Purpose Four: To Bring in Everlasting Righteousness Home


Purpose Four: To Bring in Everlasting Righteousness Home


Daniel 9:24 KJV
Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation [atonement] for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.

The word here used for Righteousness, is the same word that is sometimes translated as just. For instance in Habakkuk 2:4 "the just shall live by his faith."

Romans 3:9-10 "....For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. As it is written: 'There is none righteous, no, not one;'" Paul makes the connection that sin prevents righteousness. Looking at Romans 3:9-10, we can ascertain that the biblical definition of righteousness would be to live a perfect life, to be without sin, and to be just. No human being living in the flesh is righteous because all have sinned. This is why Isaiah says his righteousness is as of filthy rags.

Since righteousness translates to perfection and sinlessness, then whenever everlasting righteousness is brought in, would have to mean that sinless living would exist that lasts forever. So once this righteousness is brought in, no sin could be present for whom it was brought in for.

In Mark 10:18 Jesus states, "there is none good but one, that is, God." This echoes Isaiah's statement that His righteousness, the same as ours, "are as filthy rags."

Romans 3:10-12 KJV
10as it is written, "THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE; 11THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD 12ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE."

Psalm 14:3 KJV
They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

Ecclesiastes 7:20 KJV
For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.

"Do you know what scramble golf is? It's golf where you play with a foursome and the best score of the foursome on the whole is the score for everybody. Now I don't play much golf, I used to. My friends say I never did, but if I could play scramble golf I could do that. And you put Tiger Woods on my team I would be a great golfer! Thats what God has done for us. He's allowed us to play scrambled life, and Jesus' score which is always perfect, is our score. In other words the righteousness He lived out in His perfect life, has now, if you're a believer has been given to you. That makes you perfect even when you are not! It may not seem important, but when God tallies up the score, it will be the only thing that is!" - Steve Brown "Key Life Network"

If we are going with the Dispensational view, this prophecy pertains to all Israel, not the earth. Therefore this purpose must then be fulfilled by Israel. The Lord our righteousness (Jer 23).

Dr. John Walvoord stated that in verse 16 "Daniel recognized, nevertheless, that it must be 'according to all thy righteousness.' Here is implied the whole system of reconciliation to God by sacrifice, supremely fulfilled in Jesus Christ.'" pg. 212 (John Walvoord - The Blessed Hope)

1 John 2:29 KJV
If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him.

Galatians 2:21 KJV
I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

Galatians 3:21 KJV
Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.

Galatians 3:6 KJV
Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

Ephesians 4:24 KJV
And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Philippians 1:11 KJV
Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.

Philippians 3:9 KJV
And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

Romans 5:17 KJV
For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)

Romans 6:19-20 KJV
19I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. 20For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.

1 Corinthians 1:30 KJV
But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

2 Corinthians 5:21 KJV
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Romans 1:17 KJV
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. Or it could be said the Righteous shall live by faith.

Romans 3:21-23 KJV
21But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; 22Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: 23For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Romans 4:5 KJV
But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

Does our fleshly body become righteous when we are saved? The answer is no, because "of ourselves", in the flesh, we are not righteous (cf. Romans 3:10); and any righteousness we do have is as of filthy rags (cf. Isaiah 64:6). However, in the spirit, we are righteous because Christ's righteousness is accounted to us! Therefore even though we are not righteous in the flesh, we are righteous in the spirit!
James 2:23 KJV
And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.

If we believe in God and His Word, Christ's righteousness is accounted unto us, just as it was for Abraham. This means that the righteousness of Christ's is also ours.

Christ is the first fruits of all who believe (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:20), and as the scripture states "For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches." (Romans 11:16) We are no longer living, rather Christ is living through us (cf. Galatians 2:19-21). Since Christ is righteous, then the life in which we now live is righteous as well.

1 John 5:10-11 KJV
He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. 11And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

When we believe the testimony of God, we receive eternal life, which is in Christ, God the Son.
1 John 4:9 KJV
In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.

Galatians 2:19-21 KJV
19For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. 20I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. 21I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

This is why we must die daily to our flesh so Christ can live through us. If we do not die daily to our flesh, then our flesh is drawn away by [it's] own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. (cf. James 1:14-15) This is why we must live by faith and shows the importance of Hebrews 10:38 when it states "The just shall live by faith".

