“For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.” Romans 10:3 NKJV
The Christian theme of self righteousness and God’s righteousness was something I struggled with for a long time before comprehending. To me, what was been described as self righteousness was all I knew Christianity to be —trying your best to live right. I was once given a scenario on this theme at a midweek Bible study which became for me the eye-opener.
I was asked to imagine a rich man who lives in his mansion with a son and a servant. The servant lives right by all means and does whatever the man instructs but that does not get him a seat at the family table during dinner. On the other hand, the son is always welcomed to take a seat at the family table and hold discussions with the father even when he was stubborn during the day.
God’s righteousness is accepting to be a son and self righteousness is being the servant who strives to do everything right. The righteousness of God is imputed on the one who accepts Jesus Christ and yields to the Holy Spirit. Such a one becomes a son who sits at the family table and speaks to the ears of the Father. Righteousness then becomes the fruits of his relationship with the Father, not the root, just as Romans 10:10 says, “For with the heart one believes unto righteousness …”
Our self-strived righteousness without Jesus cannot grant us access to God’s family, that’s when the Bible says “our righteousness is like filthy rags before God” (Isaiah 64:6). God is after those who have his nature not those who act like Him. It is very subtle because acting like God makes you think you have His nature but that isn’t so. When one obtains God’s righteous nature through Christ Jesus, he is now of God’s kin, righteousness is what he does not what he struggles to do.
Receive God’s gift of righteousness through faith in Christ Jesus alone, you will have a seat at his table and the inner strength to live right for God always. It’s about yielding, not striving!
Further reading: Galatians 2:16-21; Romans 10:1-13
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