In this episode of Hope for Today, we delve deep into the profound concept of the righteousness of God. Join David Hawking as he unpacks the misconceptions around Christian righteousness, clarifying that it is not about self-effort but rather understanding who we are in Christ. Discover why no charge or condemnation stands against those whom God has declared righteous and how this transformative truth liberates believers from self-righteous struggles.
Is there anyone around who can condemn us? Oh, they’re everywhere. Hey, listen, no one can condemn us. No one can bring a charge against God’s elect. You see, we haven’t been giving the correct message to the world. We’ve been making them think that Christianity teaches like the rest of the cults and isms that somehow you’re made righteous by what you do. So if we don’t measure up, then they got a case. They have no case, God says. No charge. No condemnation. Why? Because Christianity is not a bunch of people trying to live by a certain standard or a code. Christianity is Jesus Christ our Lord. You’re either in Him or not in Him. One or the other. You’re either righteous or you’re not. There isn’t any middle ground or any ladder. You’re either His or you’re not His. One or the other.
SPEAKER 02 :
This is Hope for Today. It’s great to have you with us as we continue our series on the attributes of God. Perhaps lately you’ve had a head full of noise and a heart that’s just tired. You look around and you see a world where filth gets celebrated, liars get platformed, and people who still believe that right is right are treated like the problem. And somewhere in all of that, you start to wonder if anything is still clean, straight, or true. Well, you know something? There is something that’s clean, straight, and true, and that’s the Almighty God. He is righteous, He’s never crooked, He’s never dirty, and He’s never off by one inch. Well, today as Bible teacher David Hawking continues his series on the attributes of God, he’s going to wrap up a message called The Righteousness of God. Stay with us. This may be exactly the reminder that your soul needs. First, though, if you’ve ever wondered whether the God of the Bible could truly love you or someone you care about, we want to point you to a free download available right now on our website, davidhawking.org. This resource is called, Does God Truly Love Me? And it’ll help you understand from the word of God, that same God we’re studying in this current radio series, the God who is holy, righteous, sovereign, and true, is also the God who loves and loves you. This is a free resource available in multiple languages. So go to the homepage again at DavidHawking.org. That’s David H-O-C-K-I-N-G. Right there on the homepage, click on Does God Truly Love Me? Select your language, download it, read it, share it with someone you know who needs to know that God’s love is not a sentiment. It’s not a slogan, not a guess. It is a truth revealed in his word. Again, visit davidhawking.org and download Does God Truly Love Me? Nothing to sign up for. Click download. You got it. When I open your Bible to Romans chapter 3, David’s going to turn there in just a moment or so. And here he is now with day three of The Righteousness of God.
SPEAKER 03 :
God is not unjust to forget what you have done. Every cup of cold water given in his name will receive a reward. You’re not fooling anybody. God also knows whether you’re just doing a snow job, too. God knows whether you ever did anything or not. But God is not unjust, and it encourages us, when we think of the righteousness of God, to know He’ll never forget what you have done, though everybody else does. Go back to Romans 3 again. The righteousness of God is very important because it eliminates any need for self-righteousness. And I want to tell you, I like to say when I come to this point… Did you get that? I don’t know how that translated. It eliminates any need for self-righteousness. And I like to say, praise God. Do you ever get tired trying to be righteous? I mean, that can wear you out. Trying to do what you’re supposed to do. Listen, folks. None of your righteousness is going to help one bit. Chapter 3 of Romans says in verse 27, where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. I was in a store, and the lady in the store asked me, she says, what do you do? And I said, well, I said, I preach. She said, what’s that? I said, I talk. Lots of people talk. What do you talk about? I said, I talk about God and the Bible. Oh, she said, I think that’s so wonderful. You know, I can understand why God must be pleased with you because you do that. I said, well, he’s actually not pleased with me on that basis. Why? What have you done? It’s interesting. I said, well, you see, the day I became a Christian, I trusted Jesus Christ. I’m perfect now. I’m perfect. It was just funny. You know, I finally gave up because it was obvious she wasn’t following it. But isn’t it interesting how people think, well, you’re such a nice person. Did you do that? You took food to the needy? Oh, that’s wonderful. You gave blankets to the homeless? That’s wonderful. Am I criticizing that? You got me all wrong, if that’s what you think. Man, I believe the most active people in this world for those kind of issues ought to be Bible-believing Christians. But on the other hand, were you doing that to get some sort of acceptability? Is that what you thought? Do you think you’d be better off? Did you think you’d be more righteous? Oh, no. No, not at all. You see, the gospel eliminates all that. Turn to chapter 10 of Romans, and let me show you why. In chapter 10 of Romans, it says in the opening four verses, these