The Righteousness of God

The Righteousness of God





Introduction

The righteousness of God, one of the most prominent attributes of God in the Scriptures, is also one of the most elusive. Initially, distinguishing the righteousness of God from His holiness or His goodness seems difficult. In addition, the righteousness of God is virtually synonymous with His justice:

While the most common Old Testament word for just means ‘straight,’ and the New Testament word means ‘equal,’ in a moral sense they both mean ‘right.’ When we say that God is just, we are saying that He always does what is right, what should be done, and that He does it consistently, without partiality or prejudice. The word just and the word righteous are identical in both the Old Testament and the New Testament. Sometimes the translators render the original word ‘just’ and other times ‘righteous’ with no apparent reason (cf. Nehemiah 9:8 and 9:33 where the same word is used). But whichever word they use, it means essentially the same thing. It has to do with God’s actions. They are always right and fair.

God’s righteousness (or justice) is the natural expression of His holiness. If He is infinitely pure, then He must be opposed to all sin, and that opposition to sin must be demonstrated in His treatment of His creatures. When we read that God is righteous or just, we are being assured that His actions toward us are in perfect agreement with His holy nature.30

These words by Richard Strauss bring us very close to a concise definition of righteousness. Righteousness, in relation to men, is their conformity to a standard. Unlike men, God is not subject to anything outside of Himself. No one states this better than A.W. Tozer:

It is sometimes said, ‘Justice requires God to do this,’ referring to some act we know He will perform. This is an error of thinking as well as of speaking, for it postulates a principle of justice outside of God which compels Him to act in a certain way. Of course there is no such principle. If there were it would be superior to God, for only a superior power can compel obedience. The truth is that there is not and can never be anything outside of the nature of God which can move Him in the least degree. All God’s reasons come from within His uncreated being. Nothing has entered the being of God from eternity, nothing has been removed, and nothing has been changed.

Justice, when used of God, is a name we give to the way God is, nothing more; and when God acts justly He is not doing so to conform to an independent criterion, but simply acting like Himself in a given situation. . . God is His own self-existent principle of moral equity, and when He sentences evil men or rewards the righteous, He simply acts like Himself from within, uninfluenced by anything that is not Himself.” 31

We must then say the righteousness of God is evident in the way He consistently acts in accord with His own character. God always acts righteously; His every action is consistent with His character. God is always consistently “Godly.” God is not defined by the term “righteous,” as much as the term “righteous” is defined by God. God is not measured by the standard of righteousness; God sets the standard of righteousness.

Abraham and the Righteousness of God
(Genesis 18:16-33)

23 And Abraham came near and said, “Wilt Thou indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; wilt Thou indeed sweep [it] away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? 25 Far be it from Thee to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are [treated] alike. Far be it from Thee! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” 26 So the LORD said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.” 27 And Abraham answered and said, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am [but] dust and ashes. 28 Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, wilt Thou destroy the whole city because of five?” And He said, “I will not destroy [it] if I find forty-five there” (Genesis 18:23-28).

The righteousness of God is introduced very early in the Bible in the opening chapters of the Book of Genesis. This attribute is the basis for Abraham’s appeal to God for the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. God is described anthropomorphically (in human-like terms) here as having heard the “great outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah” (verse 20). I wonder from whom this outcry came. One likely possibility is “righteous Lot, whose righteous soul was vexed by the wickedness of these cities” (see 2 Peter 2:6-8).

In the judicial terminology of our day, God was unwilling to act solely on the basis of hearsay. It was His intention to “go down” to this place and find out for Himself whether these allegations were true. Now of course we know God is omniscient. He knows all. He did not need to “take a trip to Sodom and Gomorrah” to see if these cities were really wicked. He knew they were wicked. But, from our point of view, God wants us to know He acts justly. He acts on the basis of information of which He has personal knowledge. Thus, when God judges these cities, He does so justly for they were truly wicked.

I find it interesting that verses 17-21 precede the account of Abraham’s intercession for these cities. God knew what He was going to do. What He purposed to do was righteous and just. But God wanted Abraham to be a part of what He was doing. If God was to act justly, He was simply acting consistently with His character. But involving Abraham was also consistent with His covenant with him and the goal of this covenant. God’s purpose for calling Abraham and making a covenant with him is spelled out in verses 17-19:

17 And the LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, 18 since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed? 19 For I have chosen him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice; in order that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has spoken about him” (Genesis 18:17-19, emphasis mine).

God’s purpose for calling Abraham and making a covenant with him was for Abraham to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice and to teach his offspring to do likewise. Righteousness is the divine goal for Abraham and his offspring.

