The Call to Righteousness

Readings for today: Philippians 1-2, Psalms 11

Our world is a mess. On this point just about everyone agrees. Our world is full of pain and suffering. Violence and oppression. Abuse and anger. Hatred and deceit. It’s hard to hold onto hope. It’s hard to see any way out. It seems like the harder we work, the worse things get. The more we strive, the less we achieve. Every action results in an equal and opposite reaction with diminishing returns. Each generation is convinced they have the answer only to watch their plans turn to dust just like the plans of those who came before them. What’s the problem? Why is it so hard to make progress? Why do we find Eden so elusive?

There are many answers out there, of course. Many people who claim to know the truth. But humanity has consistently failed to complete this project. Their strength gives out. Their wisdom is not up to the task. No matter how many technological advances we make or how hard we try to socially engineer our environment or how often we attempt to correct Mother Nature; we ultimately fall short. Our best laid plans go to waste. Our condition worsened by unforeseen and unintended consequences. This is as true in the church as it is in the world today.

We do not know the pathway to peace. We do not know the road to righteousness. We do not know the way to salvation. We are lost. Blind wanderers in a world that is not our home. Only God can direct us. Only God can set our feet on the narrow way that leads to a life of blessing and honor and shalom. So we must go to Him. We must seek Him. We must pursue God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. And once we find Him - and the great news of the gospel is He delights in being found! - we will find what our hearts so long for. We will find righteousness, justice, stability, peace for these are the gifts that come from being in His presence.

The call to seek God is not a call to inactivity. It is not a call to complacency. It is not a call to passivity. It is a call to action. Righteous action. The kind of action that can only come as we stay in step with the Holy Spirit and walk with Jesus through all of life. Listen to how the Apostle Paul describes it, “For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain…Therefore, as citizens of heaven, live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ.” (Philippians‬ ‭1‬:‭21‬, ‭27‬ ‭CSB‬‬) Clearly Paul is calling for righteous action. He is calling for those who have been made new through the gospel of Jesus Christ to strive for the faith of the gospel and live in a manner worthy of the gospel so that the world will stand up and take notice.

It’s a stirring vision. Can you imagine a world where the church is known for righteousness? A righteousness born not of rules or regulations or winning the culture war but of love and peace and joy and grace? Can you imagine what might happen if the church laid aside her pursuit of political power or social platform? Can you imagine what would happen if the church would lay aside her addiction to personal wealth and cultural privilege? Can you imagine what would happen if the church would engage in a life of humble service, mutual submission, and radical sacrifice for the sake of others? Would it not change things? Thankfully, you can see this happening all over the world today. So many churches in so many places bearing witness to the power of the gospel. And each day presents an opportunity for us to link arms with them as well. Will we make mistakes? Of course. Will we fail and fall? Absolutely. Will we say the wrong thing or do the wrong thing at times? Sure. But thankfully our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. And like the Apostle Paul, I am confident “that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:6 CSB)

Readings for tomorrow: Philippians 3-4, Psalms 12 (No devotionals on Sunday)

The One Job of a Leader

Readings for today: 1 Chronicles 18-21, Psalms 68

Leaders have one job. To lead with righteousness and justice. This is especially true the higher up in leadership one ascends. It’s true in every facet of life. Parents are to lead their families with righteousness and justice. Pastors and elders are to lead their churches with righteousness and justice. Business leaders are to lead their employees and organizations with righteousness and justice. Civic and political leaders are to lead with righteousness and justice. Why? Because righteousness and justice are the foundation of God’s throne. (Psalms 97:2) When we lead or rule or exercise whatever authority we’ve been given with righteousness and justice, the people and organizations we serve are blessed because we are patterning our leadership after God. When we lead or rule or exercise whatever authority we’ve been given with pride and selfishness and greed, the people and organizations we serve suffer and are cursed as a result. We see this on display in David’s life in our passage today.

David begins well. He is given victory after victory by God. He triumphs over his enemies. Whoever raises an army against him is defeated. As a result, David consolidates his power. He solidifies his reign over the Promised Land. The people of Israel become a nation under his banner and leadership and are blessed. Why? 1 Chronicles 18:14 CSB gives us the answer. “So David reigned over all Israel, administering justice and righteousness for all his people.” However, David’s reign of blessing soon comes to an end as he falls prey to pride. He calls for a census. He wants to count the soldiers serving in his army. He wants to quantify his military might. He wants to demonstrate his power to the nations around him. Let’s pause and reflect a moment. God has given David all kinds of victories over armies that vastly outnumbered his own. He has given David victory over giants and mighty warriors. He has expanded David’s territory and delivered entire nations into his hands. It’s still not enough. David has begun to believe his own hype. He’s reading his press clippings. He’s starting to believe he has accomplished these things by his own strength and military genius. These are unrighteous and unjust goals and it triggers a plague that kills seventy thousand of his men.

