1170 - The Righteous and Those Who Do Righteousness#
1170 - The Righteous and Those Who Do Righteousness
(JP Text Group - Organized by the Life of the Eagle)
Scripture: 1 John 3:7-18
7 Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. 8 He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 9 Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God. 10 In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.
11 For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, 12 not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother's righteous.
13 Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. 15 Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has this world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?
18 My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.
Let us pray together:
Heavenly Father, we thank You especially. We are willing to receive Your words. Only by first receiving Your love can we live out the love of Christ and love one another; through this time, restore our faith once again. We believe that here, we will receive Your supply from heaven. Help us to live with Your strength, and let me also live out the glory of Christ before others. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, we pray, Amen!
We share a topic called: The Righteous and Those Who Do Righteousness
Brothers and sisters, how are we justified by God? By faith. Does it have anything to do with our actions? It does not. Many people say that just believing is not enough; if your actions do not change, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. This is not correct, because the Bible tells us, if you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth, you will be saved. It is very clear that those who believe in Jesus Christ have already been justified. Do you believe in Jesus Christ? If you believe, you are righteous.
Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
Why do we emphasize repeatedly that you are righteous? Because the righteous can inherit God's blessings and inheritance. It is equivalent to saying you are someone's son, which means you can inherit all his possessions, blessings, and identity. We are justified because we are called the children of God. As children of God, you will inherit various blessings from God.
It is not to say that if you do not believe in Jesus, you cannot receive God's grace. Every breath of air you take and every food you eat is given by God; this is also God's grace.
Matthew 5:45 For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
But after you accept Jesus and become a child of God, being justified, you can pray to God, and He will listen to your prayers. Thank the Lord, so after you are justified, you will receive many blessings from God, and these blessings are given to you freely, just like the air you breathe.
Many times, people complain to God because they forget their identity and forget God's power. At this time, people need to return to God and understand their identity; then they will inherit all kinds of inheritance and blessings that come from that identity. God hears the prayers of the righteous, God blesses the families of the righteous, and God protects the work of the righteous.
We share the first point: Only those justified by faith have the strength to do righteousness.
9 Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God. 10 In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.
In verse 9, the Greek meaning is: born of God, is not a sinner; here it is a noun. Because God's word remains in his heart, he can overcome sin. Because he possesses the life of God.
Who are the children of God and who are the children of the devil? It mainly depends on whether a person has accepted the Lord Jesus. If a person accepts the Lord Jesus, he is a child of God. The children of God will do righteousness and will also express love from within.
What does it mean to do righteousness?
Is it that we strive to become righteous? Many teachings say that you should be light and salt. No matter how hard a person tries, he cannot become light; no matter how hard he tries, he cannot become salt, because you are just a person, and no amount of effort can make you salt.
Jesus' original words are, You are the light, you are the salt. This means that light is Jesus Christ; He is within you, and you can emit this light. That is not your light. We think that we have done righteousness, as if righteousness is something we achieve through effort. In fact, you are just expressing the righteousness that is within you, which is the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Thank God.
Righteousness is a gift; your faith will bear fruit, which we call the fruit of righteousness. However, no matter how hard you try, you cannot achieve righteousness. If that were the case, you would have returned to being justified by works, not by faith. What does this mean? The passage we just read in chapter 3 mentions, See what kind of love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God. What does God want us to do? He wants us to love one another.
11 For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12 Not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother's righteous.
This entire passage talks about loving one another. It does not say that you must strive to become righteous and only after becoming righteous can you love your brother. Rather, God has already placed this love and righteousness within you, so you can love your brother. Therefore, we should love one another; this is the command we heard from the beginning, unlike Cain mentioned earlier.
Let me tell you the story of Cain:
Adam had two sons, one named Cain and the other Abel. Both were born of Adam.
The scripture we just read mentions, Do not be like Cain, who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. Why did he murder his brother? Because his works were evil.
To what extent was Cain's behavior evil? Why did he kill his brother? Because Cain's behavior was not good; he did not do righteousness. Here it mentions the behavior of Cain and Abel.
Let's look at this story together: Genesis 4:3-7
In the process of time, it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord. Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord respected Abel and his offering, but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”
Where is the difference in the behavior of the two? Can you see it? They both knew God.
Abel was a shepherd, and Cain was a farmer, and there was a difference in the offerings they brought to God. Other than that, there was no other difference; Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground. Abel brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. They simply offered different things. The Lord respected Abel and his offering.
Some people used to say that God liked meat and did not like grains, that Cain offered something from the ground, which God did not like.
Is it because our God likes to eat meat? Of course not.
If you do well, will you not be accepted?
