we are in a series we started a series called the reality of righteousness two weeks ago and uh we were out of town last last Saturday so this is part number two and I want I've been excited to share this with you um you know when we understand what righteousness is really really to make it simple righteousness is to have right standing with God to have to be in right standing with the Lord and so in this part two I want to talk about the difference between self-righteousness and God's righteousness and the scripture says in Isaiah 64:6 now I'm I'm tonight what God called me to do is to teach the Bible I simply tell you and teach you what the Bible says I just put it all together to make it easy to understand but everything that I'm going to say to you tonight I'm going to back it up with scriptures from the Bible you should never just accept what some preacher tells you unless he can show it to you in the Bible because a lot of people believe things that are not right because some preacher told them but they never saw it in God's word for themsel that's why I share so many scriptures with you in Isaiah 64:6 it says this we have become contaminated with sin sins and you see our self righteousness as nothing more than a menstral rag now that's the passion Bible uh the passion translation and it's telling us that God you know God sees our self-righteousness like a rags and self-righteousness is when you think that you can be righteous with God you can have right standing with God because of the good things that you do that's what self-righteousness is in fact the dictionary defines self-righteousness like this it says self-righteousness is confidence in one's own righteousness especially when smugly moral moralistic and intolerant of the be the opinions and the behavior of others it is the idea that we can somehow generate within ourselves a righteousness that will be acceptable to God now we have to guard against self-righteousness CU self-righteousness really is pride and I don't know if there's a sin that God hates more than self-righteousness Jesus made it very clear in uh Luke chapter 18 he he in verse number nine it says to some who were confident of their own righteousness and look down on everyone else you see someone who's self-righteous looks down on other people he says to some who were confident of their own right and look down on everyone else Jesus told this Parable two men went up to the temple to pray one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector now the Pharisees in Jesus day were very religious people tax collectors on the other hand they were Jewish people who worked for the Roman government they would take tax from the Jewish people and often they would take extra for themselves and they were considered Crooks they were hated by the Jewish people because they were really robbing their own people to line their pockets and so when Jesus the Bible says Jesus was a friend of tax collectors and Sinners and the religious Pharisees could not understand how Jesus would be a friend to a tax collector so now Jesus tells this Parable to illustrate what self-righteousness is and he talks about two men one's a Pharisee one's a tax collector they go to the temple and in verse 11 it says the Pharisees stood by himself and prayed God I thank you I'm not like other people robbers evil doers adulterers even like this tax collector I fast twice a week and I give a tenth of all that I get but the tax collector stood at a distance he would not even look up into heaven he beat his breast and said God have mercy on me a sinner I tell you that this man rather than the other went home Justified before God for all those who exalt themselves will be humbled and those who humble themselves will be exalted and the Amplified Bible says that this man went home Justified forgiven of the guilt of sin and placed in right standing with God now Justified means to be declared righteous and the Bible says that this Pharisee who who was who said I fast twice a week and that's good there's nothing there's nothing wrong in fasting twice a week he said I tithe of everything I get and that's good it's a good thing to do that but when you do that because you are depending on your Works to be right with God then it becomes like a filthy rag in God's sight are you following me so far you cannot be made righteous with God by doing good things that's called self-righteousness and I really believe it's one of the deadliest mistakes that we can ever make is to think that you're a good person Jesus said there's nobody who is good except God and if you think you're a good person and you're good enough to earn your own way into heaven Jesus said this to those who were confident of their own righteousness who is that I would say the vast majority of Americans and not just Americans but people in general think they're good they have a self righteousness if you ask somebody are you a good person how many people will tell you no I'm a bad person they'll say yeah I'm a good person if you said to them as I've asked many many people if there is a heaven do you think you're going to you're going to go there they'll say yes I think so and when you ask them why why do you think that you would go to heaven they say well I've lived a pretty good life that's the first thing they'll tell you I'm a I'm a good person they're confident of their own righteousness they're confident that they're good enough to get to heaven are you with me but there is nobody who is good enough or can do enough good things to earn their way into heaven righteousness is a gift from God it cannot be earned no matter what you do you cannot earn a gift all you can do is receive it by putting your faith in what Jesus did for us by his death on the cross and the scripture says in Romans 3:20 no one say no one can ever be made right in God's sight by doing what the law commands for the more we know of God's laws the clearer it becomes that we aren't obeying them his laws serve only to make us see that we are sinners the laws of God are not given so that you obey them and get to heaven the laws are given so you realize that you're the sinner Galatians 2:6 says this we know that that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ not by obeying the law and