When God informed Abraham He was about to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham began to intercede for them. His concern was for the righteous in those cities. How could God possibly destroy these cities if there were righteous men and women living in them? If God destroyed both the wicked and the righteous without distinguishing them, then God would not be acting righteously or justly. And surely God, as “the Judge of all the earth,” must act justly (verse 25).

Abraham proceeds to intercede with God on behalf of the righteous. Beginning with 50 righteous, Abraham petitioned God not to destroy these cities if 50 righteous could be found. Eventually, Abraham was able (so it seemed) to lower the required number of the righteous to as few as ten (verse 32). But there simply were not ten righteous in these cities. There were but four (if one includes Lot’s wife). But God, in His justice, would not deal with the wicked in a way that punished the righteous as well. He did not spare the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, but He did spare Lot and his family by rescuing them from the city of Sodom before the angels destroyed them.

We see here in the Book of Genesis God’s purpose in calling Abraham and his offspring: to raise up a people characterized by righteousness and justice. God not only showed himself to be righteous and just, He also worked in Abraham’s life to show he was a man who loved righteousness and justice.

God’s Righteousness and the Nation Israel

God’s righteousness was to be seen in His every dealing with the nation Israel:

6 Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the LORD who appointed Moses and Aaron and who brought your fathers up from the land of Egypt. 7 So now, take your stand, that I may plead with you before the LORD concerning all the righteous acts of the LORD which He did for you and your fathers” (2 Samuel 12:6-7).

God’s righteousness in His dealings with the nation Israel has various manifestations.

(1) God reveals His righteousness by revealing His will and His word to the world through the nation Israel.

5 “See, I have taught you statutes and judgments just as the LORD my God commanded me, that you should do thus in the land where you are entering to possess it. 6 So keep and do [them], for that is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ 7 For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as is the LORD our God whenever we call on Him? 8 Or what great nation is there that has statutes and judgments as righteous as this whole law which I am setting before you today?” (Deuteronomy 4:5-8; see also Psalm 33:4).

God deals with men on the basis of what He has revealed to them. He often tells men what He will do well in advance of the event so they will know God is God and that He has accomplished what He promised:

21 “Declare and set forth [your case;]. Indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none except Me” (Isaiah 45:21).

What God has not revealed does not need to be known (see Deuteronomy 29:29). All that is necessary for “life and godliness” has been revealed to us (see 2 Peter 1:4) so that we are fully equipped (2 Timothy 3:14-17).

(2) God reveals His righteousness by instructing men in His word.

8 Good and upright is the LORD; Therefore He instructs sinners in the way (Psalm 25:8).

Often this instruction came through the levitical priests (Leviticus 10:11; Deuteronomy 24:8; Nehemiah 8:9; 2 Chronicles 17:7-9) or through the prophets like Moses (Deuteronomy 4:1, 5, 14; Exodus 18:20).

(3) God reveals His righteousness by fulfilling His promises.

8 “And Thou didst find his heart faithful before Thee, and didst make a covenant with him to give [him] the land of the Canaanite, of the Hittite and the Amorite, of the Perizzite, the Jebusite, and the Girgashite—to give [it] to his descendants. And Thou hast fulfilled Thy promise, for Thou art righteous” (Nehemiah 9:7-8, emphasis mine).

(4) God reveals His righteousness by judging the enemies of Israel.

27 Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron and said to them, “I have sinned this time; the LORD is the righteous one, and I and my people are the wicked ones” (Exodus 9:27).

13 Before the LORD, for He is coming; For He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness, And the peoples in His faithfulness (Psalm 96:13).

God likewise shows Himself to be righteous when He judges the nation Israel for their sin and disobedience:

1 It took place when the kingdom of Rehoboam was established and strong that he and all Israel with him forsook the law of the LORD. 2 And it came about in King Rehoboam’s fifth year, because they had been unfaithful to the LORD, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem 3 with 1,200 chariots and 60,000 horsemen. And the people who came with him from Egypt were without number: the Lubim, the Sukkiim, and the Ethiopians. 4 And he captured the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem. 5 Then Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the princes of Judah who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak, and he said to them, “Thus says the LORD, ‘You have forsaken Me, so I also have forsaken you to Shishak.’” 6 So the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The LORD is righteous” (2 Chronicles 12:1-6).

15 “O LORD God of Israel, Thou art righteous, for we have been left an escaped remnant, as [it is] this day; behold, we are before Thee in our guilt, for no one can stand before Thee because of this” (Ezra 9:15).