Here, doing well does not refer to the goodness or badness of behavior but is related to the offering. Abel offered according to God's way, while Cain offered what he was pleased with to God.
To simply share the difference between these two, Abel offered the firstborn of his flock. In the Old Testament, many things are types and shadows, with the reality being in the New Testament. Abel's offering of the firstborn of his flock and their fat symbolizes Jesus Christ.
Because after Adam sinned, God made garments of skin for them in the Garden of Eden, to cover them. God wanted to tell them that the animal should not have died; it did not sin. Because you sinned, it had to die to cover your shame. Because it shed blood, you do not have to shed blood anymore.
After Adam heard this, he told his children about it, so both of them knew this, and they both understood why they were to offer sacrifices to God. However, the difference in their offerings made their behaviors completely different in God's eyes!
What does the blood of the animal represent? The sin offering. The lamb is to take away all my sins and die for our sins, so that people can be accepted by God.
Leviticus also mentions that when Israel sinned, they would bring clean animals like bulls, sheep, and doves to the priests. The priest would let him place his hands on the head of the sheep, saying, "All my sins are transferred to this sheep." Then the sheep would be killed, and its blood would flow out. At this time, the priest would say, "You can go back now, for your sins have been forgiven." Therefore, he was called righteous in God's eyes. Amen!
The Bible tells us, Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins. Only the innocent can die for us, so we can become innocent. This is the offering that Abel presented to God. As for Cain, he offered the produce of the ground, which may have been potatoes, corn, or wheat. Should these things be offered? Yes, brothers and sisters, there are five major offerings in Leviticus, including the firstfruits, but first, you must offer the sin offering.
If a person's sin is not removed, then no matter what he offers before God, God will not accept it. If sin is not removed, behavior will not be accepted. So when Abel offered the sacrifice through the blood of the animal, he was called righteous in God's eyes for what he did.
What did Cain do wrong? He did not offer a sin offering, which is why God could not accept him.
Both came before God, one was called righteous, and the other was not accepted by God. The key lies in how they came before God. Abel had the correct belief; in fact, Abel did nothing. The only difference between them was the offering. Everything else was the same. Why was Abel righteous? It was because he believed correctly. When he offered the lamb, he was justified by God.
Brothers and sisters, the offering we present before God is Jesus Christ. The efficacy of Jesus' precious blood lasts forever. So when Jesus willingly died for us on the cross and shed His blood, our sins were cleansed. God called us righteous.
Because of Jesus Christ, you are justified in God's eyes. If a person wants to please God through his good behavior, he will return to being under the law. No one can be justified by the law. The Bible tells us that Abel's blood was accepted by God, while Cain's offering of the produce of the ground was not accepted. Why can't the things from the ground remove sin? Because after Adam sinned, the ground was cursed. Offering something cursed to God is not acceptable. But what did God say? Let me explain this passage; it is very important.
When God did not accept Cain, Cain became very angry and his countenance fell. A person who thinks his behavior is good will get upset when you tell him his behavior is not good. He will say, "What did I do wrong? Look at all I have done, and you say this about me? You say I rely on myself?"
So Cain said, "Why? I worked hard to grow this, and I give it to you, and you still don't want it, and you say this and that, saying I don't do well enough." At this point, he became very angry and his countenance fell.
God is very patient and loving. God said, "Why are you angry? Why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? If you believe correctly, if you offer the lamb, will you not be accepted?"
Is this difficult for Cain? Not at all.
There is another sentence: If you do not do well, sin lies at the door. Its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.
Sin lies at your door; this "sin" in Hebrew also has another meaning, which is equivalent to a term that has several meanings, and another meaning is "sin offering." Here, using sin offering is better.
When you do not do well, the sin offering is right at your door, waiting for you to offer it to God.
When you feel that God does not love you enough, you need to return to Jesus Christ and meditate on what He has done for you. You will understand God's love and know that everything you have comes from God, not by your behavior. We need to correctly understand the Bible.
When Cain rejected the correct belief, the final result was that hatred and murderous thoughts arose in his heart. If we believe incorrectly, we will really start to hate this person and hate God. Many people, after believing in the Lord, become very resentful towards God, feeling that all disasters, all diseases, and all circumstances are intentionally given to them by God for their good, to test them, to tempt them.
Here we emphasize again that none of these come from God; disease, pain, and disaster do not come from God. God does not use these things to test His children because Jesus Christ wants to give us His love. This is what God wants to give us; He wants to give us His strength, to give us the sin offering, Jesus Christ.
When you feel that you are not doing well enough, God says the sin offering is right there with you. Take it and offer it to God, and you will be accepted by God. In the Old Testament, the Israelites did this to atone for their sins, and their behavior could be called righteous.
