I need to be baptized by You... (Мatt.3:14,15)
And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” ButJesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill allrighteousness.” Then he allowed Him.(Мatt.3:14,15) Righteousness. What is righteousness, and how does one “fulfil all righteousness”
. A person's concept ofrighteousness is so relative that it turns out that there are as many forms of righteousness as there are people.Each person has theirown idea ofit and lives by their own principles, calling it righteousness. But a principle isa belief, a person's own outlook on things, own outlook on life, it is their worldview and, therefore, this is theirown righteousness. But is this the righteousness that founded the world? On what righteousness does everythingstand and by what righteousness is it preserved? There is a standard by which the righteousness of each personis judged-this is the righteousness of God. And whose righteousness can withstand its judgment and beacquitted?Usually, an honest person is honest based on his own righteousness. He always chooses righteousness andacts according to it, but only according to the righteousness that he accepts. This is his personal righteousness,this is his understanding of righteousness. But if one is honest, then one can ask oneself: is it truerighteousness? If a person does not reflect on this and does not seek the righteousness of God, one will onlyfind out about it on the day of judgment, when the righteousness of everyone will be assessed. Only one who istoo confident in one’s own righteousness does not look for the righteousness of God. Having a literalknowledge of God's commandments does not even mean that a person knows the righteousness of the Kingdomof God. The literal knowledge of the law crucified the Fulfiller of the law, Jesus Christ, because it did not knowthe righteousness of God. Therefore, it is necessary to seek knowledge of the righteousness of God, whiledenying one’sown understanding:But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all thesethings shall be added to you. (Matt.6:33), that is, only the Kingdom of God abides in righteousness, stands onrighteousness, and all the works in the Kingdom of Godare righteous. For a person, one’s own righteousness isof extremely high value, therefore it is necessary to reassess the values in one’s own soul, as Jesus, the son ofSirach, said:I stretched forth my hands to the heaven above, and bewailed my ignorances of her. I directed mysoul unto her (wisdom), and I found her in pureness: I have had my heart joined with her from the beginning,therefore shall I not be foresaken. (Sir.51:19-20).Knowing the righteousness of the Kingdom of God is gainingwisdom. Ourrighteousness is of the soul, not spiritual. Righteousness of the soul is egotistic in nature. Even thefact that a person defends one’s own righteousness is a manifestation of egoism and self-confidence. A personmust make the decision to come out of thestate of self-confidence in order to start looking for the righteousnessof God and live according to the principles of the Kingdom of God, that is, he must fulfil all righteousness.Stubbornness is inherent in self-confidence, but in the righteousness ofGod there is firmness.Stubbornness is foolish because it is blind, but the firmness of God's righteousness can see, therefore it is wise.In the righteousness of God there is unconditional love, but in human righteousness there is self-love, that iswhythe righteousness of God does not offend or take offense, but the human righteousness both offends, andfrequently takes offence. The righteousness of God is sacrificial, just as it appeared to us in the Sacrifice ofJesus, but human righteousness demandssacrifices from others. A person who lives in the righteousness of Godfulfils it oneself, but a person who lives by one’s own righteousness demands others to fulfil it, that is whyJesus came in order to fulfil all righteousness:“Do not think that I cameto destroy the Law or the Prophets. Idid not come to destroy but to fulfill.” (Matt.5:17). ThePharisees, teaching others, did not live like this, theydid not fulfil the righteousness of God themselves, but strenuously demanded its fulfilment from the people:“Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; forthey say, and do not do.” (Matt.23:3). The Pharisees, knowing the commandments as the letter of the Law,pretended to be those who had knowledge of righteousness, but at the same time they did not know therighteousness of the Kingdom of God, and therefore did not fulfil it. The law is spiritual, not carnal, and therighteousness of God is not in the letter, but in His Spirit. Therefore, theone who lives by the righteousness ofGod seeks justification for others, or seeks mercy towards others, and the one who lives by one’s ownrighteousness, condemns and blames. Human righteousness, like the law of God without the Spirit, onlyaccuses and condemns, but the one who knows the law of love denounces the sin and pardons the man.Judgment and retribution are the rights of the True Judge, Father God.
