Righteousness Revealed
Understanding you have God’s divine approval on your life sets you free from the sense of rejection, inadequacy, or inferiority. You are confident you have God’s approval. You are free to receive God’s best blessings and to follow His plan for your life. This confidence in God sets you free from constantly seeking approval from others.
One of the most misunderstood subjects in the Bible is righteousness. The Gospel of Christ is a revelation of the righteousness of God. The center of the Gospel reveals the righteousness of God. I call righteousness a radical revelation, a revolutionary revelation. It is a reality that is produced for us by the Lord Jesus Christ.
I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto
salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith:
as it is written, the just shall live by faith. Romans 1:16-17
For the gospel reveals how God puts people right with Himself. (GNB)
It reveals God’s way of making men as righteous as himself. (Lovett)
Paul says the Gospel is the power of God and he mentions faith three times. Your faith cannot be any stronger than your revelation of righteousness. Your faith works best when you have a righteousness consciousness.
There are many benefits to righteousness. The Old Testament talks about this in Proverbs 28:1, “The righteous are as bold as a lion.” Psalm 112:3 says, “...wealth and riches shall be in the house of the righteous.” One of my favorites is Psalm 68:3, “But let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before God: yea, let them exceedingly rejoice.” James 5:16 says, “The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” The Amplified Bible says, “makes tremendous power available.”
As a young Christian, Rev. Kenneth E. Hagin (Dad Hagin), went to a church where he got a “truckload” of unworthiness. Then he went to another church, he got a “double truckload” of unworthiness. After reading James 5:16, he said, “If I ever get to be righteous, my prayer is going to be powerful!” In other words, he did not have a revelation of the righteousness of God yet.
In his book, I Believe in Visions, Dad Hagin tells of a vision he had of Jesus. When he saw Jesus, he fell at His feet and said, “No one as unworthy as I am should look at your face.” Jesus told Dad Hagin to stand up on his feet, because He had washed him in His blood and made him worthy. He received the radical revelation that Jesus had made him worthy.
There are very important things to remember about righteousness. 1. Righteousness is a free gift. You cannot do anything to earn righteousness - it is a gift from God. 2. Righteousness is a legal declaration. You have been declared righteous and are now justified by God. 3. Righteousness is a spiritual force.
“They who receive the abundance of grace, and the gift of righteousness shall reign in life through one man, Jesus Christ,” Romans 5:17. Notice it says they who receive. You cannot earn this gift, but you must receive the gift of righteousness. When you understand what you have received, you will reign like a king in life. You will not be a victim any longer, but you will be a victor.
Romans 4:25 says, “Jesus was delivered up for our sin and raised for our justification.” Jesus died because of our sins and was raised because of our justification. The Fenton translation says Jesus was raised “through our righteousness.” Jesus could not be and was not raised from the dead until you were declared righteous and the penalty for sin was paid in full. One way to understand the word “justified” is to break it down this way: just – as – if - I’d never sinned. Everything Jesus did was for you and you were declared justified or righteous
A LEGAL DECLARATIO
This gift of righteousness means you have escaped sin consciousness, the dominion of sin and Satan. Romans 6:14 says, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.” You have been delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of His dear Son.
The Jordan translation of Colossians 1:12,13 is descriptive: “It was the Father who sprang us from the jail house of darkness, and turned us loose in the new world of His beloved Son.” This is a really good picture, except for one thing. When you read “He sprang us from the jail house of darkness,” you may be thinking, “I’ve been saved and made righteous.” However, you may unconsciously see your righteousness as a jailbreak. The fact is, Jesus did not break you out of jail. You were legally justified by the highest court and the highest judge in the land. Therefore, you are not running from the law. There is no one chasing you. You are not going through the swamp and you do not have on the old uniform. You were legally declared justified and righteous, and you legally walked out of the jail house of sin in front of everybody as the righteousness of God in Christ. You have divine approval. You do not have to hide from your past because you have been declared justified. You have been made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.
PARTNERS IN CHRIST
“The Good News shows how God makes people right with Himself," Romans 1:16 (Deaf). Thank you, our partners, for helping us publish the Good News to people in many nations. Your continued prayer and financial partnership are helping to print and distribute books, support missionaries and pastors in many nations and broadcast the Word through television around the world. This month for your gift of any amount, we will send you the book and 4CD set titled, Divine Approval. We believe you will have a revelation of righteousness that will take you to the next level.
We want to personally invite you to start your 2024 off with us at our Spirit of Faith - Breaking Barriers Conference, January 9-11, at our new MHM Conference Center. We expect a great time in the Word and the Holy Spirit and would love to have you here with us.
Thank you for your continued and faithful partnership with us. We declare to you, our partners, “My God will supply all your need, according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
In Christ,
Mark and Trina