009 To those made Righteous by Christ

There has only ever been one standard for righteousness. Only that which the Father deems righteous can ever be righteous. 

Righteousness cannot be attained by any efforts on our part. It's impossible. We cannot determine the standard for righteousness (being right). It is not within our power or ability to do so, considering that the perception of righteousness is different for each individual. Because of this problem the Father provided a means: those who would accept the work and lordship of Christ would be made and declared righteous by the Father himself. 

Through the acceptance of Christ there abides an acceptance of death and a new birth: baptism into Christ. You voluntarily accept the death of yourself, that the Christ in you may take supremacy. Through this new birth we are created anew bearing the qualities of our Creator. One of these qualities is righteousness: the condition of one as he ought to be according to Jehovah's perfect standard. 

In Christ we are created anew in righteousness. In Christ we are as we ought to be before the Father, not lacking any good thing. In Christ our sonship and fellowship are internally fixed and in no way influenced in any manner by our efforts or lack thereof. Our righteousness could only ever be established by the Father. It has never been available for us to attain it by way of merit or maintain it. Righteousness is not a moral obligation, nor character trait. Righteousness is a nature or a state of being, if you will.  In Christ you have been called and made righteous and are now fellow partakers of the Father's divine nature.  Let go of any impulse to perform to be right. Reject all notions of self-critiquing or self-evaluation. In this we find our Sabbath rest which the Father established for us in Christ. 

Oh, that we would surrender to the work of Christ and abandon our quest for self-perfection. The quest for self-perfection contaminates our thinking in many ways. This dark seed has been planted within each of us during the early years of our lives and continually reinforced by the world around us. This contamination is often manifested in our work life. It is often the driver of many of our hobbies. Self-perfection is an innate need to somehow manifest our value to others and ourselves. Facebook and similar social media is a major vehicle for satisfying this drive and perpetuating it. This contrary message to the Gospel, self-perfection, is practiced essentially by all of us while doing chores, while driving, maybe cooking, maybe even while serving the saints: yet, it is a rejection of our perfection in Christ by the Cross of Christ. So, what's the big deal? The big, big deal is that self-perfection is aggressively contrary to the Gospel, specifically righteousness. It is dangerously deceptive and lurks behind the mask of good intentions. It is poison to the believer and will most definitely spread through the Body of Christ if not confronted. Self-perfection sneakily and progressively distorts the believer's mind regarding Christ's redemptive work. Many, if not all of us, are aware of the righteousness of God to the Believer through the work of Christ, nevertheless we are often affronted by self-perfection. Don't be afraid to confront your thinking when you recognize self-perfecting thoughts! This is never shameful in any way for anyone in Christ. Quite the contrary, it restores you to the thoughts of our Covenant, escorting us into the wholeness of God where shame, condemnation, blame, etc. are expelled. Be transparent! Openly confess to one another your fleshly frailties, including self-perfection, giving darkness no place to hide, strengthening the bond of your God-given position in Christ and your fellowship accordingly among the saints of the light in Christ.