Righteousness

Right here waiting for Papa

RIGHTEOUSNESS

Matthew 6:25-34 (New King James Version)
²⁵ “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷ Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

• The emphasis made by Jesus is NOT food and clothing.
• It is NOT about Food and Clothing being not important.
• Rather the emphasis made by Jesus is about LIFE! The importance of the QUALITY OF LIFE!

²⁸ “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; ²⁹ and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

• Jesus is a good and caring Saviour.
• Jesus values our lives both spiritually and naturally and He deliberately use the term, “O you of little faith”
  • He was NOT belittling the disciples’ faith BUT to remind the power of “Little faith” or “mustard-size” faith that is able to move mountains!
  • He was AFFIRMING their Faith!
• He is a good Jesus.

³¹ “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

• Jesus cares so deeply for the disciples that THREE times He told them not to worry.
• When we read verse 32, we tend to read the following in our hearts, “For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you (DO NOT) need all these things.”

• We add the “DO NOT” in our minds unknowingly while reading and think that all God cares about is only the kingdom of God!

• Jesus with great care and love says that The Father KNOWS that you need these things! It is not just that God knows BUT the FATHER knows!

• A good and caring and devout Father knows!

How to receive your provision?

Because the Father knows, Jesus gave us the solution …

1. Seek FIRST the KINGDOM of GOD!

• What is the Kingdom of God?
  • To the disciples, the kingdom of God was the Sermon of the Mount.
  • Paul summarized the kingdom of God that it is RIGHTEOUS, PEACE and JOY in the HOLY SPIRIT!
  • It is having the Kingdom of God in our soul!
  • 3 John 1:2 (New King James Version)

² Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.

• Our prosperity in LIFE comes as our SOUL PROSPERS!
• Jesus values our LIFE and the Father knows that we have needs!

2. Seek His RIGHTEOUSNESS!

• Righteousness (Strongs G1343): Dikaiosynē (dē-kī-o-sü’-nā)
• Definition: righteousness, condition acceptable to God, integrity, virtue, purity of life, rightness, correctness of thinking feeling, and acting – Amplified Bible calls it “Right standing before God.”

Be Righteous or His Righteousness?

· Matthew 5:17-20 (New King James Version)

¹⁷ “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. ¹⁸ For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. ¹⁹ Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰ For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

• Jesus says that Our righteousness must exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees.
• Righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees – they prided themselves in obeying the law strictly.
• In order for us to have greater righteousness, does it mean that we have to be stricter in keeping the laws than the Pharisees?
• Jesus Christ has FULFILLED the Laws! He is the ONLY One who kept the Law fully and strictly.
• Jesus lives in our hearts and God has written His laws in our hearts.
• Righteousness is when you keep Jesus in your heart and follow Him, AND not taking pride in keeping the laws and rules!

The Bible called Lot a righteous man

2 Peter 2:6-8 (New King James Version)

⁶ and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; ⁷ and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked ⁸ (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)

• Lot was so righteous that he could even stay in a sinful city and keep his righteousness BUT he could not keep up with the rules and regulations and he eventually had incest with his daughters.
• Even though it wasn’t his fault, he had to live the rest of his life knowing that he could not keep the law fully anymore nor stand right before God.

However for Abram

Genesis 15:1-6 (New King James Version)

¹ After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”
² But Abram said, “Lord GOD, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” ³ Then Abram said, “Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!”
⁴ And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.” ⁵ Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”
⁶ And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.

• Jehovah God accounted it to him for RIGHTEOUSNESS WHEN Abram BELIEVED in the LORD!

MAIN TEXT

Genesis 14:14-17 (New King James Version)

¹⁴ Now when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained servants who were born in his own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. ¹⁵ He divided his forces against them by night, and he and his servants attacked them and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is north of Damascus. ¹⁶ So he brought back all the goods, and also brought back his brother Lot and his goods, as well as the women and the people.
¹⁷ And the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley), after his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him.

• In chapter 14, after Abram rescued Lot, Bera the King of Sodom met Abram in the valley of Shaveh.
• Bera means “Son of Evil”, Sodom means “Burning” – a burning of a wrong passion!