we have believed in Christ Jesus so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ not because we've obeyed the law for no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law the passion translation of that same scripture puts it like this we know that no one receives God's perfect righteousness as a reward for keeping the law but only by the faith of Jesus the Messiah his faithfulness has saved us and we have received God's perfect righteousness now we know that God accepts no one by the keeping of religious laws why is that because nobody can keep the law perfectly only Jesus Christ fulfilled the law anyone who tries to become righteous or have right standing with God by following God's laws is simply trying to earn righteousness but it cannot be earned it can only be received as a gift through faith in Jesus Christ Romans 6:23 says for the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our lord and in Ephesians 2:8 it says for by Grace you have been saved through faith and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God now this is true for every do you know that every religion in the world world is based upon what you do every single religion you name it it's based upon what you do to earn right standing With God all the world's religions are based upon this based upon the good things you do which is self righteousness in the Muslim religion Islam Muslims have the same attitude of self-righteousness like the Pharisees because Muslims like the Pharisees believe that if you do certain things you will become righteous When you pray if you pray to Allah facing the East if you grow a beard if you cover your face ladies there's all kinds of certain laws you have to obey to be a good Muslim and to make make it into heaven Jehovah's Witnesses have certain laws that you have to do you have to be out there knocking on doors you have to be doing good deeds Jewish people try to establish their own righteousness even many even there's many Christians that are caught up in this trap of trying to earn their own righteousness before God by doing certain things now I'm going we're going to in the next week I'm going to share with you how that we should be doing good things we should be following the law but we don't do it because we're trying to earn right standing with God we already have right standing with God through faith in Christ and now I'm going to talk next week we'll talk about pursuing righteousness but today I want us to understand the clearly the difference between self-righteousness and God's righteousness in Romans 10:3 it says for they being ignorant of God's righteousness and seeking to establish their own righteousness have not submitted to the righteousness of God for Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes praise God the passion translation says it like this since they've ignored the righteousness that God gives wanting instead to be acceptable to God because of their own Works they refus to submit to God's faith righteousness for Christ is the end of the law and because of him God has transferred his perfect righteousness to all who believe we read the scripture last week in 2 Corinthians 5:21 where it says God made Christ who knew no sin to become sin for us so that we could be made the righteousness of God so Jesus the son of God this is what separates Jesus from every other religious figure Jesus was God the son came from heaven born in the earth of a virgin lived a perfect life and came to this Earth for one reason to become sin in exchange give us his righteousness and we receive it by faith in what he did now the Jewish people were under the mistaken belief that if they clung to and obeyed the law of Moses they would attain righteousness in God's eyes however the Apostle Paul who wrote more than half the New Testament he repeatedly taught that nobody would be made righteous by keeping the law in Galatians 2:21 Paul said I do not set aside the grace of of God cuz if righteousness comes through the law then Christ died in vain you see if you and I could be saved and made right with God by following the Old Testament law or by doing good deeds then Jesus died for nothing he didn't need to come to the earth now the Apostle Paul who wrote this was very religious prior to his conversion when Jesus appeared to Paul on the on the road to Damascus his name in those days was Saul and he was on his way to persecute Christians have them thrown in jail even killed when Steven was killed in Acts chapter 6 Paul was right there stirring up the crowd and holding the people's clothes while they stoned him to death Paul was a very religious Pharisee he meticulously kept the law of Moses yet he was not saved because in his letter to the church in Philippi he listed his Heritage and his achievements and his credentials and then he pointed out that none of this accumulated toward his righteousness before God Paul wrote in Philippians chapter 3 he said though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could indeed if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts I have even more I was circumcised when I was 8 days old I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel I'm a member of The Tribe of Benjamin I'm a real Hebrew if there ever was one I was a member of the Pharisees who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church and as for righteousness I obeyed the law without fault I once thought these things were valuable but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord for his sake I've discarded everything else counting it all garbage so that I could gain Christ and become one with him I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law rather I become righteous through faith in Christ for God's way of making us right with himself depends on faith now Paul wrote to the Galatians because they were reverting to to try to keep the law to be righteous and Paul wrote to them and he said even Abraham who's their the father of the Jewish nation and the father of our faith he said even Abraham was counted as righteous because of his faith not because he obeyed the law in Galatians 3:3 it says how foolish can you be after starting your new lives in the spirit why you now trying to become Perfect by your own human effort