Displaying Christian Sermons by tag: Righteousness

Joyce Meyer (May-11-2023) Daily Devotional: Enjoy the Righteousness of Christ.

It is an awe-inspiring thing to realize you are in right standing with God simply because you believe in Him. Because Jesus who knew no sin became sin, you are the righteousness of God. What a thrilling and humbling thought.

But the devil doesn't want you to walk in the wonderful thrill of that reality. He wants to bring up all your faults and distract you from the joy of righteousness Jesus died to give you.

Don't let the devil steal the thrill of your righteousness through Christ. As you prepare for a night of rest, spend a few quiet moments thinking about that matchless gift, and worship and praise the one who made it all possible.

Prayer of the Day: Father, thank You for making me righteous through faith in Your Son, Jesus. Help me no to be distracted by the devil’s lies and to remember the joy of Your Truth. As I rest, I worship and praise You for this amazing gift, amen.

David Jeremiah (January-14-2023) Daily Devotional: The Best From Psalm 23: Paths of Righteousness.

He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. - Psalm 23:3

 Recommended Reading: John 10:1-6 - JESUS THE TRUE SHEPHERD
10 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5 Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.

 
This simple sentence contains two astounding facts.

First, the Lord guides us in the right paths, knows how to direct us, and shows us the decisions that are best. Just as a shepherd goes before his flock, so the Lord goes before you. He prepares the future for you, and He leads you into opportunities He has arranged. It’s like the old hymn says: “He leadeth me, He leadeth me; by His own hand He leadeth me: His faithful follower I would be, for by His hand He leadeth me.”

Second, He leads us for the sake of His own glory—for His own Name’s sake. Yes, He wants what is best for us, but He intends to gain glory for Himself in the process. He doesn’t lead us to glorify us—but to glorify Himself!

What does this mean for us in practical terms? It means we should offer our total lives to God, seek His guidance in every decision, and use every opportunity to serve Him—giving Him all the glory.

To believers, the Twenty-third Psalm is to live a life of victory, a life of joy and peace, a life triumphant in prayer, in Bible study, in service. - Robert C. McQuilkin

Joyce Meyer (January-04-2023) Daily Devotional: Righteousness and Peace. 

I love today’s scripture because it teaches us that in order to have God’s mercy, we must face truth, and that peace only comes from understanding righteousness with God. Jesus says that if we continue in His Word, then we will know the truth and it will set us free (see John 8:32). Some people avoid the truth because it is often painful to face. However, it is the only thing that makes us free. Once we face truth, we can ask for and receive God’s mercy.

In order to have peace with God, we must understand what it means to be in right standing with God through faith in Christ. When we know we are made right with God and that He loves and accepts us, we can have and enjoy peace with Him. If we don’t have peace with Him, we cannot enjoy peace with ourselves or with other people.

Jesus, who was perfect and knew no sin, became sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in Christ (see 2 Corinthians 5:21). Receive your right standing with God through faith, and it will be life changing. You need not always feel that something is wrong with you, because God sees you as right through your faith in Jesus. We don’t do everything right, but God’s righteousness has been given to us as a gift, and the more we believe it, the more our actions will be right also.

Prayer of the Day: Father, thank You for mercy, righteousness, and peace. These are wonderful blessings from You, and I appreciate them and want to walk in them fully. Teach me to receive and enjoy the gifts You have given to me.

Cuffed To Climbing // Cuffing Season (Part 16) - Charles Metcalf Sunday Sermon. Culture tells us that life is about climbing. If we don’t think we’re good enough in an area, we tell ourselves we have to work and strive to gain a higher position and improve our status. But kingdom culture teaches the opposite. In part 16 of Cuffing Season, Pastor Charles teaches us how we can recognize climbing in our lives. We learn that we can stop trying to reach the top & receive righteousness where we are. Make sure you share this message with a friend!

Creflo Dollar - Watch Live Sermon: The Gift of Righteousness. Righteousness by Faith

Creflo Dollar - Watch Live Sermon: Understanding the Gift of Righteousness, Understanding the gift by GRACE

John MacArthur (December-15-2022) Daily Devotional: The Lover of Righteousness

"'Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, Thy God, hath anointed Thee with the oil of gladness above Thy companions'" (Heb. 1:8-9).

As the eternal God and King, Christ loves righteousness and hates lawlessness.

In these days it's difficult for us as Christians to be totally supportive of our governmental leaders when we see so much of what God calls righteous compromised or ridiculed. But the King of kings—Christ Himself—is the only leader who has a perfectly right attitude toward righteousness.

Christ rules from an eternal throne, and He rules eternity as God and King. The scepter He holds is symbolic of His rule, particularly as a rule of righteousness.

But there's more to it than that: He just doesn't act righteously; He loves righteousness itself. How often have we obeyed without joy, expressing an attitude of willing condescension? But Jesus gives us a different model.

James 1:17 says, "Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, or shifting shadow." True righteousness never varies from what is true, just, and good. And 1 John 1:5 says, "God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all." God is total light and total righteousness. Everything Jesus did resulted from His love of righteousness.

Because Christ loves righteousness, He hates lawlessness. Since He loves what is right, He must hate what is wrong. The two are inseparable—one cannot exist without the other. You cannot truly love righteousness and also like sin. When there is true love for God, there will also be true love for righteousness and total hatred of sin.

The more you and I become conformed to Jesus Christ, the more we will love righteousness. Our attitudes toward righteousness and sin will ultimately reveal how closely we are conformed to Christ. Check out your attitudes and actions. How are you doing?