We are no different. Think about the impact of righteous and unrighteous political leaders in our nation. Think about righteous and unrighteous civic leaders in our communities. Think about the impact of righteous and unrighteous parents in the home or teachers in the schools or pastors in churches. Now think about yourself. Where do you lead righteously in your life? Where do you lead unrighteously? What would those under your leadership say? How do they experience you? Do you seek to be a blessing to others or are you seeking to serve yourself?

Readings for tomorrow: 1 Chronicles 22-24, Psalms 69 (No devotionals on Sundays)

The Impact of Righteousness

Readings for today: Proverbs 28-31, Psalms 7

Righteousness is one of the most important qualities a person can develop in their life. The more righteous a person, the more the people around them are blessed. The greater the influence or authority or power a righteous person is entrusted with, the greater the impact they can make on the world. This is why God encourages the pursuit of righteousness above anything else. Jesus Himself, the truly Righteous One, says in the Gospel of Matthew 6:33, “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all the rest will be added unto you.” In other words, make the righteousness of God your aim in life and everything else you may be tempted to pursue - like wealth, reputation, influence, position, etc. - will follow. Not because you have earned it but because God has given it to you. He knows you can be trusted with it.

I often talk about this with the church I am privileged to serve. We have made it our goal to seek the Kingdom of God and God’s righteousness first as a community. We give generously and sacrificially to God’s mission both locally and around the world. We serve one another faithfully and well. We love each other unconditionally and we welcome the broken and hurting and suffering so they can find healing and restoration. We do all we can to minister at the intersection of the least reached and least resourced because we believe this is where God calls us to go. Do we do it perfectly? Of course not. We make all sorts of mistakes along the way but this is our general trajectory for which I am thankful. As we have pursued God’s vision for our life together, He continues to entrust with more and more souls, more and more resources, more and more responsibility, and more and more ministry opportunity. It’s deeply humbling and an example of what happens when God’s people seek to live righteously before the Lord.

Our reading today contains all kinds of promises for those who pursue righteousness. Imagine what would happen if more and more Christians would pursue righteousness? Imagine how our lives might change? How our communities might change? How our nation might change? How our world might change? The ripple of effect of the righteousness of God mediated through His people simply cannot be measured. Listen again to how the author of Proverbs describes it…

“When the righteous triumph, there is great rejoicing, but when the wicked come to power, people hide.”

“When the wicked come to power, people hide, but when they are destroyed, the righteous flourish.”

“When the righteous flourish, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, people groan.”

“The righteous person knows the rights of the poor, but the wicked one does not understand these concerns.”

“When the wicked increase, rebellion increases, but the righteous will see their downfall.”

“An unjust person is detestable to the righteous, and one whose way is upright is detestable to the wicked.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭28:12, 28, 29‬:‭2‬, ‭7‬, ‭16‬, ‭27‬ ‭CSB‬‬

Think about all that’s wrong in the world today. Think about everything you read in the headlines or as you scroll through your social media feeds or hear on cable news. Think about the leaders we elect or appoint or follow. Think about the institutions we support. The cultural trends we help perpetuate. Think about the relationships in your life. Now ask yourself this simple question…are they righteous? If not, what can you do today to begin moving the needle?

Readings for tomorrow: Ecclesiastes 1-4, Psalms 8

Hope for our Community, City, Nation, and World

Readings for today: Proverbs 10-12, Psalms 1

Jesus calls His disciples the “salt” and “light” of the world. His desire is for His followers to live righteously so we might provide hope for those around us. It could be in our homes. It could be in our cities. It could be in our nation. It could be around the world. We are called “light” because God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. As such we live lives of integrity and purity and holiness and self-discipline and joy and peace. These things are the fruit of the Spirit’s presence and can only come from Him. Human beings, at their best, can only produce these things partially and temporarily, never fully and completely and permanently. We are called “salt” because through us God brings His righteousness and provision and protection to the world. As we “dissolve” into our communities, righteousness begins to work its way like leaven through a whole lump of dough. Evil is restrained. Sin is held in check. The Kingdom of God begins to advance. Lives are transformed. Hell is emptied. Heaven is filled. This is what God desires for His world and He works His great plan through His chosen people.

