Righteousness: Easier than Doing Good

 "The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.

"They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one." (Psalm 14: 2-3)

Doing good is not only hard, for mankind, it's impossible.

Instead of eating from the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil, let us eat from the Tree of Life, which is Jesus Christ.

In Him, we find the righteousness that we need:

"The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon." (Psalm 92: 12)

We need faith, not facts and feelings:

"Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith." (Habakkuk 2: 4)

Forget "good", we need "righteousness", we need deliverance from our fallen selves:

"Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile." (Psalm 32: 2)

This righteousness is granted to us by faith:

"And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness." (Genesis 15: 6)

 Sadly, many Christians are not using the Law properly, which is sadly the fate of every person who has not received Jesus as Savior.

"You shall not hate your brother in your heart: you shall surely rebuke your neighbor, and not bear sin because of him." (Leviticus 19: 17)

and

"Lust not after her beauty in your heart; neither let her allure you with her eyelids." (Proverbs : 25)

and

"Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's." (Exodus 20: 17)

Forget "Love thy neighbor" :

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

"And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. " (Deuteronomy 6: 4-5)

 We need more than to want goodness. We need righteousness, and in Christ, we receive this righteousness, the standing of complete acceptance before God! This righteousness allows his grace and peace to be brought forth in my life -- and through this grace we receive the fulfillment of the law!