April 29, 2020
Are we, always right? Do we never make a mistake? I wish I could say that I am always right, but I am not. I wish I could say that I have never made a mistake, but I cannot. My guess is that you would answer these questions in the same way as I answered. But I know someone who can answer these questions differently. He can answer I am always right and I have never made a mistake. You may have already guessed that it is God who gives those answers.
Let’s look at a few scriptures that talk about God’s righteousness. As we do this, we hopefully will see why His righteousness gives us hope.
In Job Elihu proclaims, “The Almighty—we cannot find Him; He is great in power; justice and abundant righteousness He will not violate.” Job 37:23(ESV) We find that God is unsearchable, powerful, just and abundantly righteous. He is not just righteous; He is abundantly righteous. If you tie that with the idea that He is unsearchable then the sensible conclusion is, we cannot grasp how righteous God is. He is righteous beyond our comprehension.
Let’s look at some of the Psalms,
“Your name, O God,
So, Your praise reaches to the ends of the earth.
Your right hand is filled with righteousness.” Psalms 48:10 (ESV)
“The heavens proclaim His righteousness,
and all the peoples see His glory.” Psalms 97:6 (ESV)
“Full of splendor and majesty is His work,
and his righteousness endures forever.” Psalms 111:3 (ESV)
“Righteous are You, O Lord,
and right are Your rules.
You have appointed Your testimonies in righteousness
and in all faithfulness.” Psalms 119:137-138 (ESV)
“Your righteousness is righteous forever,
and Your law is true.” Psalms 119:142 (ESV)
“The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and kind in all his works”. Psalms 145:17 (ESV)
The Psalmists tell us about God’s righteousness. Let me point out some of the characteristics that stand out to me. We see here that God is not only righteous, but notice His right hand is also full of righteousness. This indicates to me that He is handing out righteousness to us and the heavens proclaim it. Angels in heaven sing the praises of God, so His righteousness must be important. In Psalms 111 and 119 I see that God’s righteousness is eternal. It has always been, and it will always be. Convincingly, God is always righteous, which means He is never wrong in what He does or does not do. Granted, this does not mean we will understand God’s actions or inactions in our lives, but we can trust Him.
Jesus calls His Father righteous in John 17:24-26.
“Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, may be with Me where I am, to see My glory that You have given Me because You loved Me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father, even though the world does not know You, I know You, and these know that You have sent me. I made known to them Your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which You have loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”
Let me point out a few things that stood out to me. Jesus calls His Father righteous. He also points out that the world does not know Him like Jesus does. Jesus intimately knows God the Father and His righteousness, and as His children, we can also know God. When we have an intimate knowledge of God the Father and we know His righteousness leads Him in using all His attributes correctly, we can have hope even when we do not understand. So, if it is good enough for Jesus it is good enough for me.
If you do not know Jesus and therefore the Father then learn how here.
An audio version of my book Hope Amid Hopelessness is now available on Amazon and Westbow Press.