Jesus didn’t come up with this on His own. (Well, maybe He did since He is God!) He is essentially rephrasing what King Solomon once wrote in the Book of Proverbs. “When the righteous thrive, a city rejoices; when the wicked die, there is joyful shouting. A city is built up by the blessing of the upright, but it is torn down by the mouth of the wicked.” (Proverbs‬ ‭11‬:‭10‬-‭11‬ ‭CSB‬‬) Solomon could see the impact of righteousness on a nation. When he ruled with righteousness and made decisions according to God’s wisdom, Jerusalem rejoiced. All of Israel celebrated. Every family and every home was filled with joy. Even the pagan nations around him recognized the blessing of God. When Solomon began to follow his own heart and wisdom and when he sought to rule out of his own strength, the city began to fail. The nation began to suffer. Every family and every home struggled under the oppressive weight of his rule and reign. Enemies began to rise up all around him. After he dies, the nation is literally torn in two.

There’s nothing new under the sun. Human society has always functioned best when it seeks to run on the fuel of God’s righteousness. Human society has always suffered when it seeks to live off its own righteousness. We simply cannot produce what we need to thrive. In fact, we can barely produce what we need to survive. This is why it’s critical for God’s people to trust in the Lord with all their hearts and lean not on their own understanding. We must seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness if we are to fulfill our calling to be salt and light in the world. If we want to see revival come to our homes, our cities, our nation, and the world; we must pursue righteousness in our own hearts.

Readings for tomorrow: Proverbs 13-15, Psalms 2

Expectations

Readings for today: Job 29-32

Charles Spurgeon once wrote, “If any man thinks ill of you, do not be angry with him, for you are worse than he thinks you to be.” I remember running across this quote when life was at its darkest and I was struggling to understand what had happened. The people I worked for lacked integrity. They treated me poorly. They were purposefully deceitful and evasive and lacked transparency. Furthermore, one of them made it his mission in life to not only undermine the work I was doing but took every chance he could to speak ill of me. Accuse me. Spread false rumors about me. It was brutal. And then I read these words from Spurgeon and I realized that as badly as I was being treated, I deserved far worse. All of the things I was being accused of WERE actually happening in my heart. I was angry. I was frustrated. I was prideful and arrogant. I harbored resentment and bitterness. I refused to forgive and extend grace. When it hit me that I was all these things and more, I almost laughed out loud. It dawned on me that all my pent up emotions and feelings were just a cover for my own insecurity and fear. And once I confessed those insecurities and fears to God, I was set free. Free from the need to justify myself. Free from the need to be right. Free from the need to see justice done. Free from the need to please them and gain their approval. It was a life-changing experience for me. 

Job’s friends are an easy target in this book. Their theological purity brings little comfort to their suffering friend. Furthemore, their beliefs are far too simplistic for we all know the righteous are not always rewarded nor are the wicked always punished. Therefore, their attacks on Job are without warrant. Having said that...here’s a mind-bender for you...Job actually believes the same way they do! Listen to what he says, “All my dealings with people were good. I was known for being fair to everyone I met. I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame, Father to the needy, and champion of abused aliens. I grabbed street thieves by the scruff of the neck and made them give back what they’d stolen.” (Job‬ ‭29:14-17‬ MSG) The reality is Job believes his cause is 100% just. He believes he’s done nothing to deserve his fate. Because he is a righteous man, he cannot imagine why God would allow these things to happen to him. “Thrown facedown in the muck, I’m a muddy mess, inside and out. I shout for help, God, and get nothing, no answer! I stand to face you in protest, and you give me a blank stare! You’ve turned into my tormenter— you slap me around, knock me about. You raised me up so I was riding high and then dropped me, and I crashed. I know you’re determined to kill me, to put me six feet under.” (Job‬ ‭30:19-23 MSG‬) Essentially Job is making the same argument his friends have made throughout the book. Why does God not reward the righteous (in this case, Job himself) and punish the wicked? Job clearly believes He should. Clearly is angry with God that He doesn’t. Job has held fast to his integrity. He has not committed any sin worthy of his suffering. He even goes as far as recounting all his righteous deeds in chapter 31, making his closing argument before God. 

As readers, I am sure we all find ourselves in agreement. We take Job’s side. We’re convinced. But then...if we’re careful to listen...we hear the soft whisper of Satan’s initial question. “Does Job fear God for no reason?” The honest truth is Job does expect something from God. He expects an answer. He expects a justifiable reason for his suffering. His expectations have not been met. Job believes he’s kept his end of the deal so it must be God who has failed. (A notion God Himself will correct in just a few chapters...)

So let me put the question to all of us...do we fear God for no reason? Asked another way, why do we love God? Is it for the eschatological goodies? A guaranteed pass to heaven? Health? Wealth? Blessings in this life and the next? Or is God enough? Do we love God simply because He’s God? If there were no eternal rewards. If there were no promises. If God never gave us a single thing, would He be worthy of our love and devotion? 