Genesis 14:18-24 (New King James Version)

¹⁸ Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. ¹⁹ And he blessed him and said:

“ Blessed be Abram of God Most High,
Possessor of heaven and earth;

²⁰ And blessed be God Most High,
Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.”

And he gave him a tithe of all.
²¹ Now the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, and take the goods for yourself.”
²² But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the LORD, God Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth, ²³ that I will take nothing, from a thread to a sandal strap, and that I will not take anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich’— ²⁴ except only what the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men who went with me: Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion.”

• Before the “Son of Evil” was able to engage Abram, Melchizedek King of Salem met Abram!
• Hebrews 7:1-2 (New King James Version)

¹ For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, ² to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,”

• Abram encountered The King of RIGHTEOUSNESS and the King of PEACE!
• Abram had a deep understanding of tithing.
  • He tithed to Melchizedek NOT because of wanting an open heaven! Tithing does keep the heavens opened BUT Abram has a greater revelation!
  • He tithed because he had a revelation that God is the POSSESOR of HEAVEN and EARTH!
  • Interesting, Abram gave the other 90% to the “Son of Evil”! Abram gave Melchizedek 10% and the Son of Evil 90%! – What is going on?
  • Abram understood the difference between righteous and unrighteous mammon!
  • Luke 16:11 (New King James Version)

¹¹ Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?

• Abram preferred the righteous mammon from God, the possessor of Heaven and Earth!
  • He refused to obtain wealth through unrighteous means!

What is God’s righteousness?

Romans 4:2-4 (New King James Version)

² For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. ³ For what does the Scripture say?“ Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” ⁴ Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.

Galatians 3:5-7 (New King James Version)

⁵ Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?— ⁶ just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” ⁷ Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.

• It was when Abraham BELIEVED in the Lord, God ACCOUNTED to him for RIGTHEOUSNESS!

• Righteousness – right standing before God!

• Abraham was able to stand before God BECAUSE he BELIEVED!

• Abraham believed in Jehovah!

• He met the King of Righteousness and the King of Peace. Abraham believed in Jesus!

• It was not his works or lack of it BUT his BELIEF in God that puts him in right standing before God!

James 2:22-24 (Amplified Bible)

²²You see that [his] faith was cooperating with his works, and [his] faith was completed and reached its supreme expression [when he implemented it] by [good] works.

²³And [so] the Scripture was fulfilled that says, Abraham believed in (adhered to, trusted in, and relied on) God, and this was accounted to him as righteousness (as conformity to God’s will in thought and deed), and he was called God’s friend.

²⁴You see that a man is justified (pronounced righteous before God) through what he does and not alone through faith [through works of obedience as well as by what he believes].

• The Pharisees prided themselves in their ABILITY to obey the law!

• Abraham prided himself in his BELIEF in Jesus!

• The Pharisees keeps the law and perform works in order to be righteous!

• Abraham keeps his belief in Jesus and that belief produces works!

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD AND HIS RIGHTEOUS

Jeremiah 23:4-6 (New King James Version)

⁴ I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking,” says the LORD.
⁵ “ Behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD,

“ That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness;
A King shall reign and prosper,
And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.

⁶ In His days Judah will be saved,
And Israel will dwell safely;
Now this is His name by which He will be called:

THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

• It is not just seeking the Kingdom!
• It is seeking the Kingdom AND The KING (The Lord our RIGHTEOUSNESS)!

Jeremiah 23:7-8 (New King James Version)

⁷ “Therefore, behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “that they shall no longer say, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ ⁸ but, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ And they shall dwell in their own land.”

• When you seek the kingdom and the KING,
  • It is no longer just about declaring that God has delivered us from sin!
  • It will be declaring that God has delivered us from sin AND brought us INTO His BLESSINGS!

May we always remember that we are able to ALWAYS come boldly before the throne of Grace and Mercy in times of need BECAUSE of what Jesus has done on the cross AND not what we have or have not done.

We BELIEVED therefore we STAND before Him.