All one’s life one can search for righteousness in order to justify oneself, and it will be revealed that onewas looking for one’s own righteousness, and not the righteousness of the Kingdom of God. A person’s ownrighteousness will never be satisfied in God. Only those who seek the righteousness of the Kingdom of God,and not their own, will be filledand satisfied with it:Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,for they shall be filled. (Matt.5:6), it does not say, "Seek your own righteousness," but the righteousness of theKingdom of God. It is not those who seek and prove their own righteousness that are blessed, but those whoseek the righteousness of the Kingdom of God.And yet, what is righteousness? What is its definition? How can one do it or fulfil it?Righteousnessmanifests itself in deeds, and truth manifests in words.God speaks the truth, and righteousness is fulfilled. Andonly those who know the truth do righteousness. Jesus came as truth; truth came down from Heaven in order toperfect and fulfil all the righteousness of God.Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and Yourlaw is truth. (Ps.119:142), this is David’s explanation, dividing the concepts of righteousness and truth:everlasting righteousness is God's works, they are eternal, and His truth is in His law, on which Hisrighteousness rests. The fulfilment of His law is righteousness, that is, the fulfilment of the truth is therighteousness of God:Your demands are just and right. (Ps.119:138-The Living Bible Translation).Keeping the commandments of God is righteousness and perfect truth. But thefulfilment of the law takesplace in the spirit of love. If there is no unconditional love, there is no fulfilment of the commandments. It is inlove that a person receives the revelation of the commandments, and not so much with the mind as with thespirit, since the law of love is spiritual. Paul says that spiritual knowledge of the law freed him from anotherlaw-the law of sin and death:For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law ofsin and death. (Rom.8:2).This knowledge of the truth makes a person free from the law of sin and death, fromthe law based on pride and selfishness:And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.(Jn.8:32).A person who is free from the law of sin and death becomes afulfiller of the righteousness of God,because that one knows love and mercy:Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace havekissed. Truth shall spring out of the earth, and righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yes, the Lord willgive what is good; and our land will yield its increase. Righteousness will go before Him, and shall make Hisfootsteps our pathway. (Ps.85:10-13).Here David is prophesying about Jesus, as the truth, that came in Jesus,born of the earth, that is, about theSon of Man, in whom the righteousness from Heaven will descend to earth,and will be fulfilled, therefore Jesus said that the Kingdom of God is within us. Those who accept Jesus acceptHis righteousness:Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist. (Is.11:5).Isaiah’s prophecy about Jesus says that He will do deeds of righteousness and walk in truth:For He put onrighteousness as a breastplate...(Is.59:17).The righteous life, or life in the perfect righteousness ofGod, wasJesus' garment. This is a breastplate that is not pierced by the forces of the enemy of all God's righteousness,that is, the devil. Therefore the New Testament says to put on the breastplate of righteousness, that is, to put onthe works of God'srighteousness, to do all God's righteousness, and not one’s own. Our sanctification is in theknowledge of the truth, through which the righteousness of the Kingdom of God is known:Sanctify them byYour truth. Your word is truth. (Jn.17:17). Not the letter of the law, but the Spirit of the law is the truth.However, one must not only learn the truth and righteousness of the Kingdom of God, but live according to itsrighteousness. Righteousness must be performed in all matters, in all decisions made, in all actions. We mustdress in righteousness, it must envelop us like a garment. And it does not say that God will clothe us inrighteousness, no, it is we who must put on the breastplate of righteousness. It is our deeds of righteousness thatclothe us. In order not to be naked when we are clothed, we must dress in the righteousness of Christ, that is, doHis works in His righteousness. If we dress with our own righteousness, then at the moment when we part withour earthly body, we will find ourselves naked,unclothed, because only the deeds of the righteousness of theKingdom of God cover us, but the deeds of darkness, being burnt in the fire of God's righteousness andholiness, will bare the inner man: ...if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be foundnaked.For we whoare in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortalitymay be swallowed up by life. (2Cor.5:3,4).Jesus is Truth and Grace, like Word and Love, which is Light. The righteousness of God is a judgment;therefore, everyone will be judged according to their deeds, according to their life in righteousness. Jesusbrought the truth and through Himself fulfilled righteousness. He did not come as judgment, as righteousness,but accomplishedevery righteousness of God. If He had come as righteousness, then judgment would have come to Earth. However, He said:I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should notabide in darkness.And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come