What is the True Standard of Righteousness?

During my daily Bible reading devotions with my wife, I often see combinations of words that inspire me to do a Bible study about them. I usually learn new things from it.

The word “righteousness” appears in the KJV 302 times in 285 verses. What does it mean to be righteous? Should we let right and wrong be determined only by our culture? The government? What Woke people tell us? Absolutely not! We must go by what the Word of God, the Bible, tells us!

Righteousness is connected to faith in God’s Word

The very first time the word righteousness occurs, it’s linked to belief in the Lord and the Word of God!

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

The Apostle Paul confirms that belief in God’s Word is connected to righteousness.

Romans 10:9  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Jesus told the chief priests and the elders of the people:

Matthew 21:32  For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him.

Jesus implied that the hated publicans and the harlots were more righteous than the chief priests and elders because they believed what John the Baptist had to say!

True righteousness in God’s eyes is having faith in Jesus Christ.

Romans 3:22  Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

Who wouldn’t want to believe that Jesus Christ came to save sinners? Only people who are righteous in their own eyes and think they have no sin!

1 John 1:7  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
8   ¶If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

People may think they are righteous because they either don’t know or they don’t believe what the Bible teaches.

Romans 3:10  As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

The Apostle Paul in Romans 3:10 was quoting from parts of Psalms 14:1-3:

Psalms 14:1-3  The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth 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.

1 John 1:10  If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

This is the trouble with Buddhism. There is no concept of sin or breaking God’s moral law because there is no Creator God in Buddhist doctrine.

Some people think their own goodness will get them into Heaven and they don’t need to believe that Jesus paid the price for their sins on the cross of Calvary. What does the Bible say about that?

John 3:36  He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

John 8:24b …for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

Righteousness is connected to peace.

Unrighteousness tends to bring a lack of peace.

Isaiah 48:22 There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked.

Is there strife in your marriage? Your relationships with others? Your family? Your nation? The world? We know the world has never had lasting peace, but we can have peace in our part of the world through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and listening to His Word!

If others, especially unbelievers, say you are self-righteous for exposing their sins with the Bible, take heart that you are truly on the side of righteousness. People who judge you by their standard of righteousness rather than what the Bible has to say are the self-righteous ones, not you.

And some may even condemn you with the Bible based on their own false interpretation of Scripture! If you stick with what you know the Bible says, and you stand together with other men and women of God who believe as you do, you shouldn’t feel condemned.

There are memes on social media that condemn Christians who do not support the modern state of Israel! They even call such Christians “hypocrites.” But God’s people who know what God has to say in Galatians chapter 3 and 2 John 9-11 know who the true hypocrites are: Those who claim to follow Christ and yet support the Israel government’s murder of Israel’s neighbors, some of whom are Palestinians Christians!

There is only one people of God, the Church. True Israel is associated with the Church.

Stephen told the Sanhedrin before they stoned him:

Acts 7:38  This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:

Paul indicates there is only one people of God:

Galatians 3:26  For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
27  For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
28  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
29  And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

John tells us not to support those who do not have the doctrine of Christ lest we become partaker of their evil deeds! The government of the modern state of Israel is officially antichrist. It is NOT the Israel of the Bible!

2 John 1:9  Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
10  If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
11  For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.

If you believe otherwise, it’s because you have been misled by Christian Zionist preachers who have themselves been misled by the false doctrines in the footnotes of the Scofield Reference Bible.

Some Christians who assert that the Earth is flat get mad at me when I tell them it’s not. They claim the Bible teaches it, but I call it a false interpretation. And if you argue with them about it, the effect is something other than peace, quietness, and joy! It only results in unrighteousness, anger, and bitterness. It’s best to drop the subject completely with the person who insists on pushing their doctrines down your throat.

There is probably more I could add to this Bible study. If anybody has anything to add, please write it in the comments section below.