Righteous

2 Peter 2: ⁴ For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment; ⁵ if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; ⁶ if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; ⁷and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless⁸ (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— ⁹ if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment. ¹⁰ This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the flesh and despise authority. and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless. Bold and arrogant, they are not afraid to heap abuse on celestial beings; ¹¹ yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not heap abuse on such beings when bringing judgment on them from the Lord. ¹² But these people blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like unreasoning animals, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like animals they too will perish.

¹³ They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you. ¹⁴ With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed—an accursed brood! ¹⁵ They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Bezer, who loved the wages of wickedness. ¹⁶ But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey—an animal without speech—who spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

¹⁷ These people are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them. ¹⁸ For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of the flesh, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error. ¹⁹They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.” ²⁰ If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. ²¹ It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. ²² Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” and, “A sow that is washed returns to her wallowing in the mud.”

James 1:²¹ Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

²² Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³ Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. ²⁵ But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

Ok, so last night I was taking a shower and God gave me something. He told me to study Noah and his righteousness. And at the same time he also said that Mary was an example too. So I thought I'd write a little about righteousness living.

In the days of Noah the people were even worse than they are today. In fact, the people were pretty much all evil. Except Noah. God was disgusted at mankind for their acts and debauchery. So disgusted that he decided to wipe everyone out. Everyone except Noah. Why? Because Noah had made an impression on God's heart and found favor with God. Those were days long before the written law, but God had still implanted the law in their hearts. The only man to follow was Noah. I don't know if Noah's family was righteous or not, but what mattered to God was that Noah was the household because he was the man and therefore everyone in his household would be considered saved because of his righteousness. So in the middle of the world's raunchiness stood Noah who did what was right in the Lord's eyes.

Now I want to look at Mary. There isn't a lot before the angel came that we know about Mary, but you do know that she found favor with God so therefore must have been truly righteous in her living.

Luke 1:²⁸ The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” ²⁹ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. ³⁰ But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God.

So again, Mary made an impression on God and found favor with Him. In turn, she was entrusted to be the mother of Jesus.

So now with Jesus coming and dying and rising again we hear the good news. Jesus Christ can come and redeem you and wash your scarlet sins white as snow. And it's so very true. There isn't a sin big enough that Christ's blood can't cover it. If you truly repent. So with Christ in our hearts, truly in our hearts there we are out in a sinful world. I really don't know about other people but it's hard to keep Christ centered in my heart. What happens is life. Maybe it's the kids acting bad or your spouse in a bad mood, maybe it's just a car that cuts you off or being late for work and getting behind the handicapped old lady who's driving line to line going 10 mph under the speed limit. But my heart seems to be like a sieve. So I'll put Christ there and yet by the end of the day I'll barely remember him. What helps you remember him?

Righteousness and prayer.

Ephesians 6: ¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. ¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people

The breastplate of righteousness. So why is righteousness so important? Because it covers our heart. We are to ask Christ to come and live in our heart. So by living a righteous life we are protecting Christ in our heart. Please keep in mind that it's not one thing but a multitude of things you must do constantly to keep Christ in your heart. But honestly, you can't really say a prayer while doing sin and evilness. You can't be in God's word while cavorting around. The Holy Spirit convicts us to righteous living because it's only through this that we can keep the Lord in our hearts. It's our devotion to God that is pleasing to him.

So what do we do with this? We've got to clean house. We've got to clean up our living. Do we truly want Christ in our hearts? I mean REALLY want him to occupy us? I'm not talking about temporarily for a season, but eternally. I honestly think the word says that without Christ in our hearts we won't be saved. So to me it's eternally important. If we want a close brotherly relationship with Christ we HAVE to live and commit to a righteous life. There is no other way to remain close to him. Don't think that you'll live however you want and still keep Christ in your heart and have a relationship with him because it can't happen that way. If so there wouldn't be any need for righteousness. Jesus isn't a get out of jail card. For if you don't have him in your heart and you find yourself in jail, he won't accept the charges on your one phone call. If you haven't read my disturbing post below please do.

Please understand that I'm not talking about a sinless life. I'm talking about a commitment to a sinless life. I mean to sit down and say your vows to the Lord. Actually commit to him and his word. Commit to his life which is much more than 10 commandments. This is why the law doesn't apply to true believers because there is no use for it because we are to be ABOVE that. Ask that the Holy Spirit come and fill you so there is no room for evil. Ask that he be renewed daily in your life or even hourly if need be. Commit to him and pledge your life. Pray and set yourself apart from the world. When you fail, it's not the end, rededicate and recommit. Try harder. Pray harder. Recognize the pitfalls and try to help your brother's in Christ so that they may not fall in the same hole as you. Realize it won't be easy. Great relationships never are. One day I want to be there in judgement in front of God and to be able to look at my closest friend Jesus who can say... Well done my good and faithful servant God has found favor with you. So in the end... it's not righteousness that gets you to Heaven, but it's righteousness that keeps Jesus in your heart that gets you to Heaven.