Readings for tomorrow: Job 33-36

God’s War with Sin

Readings for today: Jeremiah 51-52, Hebrews 6:13-7:10

Exile from the Garden. Death in the Great Flood. Confusion at the Tower of Babel. Plagues in Egypt. Conquest of Canaan. What do all these biblical events have in common? God’s perpetual war against evil. God has made it clear from the beginning of time that He will not allow humanity to persist in sin. Just as He did not allow Adam and Eve to stretch out their hand and eat of the Tree of Life in the Garden after their sin, so He will not allow us to go on living in idolatry. God hates sin. He hates the idolatry of our hearts. He hates unrighteousness. He hates evil. 

Now I want to be very clear here. Just because God hates sin DOES NOT mean He hates sinners. Just because God hates idolatry DOES NOT mean He hates those who make the idols. God loves the world. God loves His creation. God loves those made in His image. And because His love is fierce and loyal and steadfast and true, He hates what sin does to us. He hates how it corrupts us. He hates how it breaks us. He hates how dehumanizes us. He hates how it consumes us and enslaves us. In this way, God’s “hatred” is strangely comforting. It is strangely comforting to know God hates my sin so much He would die on a cross for me. It is strangely comforting to know God hates my sin so much He would send His Spirit to indwell me and sanctify me. It is strangely comforting to know God hates my sin so much He gives me the opportunity to repent and return to Him an almost infinite number of times. And what is true for me is also true for entire communities. Cities. Nations.  

As we finish the book of Jeremiah, we see God leveling His judgment on the nations. God sets out to destroy the Ammonites. To punish them for their sin. The discipline of God is harsh and brutal and terrifying. But the section ends with a strange promise. God will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites. God sets out to destroy Elam. To punish them for their sin. The discipline of God is harsh and brutal and terrifying. But again, there is this strange promise. God will restore the fortunes of Elam.  

God set out to destroy His own people. The nation of Israel in both its northern and southern kingdoms. “Israel is a hunted sheep driven away by lions. First the king of Assyria devoured him, and now at last Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has gnawed his bones.” (Jeremiah‬ ‭50:17‬) He punished them for their sin. The discipline of God was harsh and brutal and terrifying. But now the tables turn. The very instruments God used to bring about His discipline now come under His judgment. Where is the might of Assyria? What happened to her? Her meteoric rise in human history was matched by her sudden fall. The same is true for Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar was the mightiest ruler of his time but his empire would not last. Why? Jeremiah is clear. “I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea before your very eyes for all the evil that they have done in Zion, declares the Lord.” (Jeremiah‬ ‭51:24‬) You see, Nebuchadnezzar didn’t just go to war with Israel, he went to war with God Himself.

Psalm 2:1-6 says, “Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his Anointed, saying, "Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us." He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, "As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill." No one can resist God’s power. No one can match His might. It is God who holds the fate of the nations in His hands. God who directs their paths. It is God who sets their courses. God who causes them to rise and fall according to His will and His plan. No one escapes God’s judgment. No one can hide from His sight. No one can run from His presence. God is on the march! He will not rest until the whole earth is cleansed. He will not relent until the whole earth repents and turns to Him. He will not let up until sin and evil is utterly defeated and destroyed. 

Friends, what was true for the Ammonites, Edomites, and Elamites or for great city-states like Damascus or tribal nations like Kedar and Hazar or for world empires like Babylon will also be true for us. God still sits enthroned on high. God still reigns over every square inch of the earth. God still rules the nations of the earth. He is at work even now bringing about His justice and righteousness. He is at work even now bringing an end to systems of injustice, oppression, and exploitation. He is fighting to reform political, economic, and social structures so they better represent His sovereign will and plan. He is fighting for every human heart to put an end to fear. An end to rage. An end to hate. Of course we fight Him for every square inch of territory. We rebel. We resist. We hurt. We wound. We even kill. We refuse to bend the knee. And God only increases the pressure. His hand grows even more heavy upon us. He will not relent until He has it all. Every heart. Every home. Every church. Every business. Every political system. Every governing structure. He will never stop until our nation finally bends her knee to Him.

So how should we respond? Humility. Confession. Repentance. Joy. For this same God of judgment has promised to show us mercy and make all things new if we will but submit to Him. He has promised one day to wipe away all our tears. Eliminate all pain and suffering. Gather His children to Himself in glory to live forever safe and secure in His loving arms. Turn to God, friends. Suffer under His discipline no longer. Pray for our nation to turn to God! Pray for God’s Spirit to cleanse us and sanctify us and give us a heart that beats for Jesus alone.

Readings for tomorrow: None