words, “‘Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved.'” For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For they, being ignorant of God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. He’s the end. You can’t go any further. That’s it. He’s taken care of it. Look at Titus, please, in the New Testament, a little further to the right. Titus chapter 3, verses 5 to 7. The Bible’s very clear that when the righteousness of God is understood and applied in your life, it eliminates any need for self-righteousness. You don’t need to do that anymore. You’re wasting your time. Besides, it’s frustrating. Just don’t do that anymore. You’re not achieving anything. You think you’re impressing others? You’re not impressing God. He’s already declared you to be righteous. You’re already blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies. I read in Titus 3, verse 4, “…when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified or declared righteous by His grace.” we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Paul wrote in Romans that if grace is works, it isn’t grace. Not by works that we have done, it says, but justified, declared righteous by His grace, God giving us something we don’t deserve. And that is a wonderful, wonderful passage to remind us that when you know the righteousness of God, it eliminates any need for self-righteousness. Praise God. It’s tiring. It wears you out. It doesn’t achieve what you think. Relax. Relax in the wonderful love of the Lord. Relax from the fact that you are already as righteous as you ever will be if you have put your faith in Jesus Christ and Him alone. If you put your faith in yourself and what you do, I can understand why you’re a little weary and maybe a little fearful that you can’t hang on. Number five, turn to 1 John chapter 2. Why is the righteousness of God so important? Well, it not only establishes the validity of all God has said and explains His justice in judging us, it encourages us to know that He will never forget what we’ve done, and it eliminates any need for self-righteousness. But folks, here’s the interesting thing. It also enables us to practice righteousness in our own personal lives. You say, wait a minute, I thought we couldn’t be any more righteous. That’s true. But did you know that you can practice righteousness in your life? You can do something right. And because we are righteous before God, it enables us, through the power of the Holy Spirit and His Word, to actually practice it. 1 John 2.29, are you there? It says, if you know that he is righteous, and he certainly is, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of him. Chapter 3, verse 7, little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as he is. This declared position actually enables me to do something right. Verse 10, in this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest. Whoever does not practice righteousness, that’d be from God’s point of view, not man’s. Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. Gets very practical, doesn’t it? In Titus 2.12, it says we are to live righteously in this present age. In 1 Thessalonians 2.10, Paul said of he and his co-workers that we behaved righteously or justly among you. Turn to 1 Peter chapter 2, just a little bit to the right there. 1 Peter chapter 2, and look at verse 24. It says, “…who himself, Jesus Christ,” 1 Peter 2, 24, “…bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for what?” Righteousness, it says, by whose stripes you were healed. God wants us to do righteously in our life, but we aren’t being made righteous. And my ability even to do something righteous is based on whether or not I’ve been born again of the Spirit of God, which comes through God declaring me righteous on the basis of what Jesus did. It’s almost like a giant paradox. I want to do right, but Paul said every time I try it, I blow it. What I need to understand is that I’m already righteous in Christ, and because of what He’s done for me and how He has blessed me and how He has given me His Holy Spirit, I can actually, every now and then, do what I like to call leak out glory. I can once in a while do something right. Number six. The righteousness of God is so important because it exalts God in making our salvation possible. Turn back to Romans 3 again. Romans chapter 3. It exalts God in making our salvation possible. How does it do that? Well, for one thing, it exalts His grace. We’re saved by grace. And in Romans 3.24, it says, Being justified or declared righteous freely by His grace. Turn over to chapter 5, please, of Romans, verse 18. Why does it exalt God, His righteousness? Because it exalts His grace. In Romans 5, 18 it says, “…therefore as through one man’s offense, namely Adam, judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one man’s righteous act,” that’s the death of Christ, “…the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification or righteousness of life.” For as by one man’s disobedience, Adam, many were made sinners, so also by one man’s obedience, Jesus Christ, many will be made righteous. Moreover, the law entered that the offense might abound, but where sin abounded, what abounded much more? Anyone? Grace. So that as sin reigned in death… Even so, grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. You know, I love to read that passage because God’s grace is exalted in my salvation. When sin abounds, God’s grace did much more abound. Hey, through one man’s disobedience, many people became sinners. But through one man’s obedience, Jesus Christ, many can be declared righteous in their life. Just by one man’s obedience. And so God compares Adam on the negative side with Christ on the positive side. We’re all sinners. Adam disobeyed. And we continue it. Jesus