7 “Righteousness belongs to Thee, O Lord, but to us open shame, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and all Israel, those who are near by and those who are far away in all the countries to which Thou hast driven them, because of their unfaithful deeds which they have committed against Thee. 8 Open shame belongs to us, O Lord, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against Thee” (Daniel 9:7-8).

(5) God reveals His righteousness in the way He rules.

6 Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Thy kingdom (Psalm 45:6).14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Thy throne; Lovingkindness and truth go before Thee (Psalm 89:14, see also Psalm 97:2).

(6) God reveals His righteousness in His hatred and in His anger.

5 The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked, And the one who loves violence His soul hates (Psalm 11:5).311 God is a righteous judge; And a God who has indignation every day (Psalm 7:11).32

(7) God reveals His righteousness in His protection of the poor and the afflicted.

12 I know that the LORD will maintain the cause of the afflicted, And justice for the poor (Psalm 140:12; see also Psalm 12:5; 82; 116:6 below).

(8) God reveals His righteousness when He shows mercy and compassion.

5 Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; Yes, our God is compassionate; 6 The LORD preserves the simple; I was brought low, and He saved me (Psalm 116:5-6).

18 Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. The LORD is a God of justice; How blessed are those who long for Him (Isaiah 30:18).

(9) God reveals His righteousness in saving sinners.

2 The LORD has made known His salvation; He has revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations. 3 He has remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness to the house of Israel; All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God (Psalm 98:2-3). 11 As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities (Isaiah 53:11).

I believe this to be a very significant aspect of God’s righteousness. God is righteous in saving sinners. So often we think God’s righteousness is revealed in His judgment of sinners and His mercy by His salvation of sinners. The Scriptures teach that God’s righteousness is the cause of both condemnation and justification. He is righteous in saving sinners, as well as merciful and compassionate. God is righteous in all His dealings with men, indeed in all His dealings.

The righteousness of God and the justice of God are not secondary matters; they are primary. The righteousness or justice of God is to be the guiding principle for the people of God. When the Old Testament prophets sought to sum up the essence of the Old Testament teaching regarding man’s conduct, it was that men practice righteousness or justice:

21 “I hate, I reject your festival, Nor do I delight in your solemn assemblies. 22 Even though you offer up to Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them; And I will not even look at the peace offerings of your fatlings. 23 Take away from Me the noise of your songs; I will not even listen to the sound of your harps. 24 But let justice roll down like waters And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream” (Amos 5:21-24).

6 With what shall I come to the LORD And bow myself before the God on high? Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings, With yearling calves? 7 Does the LORD take delight in thousands of rams, In ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my first-born for my rebellious acts, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:6-8).

When summarizing the very essence of what the Old Testament Law was about, Amos and Micah both spoke first of justice and righteousness. God is not interested in a legalistic keeping of the Law, as though one might make himself righteous by so doing. God is interested in men seeking to know the heart of God and pleasing Him by doing that in which He delights and that which He does.

The Righteousness of
God in the New Testament

If righteousness and justice are the heart of the Old Testament Law, they are also at the heart of the dispute between Jesus and the scribes and Pharisees.33 At the very outset of His earthly ministry, Jesus set out to contrast His interpretation of the Old Testament teaching on righteousness with that of the scribes and Pharisees. In reality, Jesus did not offer a “new” interpretation of righteousness or of the Law; rather He sought to reestablish the proper understanding of righteousness as taught in the Law and the Prophets. Thus, Jesus repeatedly used the formula, “You have heard it said. . .” (“This is what the scribes and Pharisees teach.…”), “But I say to you.…” (“But the Old Testament was meant to be understood this way.…”).

The scribes and Pharisees thought of themselves as setting the standard for righteousness. They felt that they, of all men, were righteous. Jesus shocked all when He said,

20 “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20).

It was clear that if the scribes and Pharisees could not produce enough righteousness on their own, no one could. The standard of righteousness the Law held forth was even higher than that of the scribes and Pharisees. No one was righteous enough to get into heaven. What a shock to the self-righteous who thought they had box office seats in the kingdom.

If Jesus shocked His audience when He said those who appeared to be the most righteous would not make it into the kingdom on their kind of righteousness, He also shocked them as to who would be “blessed” by entrance into the kingdom: those the scribes and Pharisees thought unworthy of the kingdom. Those blessed were not the scribes and Pharisees, but the “poor in spirit,” those who “mourn,” the “gentle,” those who “hunger and thirst for righteousness,” the “merciful,” the “pure in heart,” the “peacemakers,” and those who are “persecuted” on account of their relationship with Jesus (Matthew 5:3-12).