When you are attacked by the devil in your thoughts again, the devil will say, "You are not doing well enough!"
You need to return to God and say, "Lord Jesus, You have already died on the cross for my sins. I believe Your precious blood has cleansed all my sins, and I have been justified by God."
You must believe that you have the identity of the righteous. Only those justified by faith can do righteousness, and your behavior can be accepted by God. Your behavior is accepted by God because you have believed correctly in Jesus Christ. You believe that when I accept the Lord Jesus, all my sins are laid upon Jesus, and Jesus gives me His righteousness, holiness, and blessings. This is what we believe in justification by faith.
We share the second point: You must first receive in order to manifest God's love in your actions.
Isaiah 64:6
But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; we all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
When your sins have not been removed, all your righteous deeds are like filthy rags, and we all fade like leaves because sin is still upon us. If it were not for Jesus bearing our sins and removing our sins, no matter how much good you do, you are still unrighteous and filthy.
Let me give a simple example: If someone commits a crime and then runs away, and afterward he starts doing all kinds of good deeds, what he does afterward cannot replace his identity, no matter how much he does.
We have been talking about how Jesus Christ bore our sins on the cross. What does this sin refer to? The Bible uses a noun, which is a sinner. This sin comes from Adam because we are descendants of Adam.
When we believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and shed His precious blood, God no longer calls us sinners; we are justified by God, and our identity has changed because our sins have been removed.
Do you know how many sins Jesus bore for you? All the sins of your life. When the price of sin has been paid, from then on, when you do good deeds, God remembers them and rewards you. But if this person has not believed in Jesus, and his identity as a sinner has not been removed, no matter how many good deeds he does, God will not remember them.
Galatians 3:11-12
11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.” 12 Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.”
When you believe that the Lord Jesus has removed your sins, your heart changes. In God's eyes, your identity is no longer that of a sinner but is called righteous. The righteousness you do is not to live by doing good, but to enjoy God's blessings. And when you offer to the Lord, God will also reward you.
What is the difference between the New Testament and the Old Testament? In the passage from Galatians 3:11-12, it mentions that under the Old Testament law, doing righteousness was to be able to live. If you violated the law, the result was death.
Let me give another simple example: In the Old Testament, if an Israelite did not attend the assembly on the Sabbath and worked at home, he would be stoned to death. If you attended the assembly, you could live. The law has no love; it is entirely like a mirror. If you do well, you live; if you do not do well, you are cursed. God does not want us to live under the law; that is too painful.
Under grace, God has justified you because of Jesus. Even if you do not come, I do not encourage everyone not to come to the assembly; even if you do not come, you only suffer loss and do not receive supply. But if you come, God will give you strength, renewing you through His words, allowing you to experience His abundant blessings in your life.
When Cain offered the produce of the ground to God, God did not accept him because the way was wrong; while when Abel offered the blood of the lamb to God, God accepted him because of the blood of the offering.
Because of the blood of Jesus, our Heavenly Father has completely accepted you and what you offer.
Because of the Lord Jesus, you have been justified. God will remember everything you do for Him and will give you abundant rewards, which will be stored in heaven forever.
When we understand the love of Christ, we can truly love one another. This love is unconditional and willingly given.
Legalistic love comes from within a person. When others do not understand or reject it, that person immediately becomes angry like Cain, saying, "I have done so much for you, and you do not like me. What do you want?"
We need to love one another, but not from within ourselves, striving to achieve it. What should we do? To love one another, if you want to strive for harmony in the family, it is difficult. However, loving one another is simply the fruit that comes from believing correctly.
Luke 7:36-47
36 Then one of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him. And He went to the Pharisee's house and sat down to eat. 37 And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, 38 and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head, and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he spoke to himself, saying, “This man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner.”
40 And Jesus answered and said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” So he said, “Teacher, say it.” 41 There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both. Tell me, therefore, which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” And He said to him, “You have rightly judged.”
44 Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. 45 You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in. 46 You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil. 47 Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much; but to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.”
We have all read this passage. The house Jesus went to was that of a Pharisee. We have been talking about how the Pharisees have a characteristic: they believe in the law, uphold the law, and like to please God through their actions. He invited Jesus to dinner, but when it came time to sit down, he did not treat Jesus like the most honored guest.
In Jewish customs, if a guest is honored, when he comes to your house, you should first give him water to wash his feet and then anoint his head with oil. However, when Jesus came to this Pharisee's house, none of this happened. While they were eating, a woman, who may not have had a good reputation in that city, came in.