Christ, one act. By that one act, many are made righteous. Again, the righteousness of God in all that is seen. And it exalts His grace. We don’t do anything to earn it. It exalts His Son, Jesus Christ, because He’s the only one through whom it comes. One final thing. Turn to Romans chapter 8. Why is the righteousness of God so important? Well, it not only establishes the validity of all God has said and explains His justice in judging us, encouraging us to know that God will never forget what we’ve done and reward us. Eliminating any need for self-righteousness. Enabling us to even practice righteousness. Even doing something right in our personal lives. And exalting God in making our salvation possible. Because where sin abounds, grace did much more abound. But one final thing. It also expresses the reason why no one can condemn us or separate us from the love of Christ. Are you glad nobody can condemn you? There are a lot of people who are trying. No one can separate you from the love of Christ. Listen to these words, Romans 8, 31. It says, What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who can bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who declares righteous or justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died and furthermore is also risen. Who’s even at the right hand of God who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, sword. As it is written, for your sake we’re killed all day long. We’re accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created things shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord and all God’s people said. Listen, if you think you can lose your salvation, you don’t know the righteousness of God. Well, what if you don’t keep up with it? Well, see, your words have already shown that you don’t know His righteousness. God isn’t asking you to keep up with anything. He’s asking you to believe what Jesus Christ has already done. Well, you’ve got to live it. Well, see, he knows your problem. He’s going to give you his Holy Spirit. Well, I may get into sin. What if I backslide? You know, isn’t it interesting how many people will come up with as many things as they can to somehow get themselves out of what they want to be in? It bothers me. Jesus said, I give unto them eternal life, they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. Well, you can jump out of his hand. Are you kidding? He holds everything in his hand. I like to say, you move from knuckle to knuckle, but you’re not getting out. Nothing, zero, can separate you from the love of God that’s in Christ Jesus the Lord. Why? Because it is God who declares righteous. Is there anyone around who can condemn us? Oh, they’re everywhere. Hey, what do you think? You guys are all alike, aren’t you? Hey, listen. No one can condemn us. No one can bring a charge against God’s elect. You see, we haven’t been giving the correct message to the world. We’ve been making them think that Christianity teaches like the rest of the cults and isms that somehow you’re made righteous by what you do. So if we don’t measure up, then they’ve got a case. They have no case, God says. No charge. No condemnation. Why? Because Christianity is not a bunch of people trying to live by a certain standard or a code. Christianity is Jesus Christ our Lord. You’re either in him or not in him. One or the other. You’re either righteous or you’re not. There isn’t any middle ground or any ladder. There isn’t any ladder. You’re either his or you’re not his. One or the other. Let’s close with prayer. Lord, you know that a lot of us fight this because we want to prove our worth. Lord, I thank you that that struggle is over. The moment we believe in Jesus Christ, Jesus is everything to us. We have all in all when we have him. We have every spiritual blessing. Father, there are those in our midst who maybe have tried to be Christian by hanging around us. By learning how we talk. By saying all the right words. By trying to be good. By avoiding certain serious sins. God, I pray that you’d strip all that out of our hearts and show us Jesus Christ. That it’s only through his death on the cross and his resurrection that anyone can be saved. And that is the righteousness of God. We have no righteousness of our own. Oh God, help us to see that. We are sinners saved by the wonderful grace of God. We thank you in Jesus’ name. Amen.
SPEAKER 02 :
Amen. Well, that’s David Hawking, and this is Hope for Today. David’s back in just a moment to close out our time in God’s Word with some final observations on today’s text. So do stay right there. First, Matt’s here. And Matt, we have some home Bible study resources I think folks are going to want to add to their home libraries.
SPEAKER 01 :
And let’s talk about them. Our resource spotlight for May shines bright on our book, The Beginning. It’s 150 plus powerhouse pages of teaching through Genesis 1 through 11. You know, Jim, I appreciate the five assumptions my dad lists in his introduction. Yeah. Number one, the Bible is the inerrant word of God. That means no mistakes. You know, Matt, God’s word is always faithful, isn’t it? Always. Yeah. And number two, the Bible gives correct information about the origin of all things. The creation of earth, mankind, our universe. Yeah. Yeah, the Bible, though scientifically accurate in its statements, is not a textbook on science. Yeah, it’s written from the viewpoint of common people living on planet Earth. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Exactly. And then number four, God created the heavens, earth, and all living things. And the purpose of God’s creation is to reveal the character and power of God. And that’s a motivation for all believers and all of creation to worship him.