Jesus taught that true righteousness is not that which men regard as righteous based upon external appearances, but that so judged by God based upon His assessment of the heart:

15 And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15).

The Scribes and Pharisees, who thought themselves so righteous because of their rigorous attention to external matters, proved to be just the opposite when judged by our Lord:

28 “Even so you too outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. 29 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 Consequently you bear witness against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up then the measure of the guilt of your fathers. 33 You serpents, you brood of vipers, how shall you escape the sentence of hell? 34 Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city, 35 that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar” (Matthew 23:28-35).

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warned against externalism and ceremonialism.

1 “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 6:1).

According to Jesus, true righteousness is vastly different from the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. False righteousness is measured by men on the basis of externalism. True righteousness is judged such by God, in accordance with His Word. Because of this, men need to beware of attempting to judge the righteousness of others (see Matthew 7:1). Those whose deeds seemed to indicate they were righteous were those whom God denied ever having known as His children (Matthew 7: 15-23). Those who appeared to be righteous were not, and those who appeared unrighteous by the Judaism of that day may well have been righteous.

It is no wonder then that Jesus was not regarded as righteous by many of the Jews but was considered a sinner:

16 Therefore some of the Pharisees were saying, “This man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.” But others were saying, “How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?” And there was a division among them.… 24 So a second time they called the man who had been blind, and said to him, “Give glory to God; we know that this man is a sinner.” 25 He therefore answered, “Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I do know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see” (John 9:16, 24-25).

The great division which arose among the Jews was over the issue of whether Jesus was a righteous man or a sinner (see John 10:19-21).

The Old and New Testament leave no doubt in our minds whether the Lord Jesus was righteous. The prophet Isaiah spoke of the coming Messiah as the “Righteous One” who would “justify the many” (Isaiah 53:11). Jeremiah spoke of Him as the “righteous Branch” (Jeremiah 23:5). When Jesus was baptized, it was to “fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15). Both Pilate’s wife (Matthew 27:19) and the soldier at the foot of the cross (Luke 23:47) acknowledged His righteousness at the very moment when men were condemning Him.

The apostles likewise bear witness to the righteousness of Christ:

1 My little children, I am writing these things to you that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous (1 John 2:1).

29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices righteousness is born of Him (1 John 2:29).

The righteousness of God is particularly important in relation to salvation. In Romans 3, Paul points out God not only justifies sinners (that is, He declares them righteous), but He is also shown to be just (righteous) in the process:

21 But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; 25 whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; 26 for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. 27 Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. 28 For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law (Romans 3:21-28).

Men have failed to live up to the standard of righteousness laid down by the Law (Romans 3:9-20). God is just in condemning all men to death, for all men without exception have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). All men are worthy of death because the “wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). God is just in condemning the unrighteous.

But God is also just in saving sinners. As Paul puts it, He is “just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26). How can this be? God is just because His righteous anger has been satisfied. Justice was done on the cross of Calvary. God did not reduce the charges against men; He did not change the standard of righteousness. God poured out the full measure of His righteous wrath upon His Son on the cross of Calvary. In Him, justice was meted out. All of those who trust in Him by faith are justified. Their sins are forgiven because Jesus paid the full price; He suffered the full measure of God’s wrath in their place. And for those who reject the goodness and mercy of God at Calvary, they must pay the penalty for their sins because they would not accept the payment Jesus made in their place.

The cross of Calvary accomplished a just salvation, for all who will receive it. But we also know that only those whom God has chosen—the “elect”—will repent and trust in the death of Christ on their behalf. This raises another question related to divine justice. After clearly teaching the doctrine of divine election, Paul asks how election squares with the justice of God, and then gives us the answer:

6 But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; 7 neither are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but: “through Isaac your descendants will be named.” 8 That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants. 9 For this is a word of promise: “At this time I will come, and Sarah shall have a son.” 10 And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; 11 for though the twins were not yet born, and had not done anything good or bad, in order that God’s purpose according to His choice might stand, not because of works, but because of Him who calls, 12 it was said to her, “The older will serve the younger.” 13 Just as it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”

14 What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! 15 For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 16 So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.” 18 So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.

19 You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?” 20 On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it? 21 Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use, and another for common use? 22 What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? 23 And He did so in order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, 24 even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles (Romans 9:6-24).

The question assumes that divine election has been taught by Paul as a biblical fact. If it were not so—as it clearly is—the question would not have been raised by Paul. And if there is no such thing as election, Paul could have simply brushed the question aside as illogical and unreasonable. But Paul assumes the truth of election and the possibility that some might object on the grounds that election would make God unjust. Paul first rebukes the one who dares to judge God and pronounce on His righteousness. How presumptuous can a man be? Should God stand before the bar of human judgment? Of course not!