have you experienced so much for nothing surely it was not in vain was it I ask you again does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law of course not it is because you believe the message you heard about Christ in the same way Abraham believed God and God counted him as right because of his faith The Real Children of Abraham then are those who put their faith in God now Abraham was not made righteous like we are made righteous because we are made the righteousness of God through Christ Abraham was counted as righteous in fact the new King James says Abraham believe God it was accounted to him for righteousness The New International Version says it was credited to him as righteous it doesn't say G that Abraham was made righteous it says that it was credited to him it was counted to him now the dictionary defines the word credited as the provision of money goods or services with the expectation of a future payment the reason Abraham was considered or credited with righteous because Jesus would come and pay that bill but in the Old Testament before Jesus came to the Earth they could not be made righteous because Jesus hadn't come to the Earth Jesus hadn't taken our sin so God credited Abraham with righteousness because Jesus would come and the future payment for us to be made righteous he would make that payment and all those who came after Abraham were counted righteous because of their faith just like Abraham was counted righteous because of his faith are you with me so far in Romans chapter 4:6 Paul wrote to the church he said David King David spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it oh what joy for those whose disobedience is Forgiven whose sins are put out of sight yes what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin now is this blessing only for the Jews or is it also for the uncircumcised Gentiles that's us well we have been saying that Abraham was counted as righteous by God because of his Faith how did this happen was he counted as righteous only after he was circumcised or was it before he was circumcised clearly God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised circumcision was a sign that Abraham had faith and that God had already accepted him and declared him to be righteous even before he was circumcised so Abraham is the spiritual father of those who have faith but have not been circumcised they are counted as righteous because of their faith now the Bible says Abraham was counted as righteous he was credited with righteousness he was not made righteous the same way that we are today because Jesus hadn't come to the Earth yet that's why in the Old Testament when Abraham died Abraham didn't go to heaven cuzz he wasn't born again and the Bible says unless you're born again you cannot see the kingdom of God so when Abraham died he went to a place called Paradise or Abraham's bosm and Jesus himself spoke about this in Luke chapter 16 when he told the story of the rich man and a beggar named Lazarus they both died in Luke 16:22 it says so it was the bigger died and he was carried by the Angels where to Abraham's bosom the rich man also died and he was buried the living Bible says that Lazarus was carried by the angels to be with Abraham in the place of the righteous dead and the passion Bible says Lazarus and the angels of God came and escorted Lazarus died and the angels of God came and escorted him Spirit into Paradise so when the Old Testament Saints died and they had faith and they were counted righteous they would go to Abraham's bosom or Paradise because they were waiting for Jesus to come to the Earth and pay the price and then they would leave that Abraham's bosom and they would go up into heaven let me carry on reading in Luke 16:23 it says the rich man also died and being in torments in Hades now that's hell he lifted up his eyes and he saw Abraham a far off and he saw Lazarus in his bosom and then he cried out and he said Father Abraham have mercy on me and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue for I am tormented in this flame now some people don't believe there is a hell they don't believe hell is a place of Torment they don't believe hell is real you need to tell Jesus that Jesus didn't know that you know more than he does let me tell you there is a hell it's a place of torment and it's very real when you die there's two options you go to heaven or you go to hell there's no other option this rich man died and he woke up in Hell In torment and he looked across and he saw Abraham now today when a person dies and go to hell you don't look across and see someone in heaven they were way up in heaven but in that time they were waiting at Abraham's bosom and it was a waiting place and the people in Hell could see them are you with me so far it was a waiting place in the center of the Earth where hell is located but it wasn't a place of torment and this existed until Jesus came to the Earth and he paid the price for us to be made righteous and he took our sin and after Jesus resurrection Abraham's bosom Paradise was emptied because the Old Testament saints went to heaven with Jesus in fact when Jesus was resurrected from the dead the Bible says in Matthew 27 when Jesus rose from the dead says behold the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom and the earth quaked and the Rocks were split and the graves were opened and many bodies of the Saints who had fallen asleep were raised and coming out of the graves after his resurrection they went into the holy city and they appeared to to many why why did they rise CU When Jesus rose from the dead all those Old Testament saints that had been waiting for him they rose up with him and when Jesus went to heaven they went with him so when you go to heaven now you'll see Abraham there he's not in Abraham's bosom anymore why because he wasn't born again Jesus hadn't come he was considered credited as righteous because of his faith are you with me so far it wasn't because Abraham kept the law it was because of his faith again Romans 3:20 no one can ever be made right in God's sight by doing what the law commands for the more we know of God's laws the clearer it becomes that we aren't obeying them his laws so only to make us see that we are sinners so the law of God is