SPEAKER 02 :
Amen. Again, this is David’s book, The Beginning, From Creation to the Flood. It’s quite popular with our listening family, Matt. And it’s a study with vital and encouraging insights into God’s power, his faithfulness, righteousness, and love through the earliest days of history.
SPEAKER 01 :
But also insights to govern and direct our lives today. Exactly. And, Matt, with the proliferation of confusion today.
SPEAKER 02 :
And we see so much of that around us, don’t we?
SPEAKER 01 :
Big time. Big time. It is so vital that we understand the whole counsel of Scripture and anchor ourselves in its power. Starting with the essential first 11 chapters. Exactly, exactly. And the matter of origins, as we see dramatically and miraculously unveiled in Genesis, is vitally important for our sense of purpose, worth, and meaning in life. Amen to that, Matt.
SPEAKER 02 :
Well, the beginning from Creation to the Flood by David Hawking is just $15. And friend, your purchase or a donation, if you choose that, helps the ministry of Hope for Today. And please pray for Hope for Today. Amen to that. Amen. Well, we also want to tell you about the Attributes of God radio series, available on MP3, the whole series for just $20. This is the series we’re currently studying together here on radio and online. It’s a straightforward, Bible-saturated look at who God is as He’s revealed Himself in His Word. And you can order the whole series for just $20. We also have the sermon notes that David used to preach this series. The complete set of sermon notes for the entire series, just $10. Again, the MP3 series, that’s going to let you listen again and again and share the series with folks in the future. The sermon notes, they’re going to help you follow along, study deeper, and keep these truths in front of you. To order these or any of our resources, visit davidhawking.org. david hawking.org or call us at 875 Bible. That’s in the U S 8, 8, 8, 75 Bible in Canada and Bible by the numbers 2, 4, 2, 5, 3. And if you’d like to send a special donation our way, we would be deeply, deeply grateful for your support because it helps keep this broadcast on the air and online. It keeps these Bible teachings going out and helps us continue offering resources that point people to, Straight back to the Word of God. That is our heart and our passion. You can write to us at Hope for Today, Box 3927, Tustin, California, 92781. In Canada, write to Hope for Today, Box 15011. RPO, Seven Oaks, Abbotsford, B.C., V2S, 8P1. You can also give online as well, again, at davidhawking.org, by phone at 875-BIBLE in the U.S., or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. And here’s David.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, I hope you’re enjoying these studies. This whole series, as you know, is available, and it’s probably one of those series in album form that you need to keep on your shelf, not only for yourself, but for other family members and friends. This is a crucial subject, the attributes of God. If you’d like to study about this in terms of classroom education that’s accredited, My college and graduate school classes on attributes of God is on the blueletter.org website. Look up Blue Letter Bible Institute, and you will see it there. Not only Christology, but also attributes of God. We’ve tried to go into detail on every major attribute of God. Now, God is righteous. The Bible makes that clear. He’s never been unrighteous. I love Hebrews 6.10, God is not unrighteous to forget your work and your labor of love that you’ve shown in ministering to the saints. God is always righteous. He is the just God. He never does anything wrong. Shall not the judge of all the earth do right, says the book of Genesis? Of course. But it’s the righteousness of God that was accomplished when Yeshua died on the cross for our sins. God was in Christ, says 2 Corinthians 5.19, reconciling the world unto himself. I’m saved not by my own efforts, but by what our Lord Yeshua has already done for me. I don’t know where you are on that. But maybe right now would be a good time to take a break and put your trust in Jesus alone. Thank the Lord for saving you by the righteousness demonstrated when Jesus died for your sins. And a great book to study in relationship to this subject is the book of Romans in your Bible. God bless you.
SPEAKER 02 :
Well, thank you, David. Tomorrow, our teacher brings day one of his message on the faithfulness of God. In a world where people break promises, and boy, they do, don’t they? And everything keeps shifting. In that world, God doesn’t change. He doesn’t fail, and he does not forget what he said. Well, join us next time right here on Hope for Today.