As seen in chapter 3, God is righteous in that He has condemned all, and in Christ, those who are justified have been punished and then raised to newness of life. God is also righteous for judging all those who refuse to accept His offer of salvation in Christ. God would be unjust only if He set aside justice rather than fulfilling it in Christ, whether by His sacrificial death at His first coming or by His judging the unbelieving world at His second coming.

Divine grace, the grace by which God reaches out to save men from their sins, is meted out not on the basis of men’s merits but in spite of men’s sin. Grace, as we shall later emphasize in another message, is sovereignly bestowed. God would be unjust only if He withheld blessings from men which they deserved. Since God is free to bestow unmerited blessings on any sinner He may choose, God is not unrighteous in saving some of the worst sinners, while choosing not to save other sinners. God does not owe salvation to anyone, and thus He is not unjust in saving some and choosing not to save others.

The good news of the gospel is that salvation by grace is offered to all men, and by the righteousness of Jesus Christ, men may be forgiven of their sins and made righteous:

20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:20-21).

Conclusion

If sin is the manifestation of our unrighteousness and we can be saved only through a righteousness not our own—the righteousness of Christ—then the ultimate sin is self-righteousness. Jesus did not reject sinners who came to Him for mercy and salvation; He rejected those who were too righteous (in their own eyes) to need grace. Jesus came to save sinners and not to save those righteous in their own eyes. No one is too lost to save; there are only those too good to save. In the Gospels, those who thought themselves most righteous were the ones condemned by our Lord as wicked and unrighteous.

If we are among those who have acknowledged our sin and trusted in the righteousness of Christ for our salvation, the righteousness of God is one of the great and comforting truths we should embrace. The justice of God means that when He establishes His kingdom on earth, it will be a kingdom characterized by justice. He will judge men in righteousness, and He will reign in righteousness.

We need not fret over the wicked of our day who seem to be getting away with sin. If we love righteousness, we most certainly dare not envy the wicked, whose day of judgment awaits them (see Psalm 37; 73). Their day of judgment is rapidly coming upon them, and justice will prevail.

If we realize that true righteousness is not to be judged according to external, legalistic standards and that judgment belongs to God, we dare not occupy ourselves in judging others (Matthew 7:1). We should also realize that judgment begins at the house of God, and thus we should be quick to judge ourselves and to avoid those sins which are an offense to the righteousness of God (see 1 Peter 4:17; 1 Corinthians 11:31).

The doctrine of the righteousness of God means that we, as the children of God (if you are a Christian), should seek to imitate our heavenly Father (5:48). We should not seek to find revenge against those who sin against us, but leave vengeance to God (Romans 12:17-21). Rather than seeking to get even, let us suffer the injustice of men, even as our Lord Jesus, that God might even bring our enemies to repentance and salvation (Matthew 5:43-44; 1 Peter 2:18-25). And let us pray, as our Lord instructed us, that the day when righteousness reigns may come:

10 “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10).

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John 3:1-12: "What Is Being Born Again"

The Gospel According to John: John 3:1-12: Being Born Again” by Romans

For those of you who were with me since early in September when I began this series, we are continuing in our examination of the Gospel According to John. Tonight we will be examining the first 12 verses of the Third Chapter of this Gospel Account.

Let's get started by reading them in their entirety from the King James Version. Then we'll go back over them and zoom in for a closer look, and commentary as the need arises:

John 3:1  ¶There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
2  The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
4  Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
5  Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6  That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7  Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
8  The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
9  Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?
10  Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
11  Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
12  If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?”

Our verses, tonight, record a very familiar New Testament conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus is, perhaps, one of the most familiar conversations in all of Scripture. John's Gospel is the only one of the four which records anything about Nicodemus. He is identified as “ a ruler of the Jews.” The Interpreter's Bible tells us this about him: “He is a Pharisee, and a member of the Sanhedrin.” He approaches Jesus as Rabbi, based on the signs which attest to His Divine Mission, and the presence of God. They refer to a midrash (or, on Deuteronomy 18:19 that says, “If a prophet who begins to prophesy (i.e. who is still uncredited) gives a sign and a miracle, he is to be listened to, otherwise he is not to be heeded. Jesus accepts the title by answering the unspoken question. Since the nation was aroused by the preaching of John the Baptist, the main subject of religious discussion had been the Kingdom of God, its nature and its near approach.”

