Righteousness

I was preparing stuff for a discussion I have to lead at one of my after school clubs, TLC, and I started thinking about righteousness. Righteousness is defined in the dictionary by the state of being right in a moral sense. I don't really like this definition, so I redefined it as being right with God. In the book of Philippians 3, Paul describes his previous life. He calls himself a Pharisee, or one who follows the religious law. He was found blameless when it came to following the law. However, later in the book he says that it was all a loss. I wondered why Paul thought that following the law was a loss, because the law is a very important part of righteousness, especially in his time. I heard a sermon on the radio that described this concept in a very good way. The speaker said that the law is necessary because it exposes wrong in our lives, which is true. Obeying the law seems a good way to "fix" our sin problem, but actually it is not. The problem with the law is that the whole concept of it is focus on human effort. The law is a way for people to create their own righteousness, which they cannot. Following the law will not make us righteous, because following the law is based on our works which cannot make us right with God. The law misses the whole point of what I am going to talk about next, grace. The key to becoming righteous is not to follow the law, but to have faith in Christ and his death and resurrection. Only by faith in Christ can we achieve righteousness, because faith is not based on our effort, but rather on grace. The grace of God gave us the chance to have a relationship with God through Jesus, and through this relationship we can become right with God. We cannot find righteousness in ourselves, but only in Christ Jesus. I want to conclude with this analogy. Imagine driving in an unfamiliar area, trying to reach a destination. You see a man walking to you, so you ask him for directions. He tells you how to get there, but it is very complicated. This is like the law. The law is a set of "directions" for how to reach a destination, with you driving your life. Back to the analogy; imagine instead of the man giving you directions, he offers to drive you to your destination. This is no problem for the man, because he knows the destination you need to get to, and how you will get there. This is like faith in Christ. He knows where you need to go, and how you will get there. Also, Christ is "driving" your life, rather than yourself. This is the difference between the law and faith. Stop trying to direct your life, let God get you to where He knows you need to go.
-Smart