|
More on Righteousness
by Raymond C. Treat
When we exercise faith, repent and make a covenant with God by coming unto Jesus Christ, God calls us righteous (see Zarahemla Record #67). As part of the covenant-making process, we give God our outer garment, which is called filthy rags, and God puts his robe on us, which is called the robe of righteousness. This means our righteousness is by faith and is not something we have to earn (1 Nephi 3:117-118 [12: 10-11]; Alma 16:236 [34:36]; Romans 3:22). It is truly a blessing to finally realize the real definition of righteousness-God's definition.
Assuming that we have made a covenant by coming unto Christ and that we have continued in the covenant relationship through obedience and keeping the commandments, we have retained our righteous state in God's eyes. We are now in a position to look at the attributes of the righteous and realize that these attributes apply to us also. No longer can Satan continue to rob us of our inheritance by hiding the covenant relationship and God's definition of righteousness from us.
The following attributes of the righteous are taken from the Book of Mormon. Ponder them carefully. It is a great blessing to consider such a list. This list is made up of quotes and summaries. Turn to the references for exact wording and context.
The Righteous
are the saints IN 3:230-231 [14:14]
are the saints of the Holy One of Israel 2N 6:42 [9:18]
are the covenant people of the Lord IN 3:230-231 [14:14]; Mos 3:7 [5:6]
are those whose garments are made white in the blood of the Lamb of God because of their faith IN 3:117-118 [12:10-11]; Alma 16:236 [34:36]
humble themselves before the Lord IN 5:5 [16:5]
fear the name of the Lord 3N 11:19-23 [24:16-25:2]
have the power of God IN 3:230-231 [14:14]
have believed in the Holy One of Israel 2N 6:42 [9:18]
are willing to hearken to the truth IN 5:3 [16:3]
are willing to give heed to the truth IN 5:3 [16:3]
fear not the words of truth 2N 6:78 [9:40]
love the truth 2N 6:78 [9:40]
hearken unto the words of the prophets and destroy them not 2N 11:72 [26:8]
look forward unto Christ with steadfastness 2N 11:72 [26:8]
are baptized by water 2N 13:7 [31:5]
walk uprightly before God IN 5:3 [16:3]
walk in the paths of righteousness IN 5:5 [16:5] Alma 5:33 [7:19]
walk in the ways of the Lord Alma l4:74 [25:14]
serve God 3N 11:21 [24:18]
remember that the paths of the Lord are righteousness 2N 6:79-80 [9:41]
follow after righteousness 2N 5:70 [8:1]
keep the commandments of the Lord 2N 1:34 [1:19-20]
have faith, hope and charity Eth 5:29 [12:28]
abhor sin delight in righteousness 2N 6:98 [9:49]
delight in righteousness 2N 6:98 [9:49]
are they who have endured the crosses of the world and despised the shame of it 2N 6:42 [9:18]
are they whose joy shall be full forever 2N 6:42 [9:18]
are born again Mos 11:187-188 [27:25-26]
are born of God are changed from their carnal and fallen state to a state of righteousness Mos 11:188 [27:25]
are redeemed Mos 11:188 [27:25]
are justified 1N 5:2 [16:2]
are sons and daughters of God are new creatures Mos 11:188 [27:25]
bring forth good fruit Alma 3:60 [5:36]
are blessed Alma 3:32 [5:16]; Mn 3:22 [6:21]
bring forth works of righteousness Alma 3:32,59 [5:16,35]
shall reap the salvation of their souls Alma 7:43 [9:28]
receive healing 3N 11:23 [25:2]
will have their prayers remembered by the Lord Mn 2:50 [5:21]
do not murmur IN 5:3 [16:3]
are not shaken 2N 6:78 [9:40]
do not take bribes Alma 8:70-72 [11:22]
are spared Omni 1:9 [1:7]; Alma 10:2 [13:10]
need not fear 1N 7:37, 48 [22:18,22]; 3N 10:22 [22:14]
are far from oppression 3N 10:22 [22:14]
are far from terror 3N 10:22 [22:14]
put on the armor of righteousness 2N 1:38 [1:23]
have more power than Satan 1N 7:60, 62 [22:26]
no weapon formed against them shall prosper 3N 10:25 [22:17]
are not under the power of Satan Eth 3:102 [8:26]
shall not be destroyed 1N 7:35 [22:16]
shall not perish 2N 11:72 [26:8]
are divided from the wicked 1N 4:48, 62 [15:30, 36]
are suffered by the Lord to be slain that judgment may come upon the wicked Alma 27:29 [60:13]
are not lost because they are slain but they enter into the rest of the Lord their God Alma 27:29 [60:13]
are favored of God IN 5:122 [17:35]
it is well with them 2N 8:48 [13:10]
shall eat the fruit of their doings 2N 8:48 [13:10]
are happy 2N 1:90 [2:13]
know righteousness 2N 5:82 [8:7]
prosper 2 N 1:34 [1:20]
shall have all these things added unto them 3N 6:11 [13:33]
will be preserved 1N 7:36 [22:17]
are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God which was prepared for them from the foundation of the world 2N 6:42 [9:18]; Mos 11:188 [27:25-261; Alma 5:33 [7:19]
shall sit down in his kingdom to go no more out Alma 16:236 [34:36]
shall shine forth in the kingdom of God Alma 19:59 [40:25]
are led away into precious lands 1N 5:129 [17:38]
will be blessed in the land of promise forever 2N 1:6,15 [1:5, 7]
shall have an inheritance at the right hand of the Lord Alma 3:100 [5:58]
shall have their names written in the book of life Alma 3:100 [5:58]
are received into a state of happiness which is called paradise 2N 6:31 [9:13] Alma 19:44,47 [40:12,14]
wear the robe of righteousness 2N 3:56 [4:33]; 6:35 [9:14]
receive their righteousness from the Lord 3N 10:25 [22:17]
are clothed with purity 2N 6:35 [9:14]
are the people in whose heart I have written my law 2N 5:82 [8:7]
have the Lord dwelling in their heart Alma 16:235 [34:36]
shall be filled with the Holy Ghost 3N 5:53 [12:6]
Go over this list slowly, several times, keeping in mind that these attributes apply to you. This is not a complete list, so you may want to review all the references in your concordance referring to righteousness.
