He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His Name’s sake. Psalm 23:3.
Today your LORD (יהוה) God (אלהים) says:
I have called you to My own glory and excellence. And, in Christ, I qualify you for glory and excellence, for in Him, I have made you righteous with My own righteousness.
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5:21.
You become righteous by faith in Jesus when you believe in your heart that I raised Him from the dead. You are starting at perfection of spirit and then you must go on to perfection of soul and body by walking out the righteousness I have put within you.
My first mention in the Bible of a righteous man is Noah, and that righteousness saved the human race from total annihilation.
Noah was a righteous man, perfect (tamim (תָּמִים): complete, sound) in his time; Noah walked with God. Genesis 6:9.
Tamin is the word in Hebrew that is like teleois in Greek. It means perfect, blameless, complete, mature. The first reference to this word is about Noah, the next is about Abraham, and the next is about the Passover Lamb. Unblemished, pure, perfect, complete. Tamin.
As Noah and his family entered the ark, I again stated why he was favored to preserve the human race. Yes, righteousness.
Then the LORD said to Noah, “Enter the ark, you and all your household, for you I have seen righteous before Me in this time. Genesis 7:1.
Righteousness is very important to Me. I am righteous, there is no unrighteousness in Me and I lead you in righteousness as well—paths of righteousness for My Name’s sake. After Noah, the next reference to righteousness in the Bible is with respect to Abraham and I call him My friend. I accounted righteousness to him apart from works, I based it totally on His faith in Me, which was his believing My Word to him that he would have a son and he would become the father of many nations. He believed the impossible and it became possible.
According to your faith, so shall you receive from Me. Nothing is impossible for Me. Nothing is to wonderful for Me. Nothing is to hard for Me. The problem if you do not receive is not in My giving but in your receiving. Faith alone joins you to all I have given you freely by grace.
Noah had faith in Me. I told him it would rain and to build a boat. He had never known rain, let alone a flood, I watered the earth by a midst that came up from the ground.
But a mist used to rise from the earth and water the whole surface of the ground. Genesis 2:6.
Noah, however, was ready to obey My voice no matter what others said about it. He alone was righteous in his time. He alone had faith and a heart towards Me. When I knocked and he heard My voice, he opened the door to his heart. And what do I keep telling you about Noah?
Thus Noah did according to all that God had commanded him, so he did.. Genesis 6:22, Genesis 7:5.
No one else even paid attention to Me in that generation for they conceived nothing but evil. Adam had totally given himself and his descendants over to Satan. But you do not have to continue the futile ways of your ancestors. I have redeemed you.
If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth; knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ. 1 Peter 1:17-19.
Noah built a huge boat, the craftsmanship and layout of which has never been replicated by man. It was a perfect work. Not even the opening of the floodgates of Heaven and the deep caused it to be shipwrecked. It was built to last and to hold every animal that I called into that haven from the flood. But when Noah was working on it, it looked like he had nowhere to sail it. But I not only supplied what he needed and all the plans for that amazing ark but I also provided the water to sail it on right where it was sitting. And he did not even have to navigate it. I took care of the ride as well. I just sealed him, his family, and all the animals into the awesome boat and off they went rising to the top of the flood waters until they had risen above the highest mountains on earth. It was an amazing journey but Noah did not worry at all. In fact, he enjoyed the experience and had complete trust I would bring him safely to land. And I did. I remembered him and his family. And you also can know for sure that I will never forget you.
“Can a woman forget her nursing child and have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you. Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands.” Isaiah 49:15-16.
Abraham’s journey along the narrow way started when I called him to follow Me where I showed him before he knew where I was taking him. And the land that I took him to I promised by Covenant oath to give to his descendants but he was a sojourner there, moving about from place to place as I directed during his lifetime. I prospered him wherever he went and he became extremely wealth in gold, silver, and cattle and he oversaw a large household of many workers and servants for he raised large herds of cattle. And he led them all in My ways of righteousness and in faith.
“For I have chosen him, so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has spoken about him.” Genesis 18:19.
When did I credit righteousness of Abraham? When he believed that I would give him a son, though he was advanced in years and Sarah had been unable to conceive even as a young woman, he refused to put his eyes on himself and his wife, and put them on Me and believed. He was fully persuaded that I would do as I had promised.
And He took him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned (credited it to his account) it to him as righteousness. Genesis 15:6.
Faith comes by hearing, and hearing My Word about Jesus, the Anointed One.
And that righteousness by faith in My Word won for him the honor of the Messiah coming according to the flesh through his line.
And now you have the blessing of Abraham available to you in Jesus, take it, love it, use it.
