confession of sin stems from 1Johnvs9: If we confess our son, he is faithful to forgive us. However, this letter was written to Christians for the purpose of their maintaining fellowship with God.

The Apostle John wrote in Chapter 2verse 1, “My little children, these things I write unto you, that you don’t sin. And if man sin we have an advocate with the father .Jesus Christ the righteous: and he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the world. John was referring to the sin of a Christian and was instruction his fellow believers to partake of Jesus the advocate ministry.

John 3vs16: For God so loved the world that he gave his only son. God loved us and Jesus gave Himself for us while we were in sin/God is not holding our trespasses against us-He is calling is to make Jesus our Lord. He accepted us on the basis of Jesus right standing in and in turn, made us in right-standing with Him. The only son keeping anyone out of the Kingdom is the sin of rejecting Jesus and what he has provided.

As a citizen Of South Africa, you have certain rights, which are outlines in the constitution. As long as your obey the laws stated in the constitution then you are in right standing with the South Africa Government, The same thing is true in the Kingdom of God and you have everything you need in the Kingdom. There is a covenant between Jesus and God signed in the Blood of the lamb, which provided these rights for you. They are yours-no one can take these rights from you. If Jesus is your Lord, then you are in right standing with God-you have the righteousness of God (whether you partake of it or not).You have the right to every single thing which God has. This is staggering to the human mind, but nevertheless, it is true. Jesus said “Fear not little flock, for it is your Fathers good pleasure to give to you the Kingdom (Luke12vs32)

Let’s stop here for today. Please do take time to look through the scripture references and ask the Holy Spirit to lead you into deeper understanding of this topic.

*This  is not all my original writing, all the information in this series  is from a book entitled: The force of Righteousness by Kenneth Copeland*