We as Christians may sin in the flesh on occasion, however, since we received in faith the atonement Christ provided for our sins on the cross; our [past and present] lawless deeds are remembered no more. (cf. Hebrews 10:17) We have now been accounted to be righteous and without sin "because as He [Christ] is, so are we in this world" (1 John 4:17) Since Christ's righteous and sinless record is accounted to us, we can have boldness in the Day of Judgment, because as He is, so are we in this world! (cf. 1 John 4:17) But wait, all Christians are perfect and sinless?

1 John 1:7 KJV
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

1 John 5:18 KJV
We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.

Hebrews 10:16-18 KJV
16This is the covenant that I will make with them [the Jews] after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; 17And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. 18Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

Romans 6:18 KJV
Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

1 John 3:3-9 KJV
3And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. 4Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. 5And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. 6Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him. 7Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. 8He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. 9Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

I believe many times the reader misunderstands the above verses. Even the preacher preaching them knows that they occasionally sin. And essentially what these verses are saying is that if we sin, we are not saved.

So if when we are saved we become sinless, what about Romans 3:23? Romans 3:23 deals with our lives in the flesh without faith. In the flesh all have sinned, however as laid forth; in the spirit by faith in Christ, His sinlessness is accounted to us. Paul actually explains this very well, using his own life as an example. Romans 7:19-20 "For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. 20Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me." James 4:17 "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin." From James 4:17 we know that even though Paul was saved, he still sinned in his flesh. But what Paul was explaining was that if we sin it is not us that sin, but rather our flesh that dwells in us. This almost sounds like the worldly saying "The devil made me do it." This sin is the outcome of the warring of our flesh with the warring of our spirit (cf. Romans 7:22-23). When we sin, it is not us that sins, but our flesh. If we have faith and believe on Christ's finished work, then His sinless life is accounted to us, therefore in Gods eyes we are perfect. That is why Hebrews 11:6 states "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." 2 Corinthians 5:16-17 "Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. 17Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." 2 Corinthians 5:21 "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." 2 Corinthians 5:16 makes it clear, today we are no longer seen in the flesh by God, rather only in the spirit. If you truly understand this concept it will change your life forever. Verse twenty-one shows us that we become "the righteousness of God" if we are in Christ. Think about it, in the spirit you are just as righteous as God! This has nothing to do with anything you have done, but because of Christ's work and your faith, His righteousness is accounted to all who believe. Therefore anyone that is saved is no more righteous than anyone else that is saved! If any Christian was more righteous than another Christian, then they would have to be more righteous than God! What I find to be interesting is that Christians have no problems believing that when they are saved they are now righteous, however when it comes to being sinless they do have a problem. Even though Romans 3:10 states "There is none righteous, no, not one", many still have no problem believing they could be righteous. The fact is however, that sin is just like righteousness. In our flesh we can not be righteous or sinless; our righteousness is as of filthy rags and all have sinned. (cf. Isaiah 64:6, Romans 3:23) Titus 3:5 "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost" Philippians 3:9 "And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith" However just like sinlessness, righteousness is accounted to us, just as it was to Abraham when he believed God! (cf. Genesis 15:6, Psalm 106:31, Romans 4:3, Galatians 3:6, James 2:23) Romans 4:5 "But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Ephesians 4:24 "And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." 1 Corinthians 1:30 "But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption" Romans 10:3 "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God." When we believe, the results are everlasting! This is why it says we have passed from death into life. Since only the righteous can inherit heaven, the only way to enter heaven is to believe on Christ and have His righteousness accounted to you. John 5:24 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." We pass from death to life, because in the spirit we have been freed from sin and are without sin. Since Christ lives within us we can now labor in righteousness, as we labor through Christ. 1 Peter 2:24 "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed." Romans 1:17-18 "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. 