David wrote in regards to the righteous, "The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth. The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all; he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken (Psalm 34:15-20)." The righteous that David is referring to are those who have the right standing before God. To be in the right standing before God is to be accepted by God, and we are accepted by God through our faith in the Lord Jesus (Romans 10:9-13). Being a good person or our good works are not enough to be righteous before God (Ephesians 2:8-9). First of all, we must be forgiven of our sins. We are forgiven of our sins the moment we believe in the Lord as our Lord and Savior.
Then, after we are forgiven of our sins, the Holy Spirit will come into our hearts to begin to change us so that we can do good or become good people. We are good because of what God is doing in our hearts. God is the one who is making us good, not ourselves. Let us stop trying to be good people by our own strength and will, but let God change us by submitting ourselves to God. We must absolutely surrender our lives to God so that we can be in the right standing before Him. Our good works are only accepted when we first surrender our lives to God. For us who have already made the decision to surrender our lives to God, we are righteous before God. As a result, God is watching over us. He hears our cries and delivers us from all troubles. God is close to us when we are brokenhearted and comforts us with His loving arms.
Let us be thankful for what Christ Jesus has done on the cross because it was through the cross that God made us righteous. God is the one who made us righteous, not our good works. Our good works are the result of the changes that God is doing in our hearts. One of the evidence that we are saved is through the changes that are happening in our hearts, and this is the reason we cannot fake our faith in our Lord Jesus.
Questions for application: (Think through these questions carefully, meditate on them while answering them, and let the Spirit of God speak to you). What must I do to be righteous? Do I believe that God is the only one that can make me good? Am I surrendering my life to God every day?
Write down all the worries you face today and lift them up to God.
Prayer:
Father in Heaven, thank you for declaring me righteous through my faith in the Lord Jesus and changing my heart through the work of the Holy Spirit within me. Thank you for everything that you have done in my life. Thank you that you are always watching over me and delivering me from all my troubles, and when I am brokenhearted, your presence comfort and save me. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.