Suggestion for Prayer - Like the psalmist, ask God to show you any hurtful way in you (Ps. 139:24).

Confessions - The Gift of Righteousness - Creflo Dollar Daily Message (March-07-2023).

Joyce Meyer (March-25-2021) Daily Devotional: The Exchange of Righteousness

Part of the joy of being a Christian is the ability to exchange all you have for all Jesus has. You can exchange sin for forgiveness, fear for faith, uncertainty for confidence, lack for abundance, anxiety for peace, sadness for joy, despair for hope, failures for a fresh start, weakness for strength, and you can make all kinds of other wonderful exchanges because you belong to God. According to Romans 8:17, believers are “co‑heirs with Christ” of all that God gives to Him (NIV). We can have everything He offers us, under one condition: we need to let go of everything old in order to pick up the new blessings He has for us.

I like to say that Jesus invites us to an exchanged life. On any given day with Him, we can make the exchanges I mentioned earlier, but we don’t get the new until we release the old. One of the great exchanges of the Christian life is exchanging our inability to do everything right for the righteousness of God. Isaiah writes that our old righteousness—or ability to produce right behavior—is like filthy rags or a polluted garment (see Isaiah 64:6), but Jesus’ righteousness is perfect. Because of His sacrifice, 2 Corinthians 5:21 tells us that we can exchange our imperfect righteousness for His perfect righteousness.

Have you ever gone through life with a vague sense that something just isn’t right about you? You may not be able to articulate it, but you feel it. If you’ve been there, I can relate. Because of the abuse that happened during my childhood, I felt for many years that something was wrong with me, but I could never say with certainty what it was. I just knew that for my father to abuse me the way he did, something had to be wrong with me. Imagine how thrilled I was when I learned that Jesus makes everything about me right before God through my faith in Him!

The impression that something is wrong about you is a lie from the enemy. The truth is that because of God’s lovingkindness, He sees you as right with Him. He accepts you just as you are, holds nothing against you, and is always there to help you become what He wants you to be. You no longer have to carry the burdens of guilt, shame, condemnation, or that vague feeling that something just isn’t right about you. This doesn’t mean that every old sense of something being wrong will instantly go away. But as you study and meditate on this truth, and as it becomes more and more established in your heart, you’ll become more and more confident in the fact that your relationship with Jesus has made you completely right with God.

Prayer Starter: Father, please help me let go of any sense of there being something wrong about me, and to receive Your perfect righteousness and forgiveness, even when I feel guilty. Thank You so much for paying such a high price to make me right with You. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Joseph Prince (February-28-2023) Daily Devotional: The Holy Spirit Convicts Believers of Righteousness

“And when He [the Holy Spirit] has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.” John 16:8–11

Are you among the many believers who wonder how to differentiate between the enemy’s condemnation and the Holy Spirit “convicting them of sin”? That is a question that confuses a lot of believers and the answer is really simple.

Now, pay attention to today’s scripture because it will liberate you. The bottom line is that the Holy Spirit never convicts a believer of his sins. He never comes to point out your faults. I challenge you to find a scripture in the Bible that tells you the Holy Spirit has come to convict believers of their sins. You won’t find any!

The body of Christ is living in defeat because many believers don’t understand that the Holy Spirit is actually in them to convict them of their righteousness in Christ. Even when you fail, He is ever present in you to remind you that the blood of Jesus has made you totally forgiven and eternally righteous. That’s the Holy Spirit.

Remember, it is important to always read Bible verses in their context. Many people end up misinterpreting Bible verses because they fail to do this. One way to read Bible verses in their context (and this is a key Bible interpretation principle) is to identify who the verses are talking about. So was Jesus talking about believers or unbelievers in John 16:8–11?

When Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would come to “convict the world of sin” because they do not believe in Him, it is clear that He was referring to unbelievers because they are of “the world.” And notice that the Holy Spirit does not convict the world of “sins” (plural). It is only one “sin” (singular) that the Holy Spirit convicts the world of, and that is the sin of unbelief, the sin of rejecting Jesus and not believing in His finished work.

But when people take John 16:8 out of its proper context, they start to believe erroneously that the Holy Spirit is here to convict believers of their sins. Jesus says that the Holy Spirit convicts you “of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more.”

Clearly, with the use of the second person pronoun “you,” Jesus was referring to His believers to whom He was talking. This tells us that the Holy Spirit was sent to convict believers of righteousness, not sin!

Now, are you made righteous by your works or by faith in Jesus? By now, you should know that you are made righteous by faith, for righteousness is not right doing, but right standing before God because of your right believing!

So when you miss it, the Holy Spirit comes to convict and remind you that you are the righteousness of God because of Jesus Christ. He is present to remind you of the main clause of the new covenant—that God will be merciful to your unrighteousness, and your sins and your lawless deeds, He will remember no more (Heb. 8:12).

Beloved, the Holy Spirit is your Helper (John 14:16). He was sent to live in you to help you, not to nag at you and point out all your faults. Nobody can live with a nag.

The Holy Spirit is not a nag. No, He was sent to help you by convicting you of your everlasting righteousness in Christ. God’s inexhaustible grace in your life and the power of the cross can only be understood by the revelation the Spirit brings.

Right now, you need Him to show you that even if you have just failed, you are still the righteousness of God in Christ. This is why the Holy Spirit is called the “Comforter” (John 14:26 KJV). He is here to comfort you and to point you back to the cross of Jesus every time you fail. The only thing that He will convict you of is your righteousness in Jesus Christ!