Over the past 5 months our team has been going through a study focused on righteousness and justice in the Scriptures. Our team leader put this study together a few years ago when he was struck by Psalm 97:2 which says that the foundation of God's throne is righteousness and justice. He thought that if the Throne of Grace (Heb 4:16) is sitting on a foundation of righteousness and justice, that it is important for us to understand righteousness and justice for our work. In this study we tracked God's plan of righteousness and justice through the scripture. At the end, we were asked to pick one verse/thread that impacted us and why. These are my takeaways:
Revelation 19:7-8 + Isaiah 61:10-11 + Isaiah 62:1-2
According to Rev 19, the righteous deeds we do become the fabric of the wedding garment the Church will wear for the final wedding ceremony, which will be full of splendor and magnify the glory of the GROOM. This provides greater clarity to Isaiah 61:10, which describes the Lord as covering us with a robe of Righteousness as a bride or groom preparing for their wedding. And since we know the Lord is the one who is causing Righteousness to sprout up among His people before all the Nations (vs 11), and that He will continue to work to make His people righteous (Is 62:1-2), we see that He is the one doing the work to produce the wedding garment for us. In my mind, this creates the image of a repeated pattern, with the Lord causing us to do righteously and justly, which adds to the completion and splendor of our wedding garment, which He continuously covers us with, and then He causes us to do righteously and justly again; and He will continue this cycle until His bride has been made perfect in the wedding robe of Her righteousness (which is His).
The impact of this verse on my life isn’t incredibly practical, but instead represents a paradigm shift in regards to how I view Righteousness and Justice. The importance of R&J have increased in my mind and heart, and I view executing/extending R&J as a vital part of bringing the Kingdom of God to earth, as well as hastening the ultimate marriage of the Lamb to the Church. It also increases my gratitude for what He is doing in my life, and helps me to see how little acts of righteousness and justice are of ultimate importance in His eyes.
Because of this, I am also experiencing a paradigm shift in how I view all my (or others) decisions and actions. It is now important to me to frame my decisions and actions by asking the question, “does this promote righteousness and justice, or does it not”. Asking this question about even small decisions--what to buy, what to eat, where to do those things--could have a significant impact on what I choose to do, making Righteousness and Justice more real in my life.
--Richard
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