Can We Live Righteously?

Can We Live Righteously? Devotional Reading July 18, 2023

My younger cousin applied for an internal position in Human Resources, but unfortunately, she didn’t have the necessary academic qualifications. Despite this, she did extremely well in the interview and expressed her willingness to complete the required courses. Due to her track record of being a great employee who consistently exceeded company goals, the executive decision was made to put the position on hold and pay for her education. My cousin completed the program and was ultimately promoted to the Human Resources Department.

We are created with the ability to pursue our dreams and goals on earth. Our desire and willingness to achieve, even though we face unforeseen struggles, reveals our inner strength of endurance and perseverance. To reach our goal, we face adversity head-on and tell ourselves that failure is not an option. When things get tough and we’ve done all we can, we approach God in prayer for His help. When our dreams come to fruition, we are overjoyed! Yet, the teamwork of our effort and God’s Divine Intervention allowed us to accomplish our goals.

Do we set spiritual goals? The general answer is usually yes about desiring eternal life, but the requirement to live righteously in our earthly lives to receive our reward is often met with resistance. The Christian Community is divided in their opinions about God’s expectation for us to live righteously. Some feel that God requires too much and we cannot meet His righteous expectations and those who are striving to stay on the Path of Righteousness proclaim, “With God’s Help, Yes, we can live righteously!”

“… ‘Be holy, for I am holy.’ ” —1 Peter 1:16.

Can We Live Righteously? What is Righteousness? We have four references.

1. “Righteousness is right doing, and it is by their deeds that all will be judged. Our characters are revealed by what we do.” Christ’s Object Lessons
2. “Righteousness is the perfect holiness of Christ. It is an essential attribute of the character of God.” Crosswalk.com
3. Righteousness is the perfect consistency of character and actions which align with God’s Righteous attributes.” Dr. C. Stanley
4. “Holiness is the result of the working of the Divine grace when we bow into submission to God and practice discipline and restrain ourselves from willfully sinning against God with the Help of the Holy Spirit.” EGW

“Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness, no one will see the Lord.” —Hebrews 12:14

Righteousness is defined as God’s Divine and Holy Attributes and Christ’s Perfect Righteous Character. We demonstrate spiritual transformation through the constant resistance to sin as reflected by our choices, character traits, thoughts, habits, and actions which should always reflect Christ’s Character.

“For it is by grace you have been saved through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” —Ephesians 2:8-9

Because of Christ’s death, in faith, we receive Salvation through His grace. Grace is unmerited favor—we receive what we do not deserve. Through Grace, we are covered by Christ’s Righteousness which allows us to receive the gift of eternal life, but it is our choice whether or not to do so.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” —John 3:16

Our faith proclaims, “I believe in Jesus Christ that He is the Son of God who died for my sins. I accept Jesus as my personal Savior, and I confess and repent of my sins.”

Our love for Christ allows the Holy Spirit to produce a heart that experiences daily spiritual growth and transformation. We no longer desire sinful activities. And yes, we strive to live righteously because of our overwhelming love for our Savior and Redeemer. The human effort of daily surrender and obedience indicates that we desire a heart-to-heart relationship with Jesus. The Holy Spirit is always ready to provide us with the spiritual strength to resist all forms of sin in our earthly journey. Pray continuously!

“But as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct…” —1 Peter 1:15

We cannot gain knowledge of God’s Righteous Attributes, the Character of Christ, and what God expects of us through mere guesswork or speculation. The diligent study of the Bible is required to learn about God’s standards of Righteousness and how we must conduct ourselves. Still, we cannot live righteously by using only our efforts. When faced with a dilemma, immediately pray for Help. The Holy Spirit is our Teacher and speaks to us through our conscience when faced with right and wrong and truth versus error.

“If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.” —1 John 2:29

The following is an excerpt of a testimonial from a Crosswalk article entitled “What is Righteous?”

I used to think righteous living had more to do with behavioral modification than heart transformation. Outward appearance of holiness was what mattered to me, rather than Spirit-filled change. I thought that if I tried to stop cussing as much and stop watching rated-R movies, then that meant I was living righteously. While those are good and righteous works, the more I read the Bible, the more I learned that I had it backward. Righteousness actually produces those works, not the other way around.

There are times when we will fall into sin. “For a righteous man may fall seven times And rise again, But the wicked shall fall by calamity” (Proverbs 24:16). “In this fallen world, the difference between a righteous and an unrighteous man is not whether they fall or not, but rather what they do when they fall.” Christ Church

King David’s Prayer of Repentance: “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight…” —Psalm 51:1-4

“No repentance is genuine that does not work reformation. The righteousness of Christ is not a cloak to cover unconfessed and unforsaken sin; it is a principle of life that transforms the character and controls the conduct. Holiness is wholeness for God; it is the entire surrender of heart and life to the indwelling of the principles of heaven.”-The Desire of Ages

Do not fall prey to the mindset of “God understands that I will commit sins” or “I’m a work-in-progress” to justify unrighteous sinful actions. Remember that Satan brings spiritual warfare into every Christian’s life. Sin places us into Spiritual Bankruptcy separating us from a Holy and Righteous God. Continuous sinning changes our desire for righteousness and has fatal consequences.

Living righteously usually causes separation from family, friends, and significant others who are unbelievers. Do not follow your feelings! Never lose your reward of eternal life for someone who has no desire to surrender their heart to love Christ.

When we love Christ and have the determination to be loyal followers, the Holy Spirit gives us spiritual discernment to recognize temptation and the strength to resist evil. We have a Spiritual Team who is just a prayer away. Yes, living righteously is within our reach. Amen.

Reflection: “When we submit ourselves to Christ, the heart is united with His heart, the will is merged in His will, the mind becomes one with His mind, the thoughts are brought into captivity to Him; we live His life. This is what it means to be clothed with the garment of His righteousness….” EGW

Prayer: God, we surrender our hearts to You and ask for the anointing, power, and presence of the Holy Spirit to lead, guide, and direct us. We desire to live righteously as we prepare for the soon coming of Christ. Thank You for hearing and answering our prayer that we ask in Jesus’ Holy and Righteous name, Amen.

© 2023 Steps 2 Success with Spiritual Solutions and Woman, You Are Loved by God Ministries