Righteousness According to Works

Jesus Himself said that we were to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness in Matthew 6:31-33. If this righteousness is the ability to live right – we are simply brought into the law as we seek to fulfil the admonishments of Jesus by trying to keep rules.

If the requirement to be righteous rests solely on our ability to live according to a high moral standard, then we need to know what that standard is. Seeking righteousness through moral conduct inevitably leads to the introduction of a moral code. The emphasis on the church then becomes the necessity of adhering to that strict moral code. If must be a strict moral code otherwise we are simply not taking righteousness seriously enough. How can we be assured of our right-standing according to our works if we keep one rule, but not another? (See James 2:10).

It is at this point that Christians begin to buckle under the pressure of rule-keeping. The question is then asked, “Should Christians keep the Ten Commandments?” Anxious and insecure Christians often ask their pastor if a certain thing or mode of behaviour is permissible. Christian discussion boards are full of posts from Christians who are interested in knowing whether they are allowed to wear certain articles or clothes or have tattoos or whatever. Christian bookshops also assist these confused believers by offering bookshelves full of books which tell Christians what is acceptable and what is not.

This system of righteousness is never effective because it always leads to uncertainly regarding the “grey areas”: those areas which are not quite black or white in terms of certainty. A lot of pulpit preaching is focused on “helping” confused believers to know what is right and what is wrong. However, how are we to know whether the pastor is preaching according to divine revelation or from his own opinions?

Even if you are sure what is right and what is wrong – how can you be certain you will be able to live according to those rules one-hundred percent of the time? This is when the concept of post-crucifixion forgiveness of sins comes into play as believers are given the option to “get right” with God when they do sin.

We will continue this study in the next blog entry entitled: Righteousness According to Christ’s Efforts.