THE BEATITUDES (continued)
Moving on to the fourth of the Beatitudes brings us to a word that is much mis-understood in the Christian world… Righteousness.
◊Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. What is this righteousness? It seems that it should be a rather straightforward word. It is used seven times by our Lord in varying contexts. It is used by Jesus talking to the Baptist as something to be fulfilled by Them: “And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him” (Matthew 3:15). It is used in our verse here in the Beatitudes. It is used again in another of the Beatitudes invoking the thought that those who have or practice righteousness may be persecuted. It is used as a measure of the quality needed to enter the Kingdom when Jesus tells His disciples and the multitudes at the Sermon on the Mount as regarding the law an our approach to it: “For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20). He uses it to proclaim a quality of God the Father when He says “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33). He uses it to explain the nature of the Baptist when He rails against the chief priests and the elders who questioned His source of authority in saying “for John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him” (Matthew 21:32). The word is only used by Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew as regards people and God. Its other usage in the Gospel of John in reference to the activity of the Comforter as an opposing factor to sin when He says “And when he is come , he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged” (John 16:8-11)
Now this is an obscure statement in John by the Master and it is open to much differing interpretation while those in Matthew are clear but varied. The most important of them is that righteousness is a quality of God and then that it was the nature of the Baptist of whom Jesus says that “among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist” (Luke 7:28). This is, of course, something to hunger and thirst after; to strive for.
Modern definitions of righteousness do not reflect the spiritual aspects of this word: the quality or state of being righteous; righteous conduct; the quality or state of being just or rightful *¡*. Older definitions of righteousness seem much more to the point as this from the 1800’s: Purity of heart and rectitude of life; conformity of heart and life to the divine law. Righteousness, as used in Scripture and theology, in which it is chiefly used, is nearly equivalent to holiness, comprehending holy principles and affections of heart, and conformity of life to the divine law. It includes all we call justice, honesty and virtue, with holy affections; in short, it is true religion*. From the older use of the word we get a much better understanding of what was meant by Jesus in the various ways He used it.
Parts of the church today adhere strictly to the pronouncements of Luther and other fathers of the Protestant movement in their philosophy of ‘saved by grace’ as taken from the writings of the Apostle Paul. In doing this, righteousness seems integrated with works and perhaps this is where the word has lost it spiritual place. By placing the words of each of Paul’s letters in the context of who they were written to instead of placing them in the context of he has written them to us all, it is easier to understand his statements and sayings. Today, in much of Christianity, this is not the case however and the infallibility of the Bible and its non-contextual use by ministers has created a church different from the one that Jesus brought to us. There should be no dispute that we are saved by grace and that it is the gift of God but it should be said also that righteousness is a necessary virtue and tool in our quest for the Kingdom and His Presence.
If we are living a spiritual life, striving for the Kingdom, then righteousness is a natural product of that striving. In fact it can be seen as the fruit of the Spirit for in it is not only contained our relationship to the Godhead but also our relationship to our fellow man. It is not only doing right or right standing with God as some say, it is an overall virtue that encompasses our daily lives in thought and in action.
It should also be seen too that living a life in righteousness, even in the modern use of the word, without spirituality is not at all a bad thing. It can be said that living right is a way to get to God and if ones conscience is so inclined that he is led to do right or live righteous that he has taken a large step in his spiritual life even if he knows nothing of it at all.
In Jesus words righteousness is a thing to seek; He does not ask here that you seek Him but that you seek righteousness and that in doing so you will find it and will be filled with it and will be blessed. Blessed for seeking, for hungering and thirsting, for striving. Taking Strong’s definition of righteousness as a guide, we can meet the expectations of Christ for righteousness in our lives: what is right, justice, the act of doing what is in agreement with God’s standards, the state of being in proper relationship with God***. Let us not confuse righteousness with works, though there is no wrong thing in works, and let us not think that doing right for the sake of doing right (as according to the law did as the Pharisees) is in itself bad for it is not. Any good work is a good work and moves us closer to our stated goal.
Remember that if we have faith, if we are trying to live spiritually and if we are striving toward the strait gate of the Kingdom that we are going to act in righteousness for this is the product, the fruit of such living. If we are not faith or do not live spiritually then acting in righteousness is an act of our conscience and it can and will, if we allow it to, move us closer to spiritual living and to understanding who, what and where we are.
There is no downside to righteousness.
Note on the Quote of the Day
This daily blog also has a Quote of the Day which may not be in any way related to the essay. Many of these will be from the Bible and some just prayers or meditations that may have an influence on you and are in line with the subject matter of this blog. As the quote will change daily and will not store with the post, it is repeated in this section with the book reference and comment.
And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever (Isaiah 32:17). Today’s quote from Isaiah shows to us some of the personal effects of righteousness and the overall general theme of its work… PEACE. Remember the pronouncement of the Angel at the birth of the Master “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14). This is righteousness.
- * Websters Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1828 and 1913
- *** Strongest Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible – 2001
- *!* Dictionary.com Unabridged based on Random House Dictionary – 2011
