Psalm 119:172
172 My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness.
Psalm 119:172 clearly explains to us what righteousness is. All of God’s commandments are Righteousness. Reciprocally we can say that Righteousness is all of God’s commandments. So if all of God’s commandments are righteousness, do we have righteousness if we write God’s commandments down on a piece of paper and put the paper in our pocket, or must we actually keep God’s commandments in order to be righteous? In light of Romans 3:10-12, can anyone be righteous?
Romans 2:10-12
10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Paul says there is none that understandeth, nor seeketh after God, they are all gone out of the way and are unprofitable. Notice that in verse Romans 3:12 that He writes in the last phrase, that “there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” So does this mean that what we do has something to do with being righteous? So is he talking about righteousness by works? I think not. Another name for God’s commandments is God’s law. Let’s look at Romans 3:20-24
Romans 2:20-24
20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
So here we can see that our righteousness does not come from or through the deeds of the law, but it comes through faith in Jesus for all who believe. But does that mean that now that we have faith in Christ, that it’s okay to sin? Certainly not. Romans 3:20 says that by the law is the knowledge of sin. So when we look at the law, we can see what sin is, but keeping the law is not what makes a person righteous, and the righteousness of God is manifest without the law. These seem to be conflicting statements, but they are not. Verse 23 says all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. So we have already earned the wages of sin which is death. {Romans 6:23} These statements show us that we can never earn our salvation or be righteous in the sight of God, unless we have faith in Jesus Christ. So our righteousness is in Christ. But it also doesn’t mean that we now have the right to continue right on sinning since we now have faith. Christ died for our sins, and now our faith in Christ takes away our sin. {John 3:5}
1st John 3:2-10
2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
5 And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
7 Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.
Here in 1st John 3-10 the Bible shows us that those who have the hope of being like Jesus when He appears will purify themselves even as He (Jesus) is pure, and in Him (Jesus) is no sin. Then it goes on to say that the transgression of the law is sin. In Romans 3:20 Paul writes that from the law comes the knowledge of sin. So our righteousness does not come from the law, nor from doing the deeds of the law, but the law shows us what sin is. Our righteousness comes from Christ and through faith in Christ. This should all be making perfect sense by now.
He Who Does Righteousness is Righteous
Then in 1st John 3:5-6 it says that Jesus came to take away our sin and those who abide in Jesus will no longer sin. It is by our having faith in Christ that He (Christ) is able to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (sin) {1st John 1:9}. Then in verse 7 John tells us that he who does righteousness is righteous even as Jesus is righteous.That statement defines who truly are the righteous. Verse 8 tells us that those who sin are of the devil. Verse 9 says that whoever is born of God cannot sin, and verse 10 says that this is how we can tell who is of God and who is of the devil. There can be no mistaking that the Bible tells us that through the law we can see if any man is righteous, and even if we ourselves are righteous. But all this doesn’t mean that we can judge anyone. Knowing and judging are two different things, but that is a whole other subject which we will go into here.
James 2:8-12
8 If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:
9 But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.
10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
11 For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law.
12 So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.Matthew 22:36-40
36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
Here are two more scriptures that clearly define the 10 commandments as the law of God. James calls it the Royal law of liberty (which is another subject in itself) and Jesus responds with the commandment used in James 2:8 when asked which is the great commandment in the law. There is no point in going into further discussion on this point, because the scriptures quoted above clearly show that the law of God is both the 10 commandments and all of God’s commandments.
Jesus Condemned Sin in the Flesh
Romans 8:3-4
3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Romans 8:3 informs us that Jesus condemned sin in the flesh and we have seen that sin is the transgression of the law: {1st John 3:4} above. Jesus showed us that it’s not okay to keep right on sinning. It was our sin which required Jesus to endure suffering so brutal upon the cross. Suppose there was a father who had a son, and the son didn’t like one of their neighbors. One day the son decided to break said neighbor’s window for spite. The father was very sorry that the son broke the window, so he paid to replace the window and gave the neighbor a valuable gift to make amends. Would that make it acceptable for the son to go and break the window again? Of course not.
The same goes for Jesus’ sacrifice. If Jesus died for your sins, does it make it okay for you to sin again? On the contrary. It makes it even much more important for you to remove all sin from your life as an act of gratitude for such a sacrifice which the Lord made for you sins. Thus Romans 8:4 tells us why Jesus condemned sin in the flesh. He did it so that we might fulfill the righteousness of the law. In order to fulfill the righteousness of the law we must put an end to sin in our life, because sin is the transgression of the law and the opposite of Righteousness. We cannot fulfill righteousness while we have sin in our life.
God’s Pleasure is to fulfill His Law in Us
Philippians 2:13
13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
Isaiah 53:10
10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
John 14:15
If ye love me, keep my commandments.
1st John 4:19
19 We love him, because he first loved us.
Jeremiah 31:33
33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Philippians 2:13 shows us that God works in us to will and to do His good pleasure. Isaiah 53:10 reveals to us that the bruising of Jesus would result in the prosperity of the Lord’s pleasure. The focus here is on the word pleasure. How does God work in us to will and to do His good pleasure? It pleased Him to send Jesus to be bruised upon the cross so that He could condemn sin in the flesh {Romans 8:3} so that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit {Romans 8:4}.
Isaiah 53:10 also says that Jesus was made an offering for our sin. When we understand all the pain and suffering which Jesus endured, as he bore the cross, so that we might be saved, we can but begin to fathom the matchless love that our savior God has for us. Once we come to understand what a wonderful creator we have we want to know more about Him which can only be accomplished through the deep study of His Word, the Bible.Through the revelation of His Majesty, Omnipotence and Love, the all knowing, all wise God is masterfully able to inspire deep love and gratitude for Him in us and fulfill the scripture, “We love Him, because he first loved us.” {1st John 4:19}
In our endeavor to know and love Jesus we discover John 14:15 which says, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” Thus he is able to write His law upon our hearts as we respond when He enlightens us upon what is required for us to truly love Him in return {Jeremiah 31:33} above. It is God’s good pleasure that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.