We also learn from the text in verse 2 that this conversation takes place at night. As a ruler of the Jews, Nicodemus did not want to be seen, frankly, in broad daylight meeting with this very controversial figure, Jesus. The Jews, according to what John tells us in Chapter 10 and verse 22 of his Gospel, had a standing order that “if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.” Nicodemus does not make such a confession, here. He does come out very boldly at a later time in John 7, defending Jesus during a Council Meeting when officers who were sent to arrest Jesus came back empty-handed. We read of Nicodemus one last time under circumstances that were far more ominous and even life-threatening than simply being evicted from a Synagogue. After Jesus had died, and was taken down from the cross, we read in John 19:38-39 that Joseph of Arimathaea received His body for burial, and that Nicodemus was also there, and provided the necessary spices. But, getting back to John 3, during this particular conversation, Nicodemus  does make a startling declaration in verse 2: “We know that thou art a teacher come from God ...” Did you catch the pronoun Nicodemus used? Not I know, but rather, “we know that thou art a teacher come from God.” There were other rulers, other Pharisees and Sanhedrin members who, not just suspected, or even believed, but knew that Jesus was genuinely sent from God. Nicodemus was not alone in that conclusion. There were others that agreed with Nicodemus, I am sure, in cautiously whispered acknowledgments, that Jesus was sent from God, and that He was not a false Christ or a counterfeit Messiah.

Jesus, in the next verse, seemingly responds to a question that has yet to be asked. And His response, regarding being Born Again, will be the focus on our Discussion, this Evening.

 Here is Jesus opening comment: “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

I am going to read from several commentaries, and share with you what they have to say about Jesus' words. I will tell you, before I read them, that I believe that all of them miss Jesus' point entirely. And these represent all of the commentaries I read. While they all correctly present the modern, agreed-upon  understanding of Jesus' words, they all missed His point. I will fully explain why I say that, as we continue.

From the publication: Answers to Tough Questions, we read: “Jesus said that to enter the kingdom of heaven a person must be "born again" (John 3:3). This consists of an act of the heart in believing in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. When we were born into the world physically, we were born spiritually dead, and therefore we need a spiritual birth.”

This is basically how most people understand the concept of being born again, as “an act of the heart in believing in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.” But Jesus did not include in what He said, anything about an acts of the heart, or believing anything new, or changing any of beliefs. Belief is not a part of Jesus' words at all! He simply and flatly presents an apparently undeniable and unalterable Truth.

Let's look at another commentary:

From the book, “I Never Knew That Was in the Bible!”
Topic: “BORN AGAIN
In contemporary English, the expression “born again” is used to describe an enthusiastic conversion to a particular cause or even simply to mean “renewed, new.” The origin of the expression is Jesus’ answer to Nicodemus: “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3, kjv). Nicodemus had to undergo a radical transformation by the Spirit of God in order for him to see the kingdom of God. Most of the contemporary versions retain the kjv’s expression “born again”; the cev and the nrsv have 'born from above'; the rsv, 'born anew.'”

From Halley's Bible Handbook we read, “The new birth Jesus talked about is not merely a metaphor, but an actual reality that results from the impregnation of the human heart by the Spirit of God.”

Next, Billy Graham wrote a book called, How To Be Born Again. It sold almost a million and a half copies:
Here is the description of it from Amazon.com: “Man has a problem and God has an answer in Christ. How then do we respond? Dr. Graham gives the answer in simple, direct, and dynamic language. But he does not stop with the moment of the new birth, for newborns have a lot of growing to do. Here also is essential guidance to take them further, for they can scarcely realize so soon the potential of the new power God can release from deep within them. How to Be Born Again is at once universal and personal, for the new Christian and for the Christian along the way – an irresistible primer for finding salvation, a guidebook for continuing growth.”

Billy Graham's book on How To Be Born Again is called a guide for the new believer. As you will see before we are through, being Born Again has nothing to do with finding salvation or continuing your growth in serving the Lord.

We read from the MacArthur Study Bible, “The phrase literally means, 'born from above.' Jesus answered a question that Nicodemus does not even ask. He read Nicodemus' heart, and came to the very core of his problem, i.e., the need for spiritual transformation or regeneration produced by the Holy Spirit.”

While I agree that there is absolutely a need for spiritual transformation or regeneration, such a transformation in the context of repentance or conversion  is not what Jesus was trying to convey to Nicodemus.
I agree mostly with the summary statement of the Commentary I read first: The Interpreter's Bible, which stated: “Since the nation was aroused by the preaching of John the Baptist, the main subject of religious discussion had been the Kingdom of God, its nature and its near approach.”