Everyone knew, including the Pharisee. The characteristic of the Pharisees is that they like to point out the sins of others and condemn others. When this woman came into his house and poured fragrant oil on Jesus' feet and began to weep... the Pharisee's view of this woman was completely different from Jesus' view of her. The Pharisee thought to himself that if this man were a prophet, he would know who was touching Him and what kind of woman she was, that she was a sinner.
Jesus did not condemn this woman, even though He knew what kind of person she was!
Only when we receive Christ's grace of not condemning can we live a life free from condemnation.
Romans 8:1 says: There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.
It is because the blood of Jesus has cleansed our sins that God no longer condemns us. We should not condemn others. Those sitting here are all beloved children of God, purchased by the precious blood of Jesus, so do not condemn them.
What did the Pharisee say?
39 When the Pharisee who invited Him saw this, he spoke to himself, saying, “This man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner.”
When a person boasts about his behavior, he will easily look down on others who are not as good as himself. It is clear that this Pharisee looked down on this woman. But Jesus did not condemn her; instead, He praised her.
Only when we receive correctly can we live correctly.
Jesus taught Simon, Do you see this woman? When I came into your house, you did not give Me water to wash My feet, but this woman, whom you call a sinner, has done what you did not do and wiped My feet with her hair.
The hair is the most precious thing for a woman; this woman used her glory to wipe Jesus' feet.
Then He said, You did not greet Me with a kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in. Why could this woman do such a thing? Because she understood that many of her sins had been forgiven by Jesus. She received Jesus' forgiveness, so she acted out of love.
How can Christians have the strength to do righteousness? When you understand how much Jesus has forgiven you, you will have that much love within you. When you find that you have made mistakes again, you need to return to Jesus Christ and say: "Lord, through this matter, I see my own weakness again, but at the same time, I know You have forgiven me for this sin. I live by receiving Your forgiveness."
When a person continually discovers Christ's forgiveness, he will continually be filled with Christ's love.
Once, Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, my brother sins against me seven times, and I have forgiven him." Jesus said, "You should forgive him seventy times seven." This is Jesus' forgiveness for us. Seven and seventy in the Bible represent completeness. Jesus' forgiveness for us is complete forgiveness. When a person understands this forgiveness, he can forgive others in life and live a free life without bondage.
And this woman knew that she had indeed committed many sins, but Jesus had forgiven her. She understood that each forgiveness was Jesus Christ's love for her.
Every time you feel weak, remember that Jesus has not given up on you; He still loves you. From what you can see in your life, Jesus continually uses His love to help your weaknesses, to help you out of various evils. When you understand how much Jesus loves you, you can love others, and the manifestation of that is righteous deeds.
Because she knew that her many sins were forgiven, therefore her love was great.
Why could Simon not love Jesus like this woman? In Simon's heart, he might think Jesus is just a prophet, but this woman is different; she understands that Jesus is her Lord. She understands that she has been forgiven much, so she receives much love.
The next sentence says, But he who is forgiven little loves little. What does this mean? Does it mean that Jesus' forgiveness for people varies in amount? No, Jesus Christ's forgiveness for us is the same; He has forgiven all our sins. It is just that some people feel that Jesus has forgiven them a lot, while others feel that Jesus has forgiven them little.
As we continually recognize the grace of Jesus Christ and understand His forgiveness for us, our hearts will increasingly receive His love. Unknowingly, good deeds will arise. God accepts us when we obey His words.
We cannot directly love Jesus Himself now; the only thing we can do is to express this love to the least of our brothers. And Jesus also said that when we do these things to the least of our brothers, we do them to Him. God will remember all that we have given.
16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has this world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? 18 My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.
We did not know how to love one another. But when we see Christ's love for us, that is selfless love, unconditional love, love that goes to the end. When we understand that Christ loves us so much, we can truly live out this love. We will selflessly help our brothers in need, and loving one another will not just be a slogan but will be manifested in actions and truth. The world will see that we are disciples of Christ. Thank the Lord.
Let us pray together:
Heavenly Father, we especially thank and praise You. Jesus Christ became the sin offering for us on the cross, paying the price for our sins, reconciling us with God. We are justified by faith. The more we understand Your love, the more we will live out Your love.
You desire for us to have abundant life. I receive Your words and live out the likeness of Christ. Please lead me in this new week. Grant me the wisdom I need at this moment. Let us do good deeds that not only glorify Your name but also elevate my life. Help me to know Your grace more.
Heavenly Father, thank You for loving me so much. Please continually renew my thoughts and intentions with Your words every day. Let me experience Your presence and power more in my life! In the name of the Lord Jesus, I pray, Amen!