good and the law of God is Holy but it cannot save us or make us righteous it serves to show us our sin in Romans 7:7 the Apostle Paul wrote this he said am I suggesting that the law of God is sinful of course not in fact it was the law that showed me my sin I would never have known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said you must not cover you with me in Galatians 3:9 Paul said why then was the law given at all it was given alongs side the promise to show people their sin but the law was designed to last only until the coming of the seed the child who was promised the law was only to last as long until the seed came who's the seed who's the seed remember way back in Genesis when Adam and Eve sinned and ate of the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil God said to the serpent who who who had deceived and and tempted them in Genesis 3:15 God said to the serpent really talking to the devil I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed he shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel now that was a prophecy of Jesus coming to the Earth because a woman doesn't have a seed women don't have seed woman provide the egg the man provides the seed and the Egg germinates with the the seed germinates with the egg and a baby's born when God said her seed women don't have seed he was prophesying that the Savior Jesus would come to the Earth not by any human being it would be he would be born supernaturally the Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary and she conceived it wasn't about human being God himself planted himself into Mary's womb and when that's why when he was born he was born without sin the Son of God do you understand that now the law was given until Jesus came the seed and he came to save us the law was given to show us that we need a savior just when you think you're good I'm a good person not quite as good as you think we we all need a savior there is none that is good only God God never intended that we get saved by obeying the law in Galatians 3:21 it says is the law contrary and opposed to the promises of God of course not for if a law had been given which could confer spiritual life then righteousness and right standing with God would certainly come by obeying the law but the scripture picture all mankind as Sinners shut up and imprisoned by sin so that the blessing of Salvation which was promised through faith in Jesus Christ the Messiah might be given to all those who believe in him there is only one way to be made right with God and that is by believing that Jesus is the Messiah the Savior the Son of God who came to the Earth died on a cross took your sin rose from the dead and confessing him as the Lord of your life having faith in him that is the only way to be made right with God there is no other way there is no other person no religion no religious leader there's nothing you can do Jesus did what we cannot do cuz we are all born Sinners can you say Amen somebody if you try to be righteous by obeying the law if you break just one point of the law you're guilty of breaking it all that's what the Bible says James 2:10 for the one who attempts to keep all of the law of Moses but fails in just one point has become guilty of breaking the law in every respect so when we look down on someone because they sin different to the way we sin no matter what you no matter what you do if you break one point you're guilty of breaking it all no one can be made righteous by keeping the law because no one can keep the law all the time that's what it was given to show us we can't do it the law was given to point out sin not to make us righteous the law is pointing us to Christ Galatians 3:23 before the way of faith in Christ was available to us we were placed under God by the law we were kept in protective cust custody so to speak until the way of Faith was revealed let me put it in another way the law was our Guardian until Christ came it protected us until we could be made right with God through faith The New American Standard Bible says it like this the law has become our Guardian to lead us to Christ and now that the way of faith has come we know longer need the law as our Guardian for you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus now the only one who ever kept the law perfectly was Jesus he said in Matthew 5:17 do not think I came to destroy the law or the prophets I did not come to destroy but to fulfill Jesus kept the law perfectly but he wasn't made righteous by the law Jesus was born righteous he did not inherit Adam's sinful nature he was born of God the Father God was his father father son Holy Spirit Jesus came to the Earth left heaven where he seated next to the father left heaven took upon himself human flesh born perfect and righteous and sinless and he came to this Earth for one reason to take our sin and to give us his righteousness and we receive this righteousness this right standing with God simply by faith that's why it's called good news so let's not be self-righteous where we trust our own Good Deeds to save us and we pridefully look down on other people and we judge other people you know Christians can be the most judgmental people of anybody why because they think they're better I'm better than you cuz I do this and you do that no you're not better it's only because of Jesus our faith in Jesus that's what saves us let's never be self-righteous in Romans 14:1 it says offer an Open Hand of fellow fellowship and to welcome every True Believer even though their faith may be weak and immature and refuse to engage in debates with them concerning nothing more than opinions I can't I cannot believe how many Christians are at odds with each other in debates and it's all based upon their own opinion it's all on their own opinion for example one believer has no problem with eating all kinds of food but another with weaker faith will not will will will eat only vegetables the one who eats freely shouldn't judge and look down on the one who eats only vegetables and the vegetarian must not judge and look down on the one who eats everything remember God has welcomed him and taken him as his partner who do you think you are to sit in Judgment of someone else's servant his own Master is the one to evaluate whether