Several of the commentaries speak of Jesus answering a question about personal conversion that was not even asked: What about the occasion when such a question was specifically asked. We read beginning in Mark 10:17  ¶And when he (Jesus) was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?
18  And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.
19  Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother...”

When the rich young ruler came to Jesus, asking how he might obtain Eternal Life, this conversation, and not the conversation with Nicodemus would have been the perfect opportunity for Jesus to say, “Ye must be born again,”

IF being born again had anything to do with repentance or conversion or obedience or turning your life over to Christ. But Jesus did not mention being born again to the rich young ruler because it has nothing to do with those very important spiritual aspects of Christianity of repentance and conversion and being a spirit-filled Christ follower.

There was another golden opportunity to speak of being born again that was completely missed by Peter on the Day of Pentecost. Let's read the account in to get a feel for what is going on: In his summation of the sermon he just preached, Peter says beginning in Acts 2:36: “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.
37  ¶Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?”

Could there have been a better time for Peter to say, if it applied, “Ye must be born again”?

Instead he said, in the next verse, (38): “... Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

He didn't tell them they must be must born again because being born again has nothing to do with conversion or repentance, or baptism, or living a godly life that brings Glory and Honor to the Father.

The term “Born Again” is misapplied to repentance and conversion. It has nothing to do with either concept. We read in Luke 22:31: “And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: 32  But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” Jesus did not tell Peter, “... when thou art born again, strengthen thy brethren.” Rather, He said “when thou art converted,” because conversion was what He was talking about.

Let me explain being born again from, what I am sure will initially sound like I am coming out of Left Field with something completely unrelated to the subject. But I assure you, if you will hear me, you will see how it all ties in:

There are three ways to become a member of a family: you marry into it, or you are adopted into it, or you are born into it. Where the believer is concerned, we will experience all three ways!!

Let's look at all three ways Scripture says believers will enter the Family of God:

The first way to become a member of a family is to marry into it:
The Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 11:2: “For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.”

There is a Marriage Supper described when Christ returns: Revelation 19:7: “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.”

Revelation 21:9: “And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.” The bride is the Church. We will marry into the Family of God!

We will also be adopted into the Family of God:
Romans 8:15: “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.”

Galatians 4:5: “To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”

Ephesians 1:5 “Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.”

And, the third way to become a member of a family is to be born into it. By experiencing all three ways, God wants us to know beyond any shadow of a doubt that we are members of the Family of God!
At the resurrection, we will also be born into Family of God. Scripture calls the coming resurrection that believers will be a part of, our birth into the Family of God. Jesus was our Pioneer in this, as we read in Colossians 1:18: “And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.” This is a very unusual and unexpected way to refer to the resurrection, but it is there! Jesus' resurrection is referred to as a birth. This is the very concept that most people completely miss, that Christ tried to convey to Nicodemus when He said in John 3:3:” Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” This is confirmed when Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:50: “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.”

There are only three times that the words “born again” appear in Scripture. It appears NOWHERE in the Old Testament, twice in John's Gospel in the conversation between Christ and Nicodemus, and one more time 1 Peter 1:23: “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”

We must be “born again,” or, resurrected in an incorruptible state. Paul continued in verse 52: “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” Changed, yes! But changed from what to what? Changed from corruptible flesh to incorruptible spirit. This is exactly what Jesus told Nicodemus: Read His words carefully to see that it is impossible for any flesh and blood human being to claim they are, or could have been, past tense,  “born again.” The Resurrection is yet future, when our being “born again”  will take place. Notice: Jesus said in John 3:6: “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

Let's look at the original Greek to get a better understanding of what Jesus is saying, here:

“That which is born of the spirit is spirit.” “Spirit” is from the Greek word, (4151) “pneuma --
pronounced: pnyoo'-mah

from 4154; a current of air, i.e. breath (blast) or a breeze; by analogy or figuratively, a spirit

But there was another event during Jesus' ministry that I would like to focus on momentarily: When Jesus walked on the water, the disciples saw Him and were terrified because they thought He was a spirit. The original Greek word for spirit in that case is the word (5326) “fantasma --
pronounced: fan'-tas-mah, from 5324; (properly concrete) a (mere) show ("phantasm"), i.e. spectre:

In neither of these cases can it be said of any living human being, that he or she is spirit! It is not possible for a flesh and blood human believer, no matter how faithful or devout, religious, or knowledgeable of Scripture, to be “born again,” at this time, or, in Christ's words, to be spirit. We are all flesh and blood, until the Resurrection.