tojudge the world but to save the world.He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that whichjudges him-the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. (Jn.12:46-48).From these words we seethat those who do not accept the truth will not be able to do the works of righteousness. Truth, like light, revealsthose who do not do the righteousness of God, and subjects them to judgment:And this is the condemnation,that thelight has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done inGod.” (Jn.3:19-21).Therefore, a person who does not choose truth and life in righteousness for oneself choosesjudgment.However, righteousness without love is only a partial righteousness, it can look harsh, therefore even theletter that is truth must be filled with love, otherwise it kills. The Spirit of God is love, this is righteousness,therefore He gives life. To choose life according to the righteousness of God is to choose lifeitself. Everythingthat is not in love, outside the Spirit of God, is not the righteousness of the Kingdom of God:Mercy and truthhave met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed.(Ps.85:10). Mercy and truth are cognised throughlove. A person who does not have unconditional love does not know mercy. One can know the truth, but onecannot know mercy if one does not know love. And this knowledge will only be partial righteousness, sincerighteousness is in love and mercy. In this case, the righteousness in the mouth of such a person will be amurder weapon. This will not be the fullness of the righteousness, but a part of the righteousness of God.Some use the form of righteousness to cover themselves. But the form of righteousness is not therighteousness of the Kingdom of God, just as the physical form of the Son of Man is not the image of theeternal God. God was in Him with His Spirit. It is not the body of Jesus that is God, but the Spirit who lives inHim. The righteousness of God is in the law ofeternal life. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil is notthe righteousness of the Kingdom of God, but the tree of life. The righteousness of the Kingdom of God is all-encompassing, just like His love, therefore it must be constantly cognized and isimpossible to completely knowuntil the end of one’s days, that is why Jesus said: “seek” the righteousness of the Kingdom of God, that is,constantly turn to the Lord in search of knowledge of it. Just as the walker constantly monitors his steps andwatches the road he steps on and where he turns into, so the one walking after the Lord constantly watchesone’s own paths:Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father exceptthrough Me.”(Jn.14:6). Since life is the righteousness of the Kingdom of God, it could be understood thatJesus said about Himself in this verse that He is the way, the truth and the righteousness, and no one can cometo the Father through a different way of life. Since the tree of life is the tree of righteousness of the Kingdom ofGod, those who eat of it will live forever:“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to thechurches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise ofGod.” (Rev.2:7). It is not about the one who overcame, but about the one who overcomes, that is, while stillliving in the flesh one can eat the fruits of righteousness from the tree of life. In this case, a person is filled withrighteousness and life, just like those who eat the fruits of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil are filledwith the deceit and deception of the devil and consequently carry death in themselves. Jesus said:“...it is fittingfor us to fulfill all righteousness.”(Мatt.3:15), and He fulfilled it. Does everyone who ought to fulfil therighteousness of God, actually fulfil it? You need to think about whether you are looking for it at all, or do youlive in your own righteousness, convinced of your own righteousness?
Righteousness without love says that man is a sinner.Righteousness in God’s love says: but he is forgiven.Righteousness without love says: all are condemned because they have sinned and are deprived of God’sglory.Righteousness in love says: justified by the Blood of Christ.Righteousness without love says that no flesh will be saved.Righteousness in love says what is impossible for people, is possible for the Lord.Righteousness without love says that whoever breaks one commandment of God, breaks the whole lawand is a breaker of the law.Righteousness in love says that whoever has the love of God fulfils the law.
Righteousness without love-condemnation and death.Righteousness in love-justification and life.Righteousness in the mouth of the devil is deadly.Righteousness in the mouth of God gives life.Everything that is said without love is only a part of righteousness.That which is said in love, is the fullness of righteousness.The letter of the law is righteousness without love, but the Spirit of the law is love.That is why the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.The letter came first in order to condemn and convict sin.But the letter wasn’t with God first, the Spirit was.The righteousness of God’s love is that the One Who condemned sin, also freed and justified the personwho hated sin.The same One Who gave the law, also gave mercy that transcends the law.God’s righteousness is in His love!For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should notperish but have everlasting life. (Jn.3:16).
Pastor Taysa Kotov
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