Are you righteous?
Now that's a difficult question. And to answer it, first we need to define
"righteous"! The Bible does so in Prov 20:7: "The righteous man leads a
blameless life." In other words, a righteous person is someone who always tries
to do what is right!
So, back to our original question: Are you righteous? Do you fit the bill?
And what about me? Do I fit the bill?
Remember Rom. 3:23? "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God..."
Does this mean no one is righteous?
I am originally from the old country, the one on the other side of the Atlantic
Ocean, and my first experiences in America left had me totally confused. I was
attending university, and all of my male counterparts encouraged me to blindly
call up a girl I didn't even know how to ask for a date! Now I come from a
reserved family, and my core values dictated that I needed to know a person
before asking them out! The concept was, to me, utterly disgusting and morally
wrong! I still remember my reaction: "Bind date? Are you kidding? Why would I
want to do such a thing!"
After months of brainwashing however, I finally gave in, and with an anxiously
beating heart, I picked up the phone. I haphazardly opened the school's
publication containing all of the names, phone numbers, and pictures of the
student body, and ran my finger over the pictures in the girl's section,
randomly stopping from time to time to examine the portrait. I had only set one
condition for myself: The girl I called had to be pretty. My first three choices
didn't meet my criteria, but finally, on the forth try, my finger stopped on a
face that, although not gorgeous, was passing. Hey? Why should I be so picky?
With shaking fingers I dialled the phone and stammered out my request. Her
response was not exactly what I had anticipated: "Where's your picture?" The
rest is history! Never has a guy been turned down so quickly! At the time I
didn't even realized I looked like a decrepit vampire!
I did learn something that day, though. Every time you cave in to pressure, you
lose!
So back to our definition of righteousness: "The righteous man leads a blameless
life: (Prov. 20:7 NIV). In other words, righteousness will keep you from caving
in to pressure; it will keep your heart from wandering in the wrong direction.
Righteousness will help you determine right from wrong, and a righteous person
is willing to do what is right at all times! With that definition in mind, it is
easy to see why righteousness is a vitally important piece of equipment! In
fact, righteousness is the second piece of armour that God has provided for all
Christians: ". . . With the breastplate of righteousness in place" (Eph 6:14
NIV)!
It's interesting that God's Word compares righteousness to a breastplate whose
function is to protect all of our vital body parts from harm. Sounds important,
doesn't it? So how can we put on this "breastplate"?
By asking ourselves what Jesus would do if He were in our shoes.
Some of you might not know Jesus well enough to know what He would do. If this
describes you, I would encourage you to read the Bible and acquaint yourself
with God's Holy Spirit who will lead you to the truth. It is well worth the
journey!
And what is the result of a heart that longs after righteousness?
"The righteous will never be uprooted." (Prov 10:30 NIV); and "A man cannot be
established through wickedness, but the righteous cannot be uprooted." (Prov
12:3 NIV)
"Would you like to buy this fabulous watch that I have hiding in my coat?"
"Let me see!"
"No! I can't!"
"Then definitely not!"
What about you? Are you interested?
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
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The Nugget: Published three times a week, this newsletter features inspirational devotionals and mini-sermons dedicated to drawing mankind closer to each other and to Christ.