Yes, I lead you in paths of righteousness when you follow by faith in the One who is leading you. Like Noah who did all according to what I commanded him and ended up with the whole world before him and his sons as their own. And like Abraham who also followed Me unreservedly and did all I commanded him with joy and enthusiasm. The minute I called he answered, “Here I am.” Like Isaiah, “Here I am, send me!” And I also tell you that Abraham and his descendants, of which you are one by incorporation when you take Jesus as your Lord, that you are heirs of the world, joint heirs with Christ, to whom I have given everything.
For the promise to Abraham or to his seed that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith. Romans 4:13.
And who is leading you in paths of righteousness? You know already from Psalms 22 and 23. Your great good Shepherd who came to give His life for the sheep and now lives forever making intercession for you and leading you by the Spirit within you.
Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. Hebrews 13:20-21.
For the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life; and God will wipe every tear from their eyes. Revelation 7:17.
It is by believing in your heart that I raised Jesus from the dead that you are made righteous. Romans 10:8-10. Why? It has to do with faith, fully persuaded faith in your righteousness in Him.
Abraham, who, against hope in hope did believe, for his becoming father of many nations according to that spoken: `So shall thy seed be;’ and not having been weak in the faith, he did not consider his own body, already become dead, (being about a hundred years old,) and the deadness of Sarah’s womb, and at the promise of God did not stagger in unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, having given glory to God, and having been fully persuaded that what He hath promised He is able also to do: wherefore also it was reckoned to him to righteousness. And it was not written on his account alone, that it was reckoned to him, but also on ours, to whom it is about to be reckoned — to us believing on Him who did raise up Jesus our Lord out of the dead, who was delivered up because of our offences, and was raised up because of our being declared righteous. Romans 4:18-25.
And that is when I declared you righteous, when I raised you up in Him with your sins all gone as if they had never been. They were all put on Jesus and He and I took care of them. They have been more than paid for by the spotless blood of the Lamb. You are free and declared righteous.
For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.. Colossians 19-11.
I have qualified you by the blood of Jesus and in Him I have made you righteous with My own righteousness. So now let us go forward in paths of righteousness to make a difference in the world. To do this you must know that you are not working to become righteous, you already are, now you just need to walk it out.
To walk with Me implies movement forward. Remember, your good Shepherd is guiding you in paths of righteousness for His Name’s sake, but that requires you to be moving and not just sitting still or going backwards. Stop looking at what is behind and reach forward to what is ahead. If you put your hand to the plow but keep looking back, you will not be able to plow well.
Many of you are so guilt ridden by your past that you are really in reverse. I cannot budge you into the life you really want to live and I prepared for you in advance (and it does not matter how long you have wandered in dark valleys for My gifts and My call are irrevocable) if you keep wallowing in your former sins. That is why it is so important you know that I have made you righteous in Christ with My own righteousness. When you receive Jesus as Lord, you also receive the gift of righteousness and abundance of grace.
My disciple Peter found this out firsthand when he denied Jesus three times, but his faith did not fail and he knew he was forgiven. He repented and then he never mentioned it again and neither did I. But he understood that harboring that sin against yourself blocks you from advancing in virtues, in fact he wrote, “For if these qualities (the moral virtues) are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.” 1 Peter 1:8-9. Do not forget so great a salvation.
So today it is time to re-evaluate each situation that you are now facing. Before you turn to the right or the left, see what My Word says.
You may be thinking, there is not always a Word exactly about what you are facing, but I tell you there is, and if you listen, I will speak it to your heart. But you have to pursue it. And by that, I mean in prayer, but not just any kind of prayer. I mean going deeper with Me until you hear. And you can. I know My sheep and they know Me. I know those who are Mine and they know Me. I know My children who serve Me and I know those who do not. And if you are feeling concerned that you may not be one who is serving Me, then you are one who serves Me, because there are few in number, it is a little flock, who are not seeking after their own interests but those of Christ Jesus.
Let Me figure it out for you, I mean the right path. You cannot on your own. You do not see the end from the beginning, but I do, and I am willing to share that with you, My Holy Spirit discloses to you what is to come. John 16:13.
Re-evaluate where you are heading and let your good Shepherd lead and guide you. Those who are led by My Spirit are My mature children. Your job is to follow the Shepherd, not lead Him. There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. Proverbs 14:12; Proverbs 16:25. In the way of righteousness is life, and in its pathway there is no death. Proverbs 12:28. Your good Shepherd is guiding you in the pathway where there is no death. He is the Way and He is the LORD your righteousness.
“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The LORD our righteousness.’” Jeremiah 23:5-6.
I love you. Follow your good shepherd and you will never go on the wrong path but only the right one.