he succeeds or fails and God's servants will succeed for God's power supports them and enables them to stand and in Romans 2:1 it says you may think you can condemn such people but you are just as bad and you have no excuse when you say they are wicked and they should be punished isn't that what Christians do oh man I can't believe they are evil and wicked I wish God would do something to them when you say they are wicked and they should be punished you are condemning yourself for you who judge others do the very same things and we know that God in his Justice will punish anyone who does such things now what things was God talking about what is the scripture what things were they doing that we mustn't judge and we mustn't condemn well just go to before in chap 1 and see what he's talking about Romans chapter 1 it says so God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired as a result they did vile and degrading things with each other's bodies they traded the truth about God for a lie so they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself who is worthy of Eternal praise amen that is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires even the woman turned against the natural way to have sex and indulged in sex with each other I'm just reading the Bible don't get mad at me I'm just reading from the Bible here and the men instead of having normal sexual relations with women they burned with lust for each other men did shameful things with other men and as a result of the sin they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserve since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do the things that should never be done their lives became full of every kind of wickedness sin greed hate Envy murder quarreling deception malicious behavior gossip they are backstabbers haters of God insolent proud boastful they invent new ways of sinning they disobey their parents they refuse to understand they break their promises they are heartless they have no Mercy they know God's justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die yet they do them anyway worse yet they encourage others to do them too now for me one of the worst things and blights on humanity is abortion and yet there are people who will fight for the right to murder their baby now if someone's had an abortion I know people who have God will forgive you God will cleanse you I'm not trying to condemn you but there are Christians who defend abortion we are not to we don't agree with these things the Bible's not saying that we should agree with them but we are not to look down and judge anyone who does these things we're not to debate our opinions we are to preach the good news of the Gospel to them people do not get saved because you preach moral good morals and they should have good morals people get saved because they hear the good news about Jesus Romans chapter 1 verse 16 says that it says Paul said I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ it's the power of God to Salvation to everyone who believes to the Jew first and also to the Greek for in it in the go in it in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed from Faith to Faith it is WR as it is written the just shall live by faith Paul said I'm not ashamed to preach the gospel because that's what reveals the righteousness of God the New Living Translation says it like this this Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight and this is accomplished from start to finish by faith as the scriptures say it is through faith that a righteous person has life can you say Amen people are made righteous and made right with God where you can come boldly before God say father says yes my child yes my son what can I do we have right standing with God through faith and faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God our job is to preach the good news of the Gospel we're not trying to make people live right or preach again we don't condone sin we expose it but we preach good news to people who are committing sins we don't judge and look down on them like we better than them if it wasn't for the grace of God where would I be John 3:1 16 says for here is the way that God loved the world he gave his only son as a gift so now everyone who believes in him will never perish but have everlasting life God did not send his son into the world to judge and condemn the world but to be its Savior and to rescue it and God has sent us to share that message God is Not condemning you no matter what you've done no matter where you are Jesus came to save you to cleanse you to make you right with God and to transform your your your heart God's not condemning people He sent Jesus because he loves people now if we don't believe and we don't receive if we we hear the gospel and we don't believe it and we don't receive it we condemn ourself Jesus said that Jesus said in Mark 16 I'll close with this he said go into all the world and preach the gospel preach the good news to Every Creature he who believes and is baptized will be saved but he who does not believe will be condemned you see we God doesn't condemn us we condemn ourself to an eternal hell by rejecting what Jes the gospel by rejecting what Jesus did but if we will receive it and if we will believe it the Bible says that we will be made righteous and have right standing with God because of Jesus and what he did can you say amen amen say thank you Lord thank you Lord that I am righteous in your sight I have right standing with you not because of what I do come on say it not because I keep the law say I have right standing with you Lord because I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God who died for me who took my sin and gave me his righteousness and Jesus I believe you've been raised from the dead you are Lord of my life and I thank you that you have cleansed me I thank you that I am made righteous I have right standing with God Heaven is my home in Jesus name amen praise the Lord did you get something out of that tonight well give the Lord some praise and thanks for his word it is for me it's Understanding God's word that changed my life and my job God called me to help you to understand these truths from God's word you cannot know it unless somebody explains it to you amen