Righteousness

Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness. (Eph. 6:14)

What is righteousness?  Nelsen’s Bible Dictionary says righteousness is “holy and upright living, in accordance with God’s standard. It refers to a state that conforms to an authoritative standard. Righteousness is a moral concept. God’s character is the definition and source of all righteousness. Therefore, the righteousness of human beings is defined in terms of God’s.”

We have a choice to make.  We can choose to be self-righteous, or we can accept the righteousness given to us by God when we accepted Christ.  To be self-righteous is to be confident in our own morals or virtues.  Romans 3:10 tells us, “There is none righteous, no, not one.”  And verse 23 says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”  It looks like self-righteousness is a dead end, literally!

This leaves us with righteousness from God.  But, how do we get this?  “More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith.” (Phil. 3:8-9)

By having faith in Christ we are covered in His righteousness.  When we accept Christ, God covers us in Christ’s righteousness.  In 2 Corinthians 5:21, Paul put it this way: “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” 

Why is righteousness important?  When Paul wanted to give an example to the people of his time as to why “holy and upright living, in accordance with God’s standard” was important, he used the breastplate of a Roman soldier.  The breastplate was important to the soldier because it protected his heart and vital organs, his core, when in combat.  Righteousness protects our heart, our core, from the attacks of Satan.

We can see that self-righteousness; that confidence in ourselves, our principles, or our deeds, would be like wearing paper armor.  It just isn’t going to provide any sort of protection and we will succumb to the attacks brought against us.

Wearing our righteousness protects and strengthens us.  We do not need to fear what man or the devil can do to us.  This gives us the assurance we need to step out boldly and do the work God has called us to do.