Saints
We see in the first attribute that the righteous are the saints. It is interesting that we all call ourselves saints but don't consider ourselves righteous. This is, of course, because our definition of righteousness has been wrong. Understanding our covenant gives us the correct definition of righteousness. Our increasing clarity of understanding about the covenant relationship goes hand-in-hand with the growing revelation of the Hebrew nature of the Book of Mormon. When we realize that an estimated 90 percent of all we know about the Hebrew nature of the Book of Mormon is about 10 years old or less, and that our awareness of the importance of the covenant relationship is about five years old or less, then it is easy to see that the Lord is indeed saving the best until last. The next time you talk to friends who are Book of Mormon believers, ask them if they are saints. If they say yes, ask them if they are righteous. If they say no, you can quote First Nephi 3:230-231 [14:14] and Second Nephi 6:42 [9:18] and tell them that if they are saints, they are righteous. If they do not believe or understand what you are saying, you can suggest a study of what the word of God says about these subjects. We now know that the covenant relationship is the most important subject of all scripture and we see from First Nephi 3:230 [14:14] that saints are the covenant people of the Lord. Conversely, if we do not have a covenant, we must not be saints.
Fear
We all have to deal with fear. We are told in Third Nephi 11:22-23 [25:1-2] that if we are righteous, we will fear the name of the Lord. If you will study the topic of the fear of the Lord, which refers to awe and reverence, you will find that it is a synonym for those who have a covenant (Psalm 25:14). We are also told in First Nephi 7:37,48 [22:17,22] and Third Nephi 10:22 [22:14] that we need not fear. Therefore, if we are righteous, that is, if we have a covenant and have the fear (reverence) of the Lord, we will be able to overcome all of the fear to which the world (those without a covenant) is subject. Fear is Satan's perversion of the faith of Christ. If we are exercising faith in every area of our lives, which is part of the covenant lifestyle, fear cannot enter. If the words that come out of our mouth are in harmony with the word of God, Satan cannot have entrance. The word of God tells us that the darts that Satan hurls at us are aimed at our tongue (James, chapter 3). Notice that no weapon formed against us shall prosper if we are living the righteous covenant lifestyle 3 Nephi 10:25 [22:17]). Fear is indeed a weapon of Satan in an attempt to keep us from acting in faith.
Prosper
Notice the prosperous nature of the righteous (2 Nephi 1:34 [1:19]). This attribute is in stark contrast to the common belief that the more poor we are the more holy we are. Satan wants us poor to hinder us from spreading the word of God. The word of God says the Lord gives us power to get wealth to establish the covenant (Deuteronomy 8:18) and that if we have a hope in Christ, which is obviously a characteristic of the righteous, we will prosper in order to do good (Jacob 2:23-24 [2:18-19]).
Land
Finally, a comment should be made about land. We are told in Second Nephi 1:6, 15 [1:5, 7] that the righteous will be blessed in the land of promise forever. One of the chief characteristics of the righteous (those with a covenant) is that they always receive an inheritance. We are looking forward to Zion. Zion is our inheritance, our land of promise. Therefore, if you are interested in an inheritance in Zion, you must be interested in the concept of righteousness according to God's definition.
We all need to go over this and other similar lists, spending enough time with them to allow the Holy Spirit to enlighten our spirits and correct any incorrect tradition we may have had about righteousness and related concepts. In the end it is the word of God which will stand-not our misconceptions. Go over this list until your definition of righteousness matches God's definition. Then you will be clothed with purity (2 Nephi 6:35 [9:14]) which we all recognize as a major prerequisite of Zion.
This article taken from the Zarahemla Record, issue 69 Sept/Oct 1993
|
