The Righteous Man Shall Live by Faith
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July 20, 2014 |
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 "For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, 'But the righteous man shall live by faith'" (Romans 1:17).
Senior Pastor Dr. Jaerock Lee
In general, one who helps the neglected such as orphans and widows, is deemed righteous. Also one who maintains the outer appearance of gentleness, adheres to public order, endures every situation without being offended or losing their temper is usually called 'one for whom the law is unnecessary'.
However, the righteous in the sight of God are different from the righteous in the sight of the worldly people. It is because God examines our hearts, not our outer appearances and some people have hearts that are different from their outer appearances. Then, what kind of man can be recognized as a righteous man by God?
1. A God-recognized righteous man
The Bible tells us that those who walk in the ways of God (Hosea 14:9) or walk blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the LORD are righteous (Luke 1:6). But as Romans 3:10 says, "There is none righteous, not even one," people inherit sinful natures from their fathers at birth. No matter how hard they try to live righteously, all people have this original sin and all people also commit sins as they grow up. Therefore, none can be said to be righteous.
Jesus, who had existed in the form of God, came to the earth in flesh to redeem us from sins. He took the cross for our sins, shed His blood, died, and He rose again. When we believe this Jesus is our Savior, anyone can receive forgiveness of sins and be reckoned to be among the righteous. We receive the Holy Spirit as a gift through whom we can understand what sins, righteousness, and judgment are. We can also cast off sins and act in the righteousness, and to that extent, we can become righteous and gain recognition from Him.
Therefore, it is very important for Christians to cast away sins and evils and achieve the righteousness of heart. In the Old Testament time, before Jesus came to the earth, people couldn't cast off sinful natures from their hearts. As long as they didn't commit sins in action they were not considered sinners. But the salvation through actions is not perfect, so God sent the Holy Spirit to those who accepted Jesus as the Savior as a gift in the New Testament time.
If we cry out in prayer and try to cast away sins to the point of shedding blood, God's grace and strength and the help of the Holy Spirit will be given and we can cast away all forms of evils completely. When we throw away all forms of evils and become sanctified, we will become righteous and we can gain love and recognition from God, receive answers to whatever we ask, and enjoy the authority and blessing of God's children.
2. Until we become righteous worthy of receiving God's blessings
Just as Romans 6:23 says, "The wages of sin is death," sinners belong to Satan and have no choice but go to the way of destruction. But if they turn back from their sins they will reach salvation, not death. Furthermore, if they become righteous and are recognized by God, diseases have nothing to do with them since Satan can't even touch them. They prosper in all respects and stay in good health just as their souls prosper.
In order to be righteous, we have to pay attention to the Word of God and keep all His commandments telling us 'to do', 'not to do', 'to throw away', and 'to keep'. We also have to pass through tests and trials until we become righteous enough to receive God's blessings just as athletes undergo intensive training to gain gold medals in the Olympics.
The Bible shows that God let His loving children undergo only the tests or trials that they could endure and by doing so He led their souls to prosper. God Himself guided Abraham, the father of faith, and tested him. He had him go forth from his country, from his relatives, and from his father's house without knowing where he was going. Until he was made blameless and righteous and recognized, God refined him as written in Genesis 17:1 saying, "Walk before Me, and be blameless". In the end, Abraham passed the test of offering his only son, Isaac, as a burnt offering and then he received blessings in all respects and enjoyed prosperity.
God lets us pass through tests for our spiritual growth and leads us to the way of blessing. That is, He leads us to righteousness. After we pass the God-allowed tests, He gives us blessings and leads us to greater faith. We understand the heart of God through it and become perfect men who achieve the heart of the Lord.
3. To be righteous, we should have spiritual faith
Romans 1:17 reads, "But the righteous man shall live by faith." Here, 'faith' refers to spiritual faith that is living faith. With spiritual faith we can believe in the creation of things out of nothing. We can believe this way when we demolish our fleshly thoughts and don't use our own thoughts or knowledge in listening to the Word of God. With spiritual faith, we can obey what we seemingly can't obey and we can believe the creation of things out of nothing. And we can receive salvation.
Then, what can we do to possess this spiritual faith? First, we have to listen to the Word of God earnestly. Romans 10:17 says, "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." To receive spiritual faith, we first have to listen to the Word of God. Without hearing of the Word of God we can neither know the truth nor gain faith. We should go to church earnestly, listen to the messages delivered in worship services and hear testimonies and sermon lessons in the many gatherings and meetings which allow for us to have and increase our faith.
Even if we have such knowledge and faith as knowledge, it doesn't mean we have cast off sins and live by the Word of God perfectly. We have to pray diligently and throw away sins and untruthful things by the help of the Holy Spirit and we must act upon the Word. Only then can we possess spiritual faith. It is just as James 2:22 reads, "You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected."
4. How to live as righteous men pleasing to God
Abraham obeyed what God told him to do without his own thoughts. He obeyed with spiritual faith and walked in faith in any kind of situation. Think for a moment about how Moses led the Israelites to cross the Red Sea that was blocking their Exodus from Egypt before them, or how Joshua, Moses' successor, led them to cross the overflowing Jordan and destroyed the city of Jericho. It was because they had spiritual faith with which they could obey the command of God and God was pleased with them and blessed them with answers.
We may be faced with problems like a Red Sea blocking us, a city of Jericho, or an overflowing Jordan River in front of us. When we are faced with such problems, if we live in the truth, it is 'living by faith'. Suppose someone hits you. With fleshly faith you might hit him back and hate him. But with spiritual faith, you don't hate him but rather forgive, understand, and love him. When you reveal actions of the truth with spiritual faith, Satan will go away and problems will be resolved.
Righteous men who live by faith keep God's commandments and act in the truth with love for God. If we love God, it's not hard to keep His commandments. How can people who love God disobey the Word of God since loving God is keeping His commandments?
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, even if the Red Sea is before you and the city of Jericho just ahead, you don't have to be worried. If you take the way of the righteous, God will relieve you of your pain and solve all your difficulties. Therefore, I urge you to become righteous and please God. I pray in the name of the Lord that by doing so you will live a blessed life not only on the earth, but also with eternal life in Heaven.
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