Yet, millions and millions of Christians claim to be “born again.” In earlier weeks I spoke of the hundreds of millions of Catholics who for generations were told, and who believe that Jesus was an only child. That He had no brothers and sisters. They trusted the priests who taught them this falsehood, to faithfully and correctly bring them the word of God. But their teaching was not in harmony with what Scripture plainly said. Jesus had brothers and sisters. His four brothers are named!
This issue of being born again is really no different. I will admit that the teaching is not as easy to discern as a direct statement that names Jesus' brothers, but the truth is about it is there. And the people who teach us are trained to “rightly divide the Word,” and provide us with the meat of the word. As we saw with Billy Graham's book, earlier, Christians are being taught that being born again is synonymous with repentance and conversion. I am telling you that Scripture says no such thing. But, just for the heck of it, let's give them the benefit of the doubt, and agree that Christians are, now, born again. If that is true, and Billy Graham and all the other commentaries that agree with him are right, and I am wrong, what can we make of what the Apostle John wrote in 1 John 3:9: “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.” Do you know any born again Christians who “cannot sin”? Two chapters earlier, John wrote in  1 John 1:8: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” If we say... does he not mean if Christians  say... “that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves”? But in the verse above, he clearly says that “whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin” and “he cannot sin.” The only way for this to not be a contradiction, it that it has to mean that living, flesh-and-blood human beings are not currently “born again.” Otherwise, we cannot resolve the conflict where we both “cannot sin” and we are liars if we say we have no sin. No... We will be, at the Resurrection, born again, and not before. And then, Jesus' words and the description of those born of God will both be true: “That which is born of the spirit, is spirit,” and “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin.”

I can imagine at this point that the newness and strangeness of what I am saying has smoke coming out of a lot of ears, here. It may come to some of you tomorrow or next week that the Bible talks of Christians being new creatures... now. And not later in the Resurrection. And that is a good point! Let's read that verse in 2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

And the question may come to some of your minds: How are we new creatures now if we aren't born again? The answer is that we are indeed, present tense, new creatures, but not because we are born again: Being Born Again happens at the Resurrection. We are new creatures, now, not because we are Born Again, but because we are begotten again.

Listen to Peter's very important and illuminating words about this in 1 Peter 1:3: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead...”

We are begotten again unto a lively hope by the resurrection, at which time we will be born again, or born of God:

1 John 5:18: “We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.”

Notice that John repeats the description of those who are born again, that they do not sin, which cannot be applied to any human being alive on earth today, be they Christian, Jewish or otherwise. However he goes on to say,  but …” He is changing the subject... changing the context, and going from our future state as being spirit-born into the Family of God, to our present state as living, flesh and blood Christians.
Let's read the entire verse again, “We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.”

Why and how does the wicked one, Satan, not touch someone who is begotten again? John answers that in 1 John 2:14: “I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.”

We who are alive today, as newly begotten creatures of God keep ourselves from the pollutions of the wordld as James wrote in James 1:27: “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”

Be we are not yet born again. We can and do sin... daily.
And God has provided a remedy for that situation in 1 John 1:9: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

When the Resurrection takes place, we will be born again, spirit-composed members of the Family of God. Romans 8:29: “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” Here Jesus' Resurrection is once again being referred to as a birth. As He was the firstborn among other physical brothers born to Mary, He was the firstborn among many spiritual brethren.”

As Jesus told Nicodemus in John3:5: “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God,” Paul wrote in  1 Corinthians 15:50: “... flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God...”;

As Jesus said to Nicodemus in John 3:6: “Ye must be born again,” and  Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:53: “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.” Being born again and the change we undergo in the Resurrection is the very same “must” situation because, as we read in 1 Corinthians 15:50: “... flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.”

As Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:7 “... that which is born of the Spirit is spirit,” Paul wrote in  1 Corinthians 15:51: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed.”

So that His death could be the complete and fully-acceptable sacrifice for all of mankind, Jesus was born fully human. As a human being, the Creator God, for the first time, experienced hunger, and thirst and exhaustion. His death proved that as a human being, he was mortal. He was God in the flesh. When He was raised from the dead, He was Born Again! The Apostle Paul twice tells us, and in so many words, first in Colossians 1:18, that He was “the firstborn from the dead,” and next in Romans 8:29 that He was “the firstborn among many brethren.” And we, at the Resurrection, who will make up those “many brethren” will at last ourselves be Born Again, changed from mortal to immortal, changed from corruptible to incorruptible, and changed from flesh to spirit. Just as Jesus told Nicodemus, “That which is born of the spirit is spirit.”

This concludes our Discussion on John 3:1-12: "To Be Born Again?”
This Discussion was originally aired "live" on January 8th, 2015