18For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;" Everlasting righteousness is brought in through Christ's death and by no other means! Romans 8:3-5 "For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: 4That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 5For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit." ----------------------------------- In a sermon by George Whitefield entitled "The Righteousness of Christ, an Everlasting Righteousness", George expresses at length, how Christ's death at the cross and resurrection, did bring in such an everlasting righteousness. Below are several excerpts from his sermon. "I do not intend to trouble you about the critical exposition of these seventy weeks; commentators are divided exceedingly upon this subject; some of them explain them one way, and some another, and perhaps we shall never know till the day of judgment, till the glorious day spoken of in the New Testament, which are right. My intention is to dwell upon this particular part of the angel's message, that some one person was to do something unspeakable for God's people, even 'to bring in an everlasting righteousness.'" "If you want to know who was the person that was to do this, look to the 26th verse, and you will find the person mentioned, the Lord Jesus Christ: 'after threescore and two weeks shall the Messiah be cut off, but not for himself:' he is the person spoken of, he was 'to put an end to sin, to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness.'" "It is what all reformed divines, that have clear heads and clean hearts, call an imputed righteousness, or the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ to be imputed to poor sinners upon their believing: and, if you ask me, what I mean by an imputed righteousness, not to shoot over you heads, but rather, if God shall be pleased to make me, to reach your hearts, I will tell you by the word 'righteousness,' I understand all that Christ hath done, and all that Christ hath suffered: or, to make use of the term generally made use of by sound divines, 'Christ's active, and Christ's passive obedience;' put those two together, and they make up the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ." "And when he was just expiring, just as he was about to bow down his head, and give up the ghost, what do ye think he said? He said, 'It is finished!' As much as to say, 'Now the arduous work, the difficult task I had undertaken, blessed be God, is not completely over; all the demands of the law are finished; now God's justice is satisfied; now a new and living way is opened by my blood to the holiest of all for poor sinners.'" "Because Christ's righteousness was intended by the great God to extend to mankind even from eternity…. Hence it is, that the Lord Jesus when he calls his elect people up to heaven, says, 'Come, ye blessed of my Father;' what follows? 'receive the kingdom prepared for you;' how long? 'from the foundation of the world.' … the righteousness of Jesus Christ may properly be called an everlasting righteousness, because God intended it from everlasting." "Now the righteousness of Jesus Christ, may be called an everlasting righteousness, because all the saints that have been saved, or that ever will be saved, are all saved by the righteousness of Christ." Sermon by George Whitefield (The Righteousness of Christ, an Everlasting Righteousness) It is important to not the words "Bring in". It does not say everlasting righteousness is to be received by all Israel. For instance, if there was a famine in Israel and as a humane act I bring in an unlimited supply of bread; whether Israel partakes of that bread or decides to starve, it would not change that fact that I brought in the bread so they could partake of it. If you believe Christ's death did not bring in everlasting righteousness, then what event will? It could not be all Israel being saved. This would be to say, that this is an eternal righteousness of the flesh and not the spirit. If you seek a literal and fair interpretation of the bible would be to say that the start of eternity where there will be no un-righteousness. However, who brings in this righteousness, and whence does it come. Does it still not come from the Cross and Christ death and resurrection for our sins, so that His righteousness could be accounted to us. The other problem with saying that it would start in eternity is that, according to the majority of those that hold a yet future fulfillment of Daniels prophecy see eternity starting after the millennium, as they believe that sin will dwell therein. Therefore with this assumption, It does not in anyway fall in the seventy weeks, so either way, this purpose does not work for a future interpretation. ----------------------------------- Luke 7:28 "For I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he." Jesus sums this whole chapter up quite well. In the flesh John the Baptist is more righteous than any other human being. But in heaven, even the worst of sinners are more righteous than he, because they are righteous through Christ. Through this chapter I hope you received understanding that in the flesh, we are all un-righteous sinners. However, if we believe upon Christ, He will live in us, with His righteousness and sinlessness being accounted to us. Therefore as He is in this world, so are we. (cf. 1 John 4:17) Therefore anyone who is in Christ, living by the spirit and not by the flesh, is without sin and has everlasting righteousness and life through Christ. So although in the flesh ALL (Christians and Non-Christians) have sinned and are sinful and un-righteous, if we believe in Christ by faith and live by the spirit and not by the flesh, what Christ has accomplished is accounted to us, both righteousness and His sinlessness! This should bring excitement to our lives. Comprehending these facts of sin and righteousness should make it clear why we can not work for our salvation. Essentially in life it comes down to this. We can live by the law and our righteousness, or by faith in Christ, and all that is His can be accounted to us! 1 Corinthians 3:11 "For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." I pray you spend your life living for Christ in what he has brought to fruition, laying aside those things that we think we have accomplished of ourselves, and go do works not as of ourselves, but in the spirit, as through Christ that lives in us. Sin and Righteousness - PAGE 7- http://www.biblegateway.com/keyword/index.php?search=righteousness&version1=9&searchtype=all&startnumber=126&startnumber=251&startnumber=276&startnumber=251&startnumber=226&startnumber=201&startnumber=176 Going backward continue from above link.... It goes with out saying that if those Israelites have children that believe, and have no sin, they have no need for atonement. But we know that it is impossible to live with out sin.