Announcements

"In Matthew 27, we have seen man’s unrighteousness and God’s righteousness. Praise the Lord that eventually man’s unrighteousness turned into God’s righteousness! We used to be in man’s unrighteousness, but now we are under God’s righteousness and in God’s kingdom. God’s kingdom is the kingdom of righteousness, and we are the righteous people in His kingdom.

This matter of righteousness is a crucial aspect of the truth of the gospel. This is very basic, for it is our ground and basis for being saved. Our salvation rests upon the solid rock of God’s righteousness. Legally speaking, both love and grace can fluctuate, but righteousness, especially God’s righteousness, cannot. Madame Guyon once said that even if God wanted to change His mind regarding her salvation, He could not do it because He had already judged her on the cross. Through Christ our substitute, we have already been judged according to righteousness on the cross. Therefore, God must save us. God is a just God. Because He has already righteously dealt with us judicially, He is now obligated to save us. We can boldly say to Him, “God, I do not speak now of Your love or of Your grace, but of Your righteousness. I appeal to You regarding Your righteousness. According to Your righteousness, You must save me. If You do not save me, it means that You are unrighteous.” If we say this to God, He will reply, “I surely must save you.”

The resurrection of Christ was a matter of God’s righteousness. God was righteous to come in to judge Christ as our substitute on the cross… By being judged by God, Christ fulfilled all the requirements of God’s righteousness. He bore our sins on the cross to fully meet all the righteous requirements of God. Thus, through Christ’s death on the cross, God’s righteousness has been wholly satisfied. In other words, the righteous God was judicially satisfied with Christ’s death on the cross. Therefore, Christ was buried in a new tomb that belonged to a rich man. This indicates that immediately after Christ’s judicial death and immediately after the satisfaction of God’s righteous requirements, Christ rested as the fulfillment of the prophecy of the Scriptures.

Many Christians today know only the kingdom of love or the kingdom of grace. In other words, they are familiar only with the realm of love and grace. They have no understanding of the realm of God’s righteousness. But God’s righteousness, not His love or grace, is the foundation of God’s kingdom. The kingdom of the heavens is built not upon God’s love or grace, but upon His righteousness. How precious, necessary, and vital the righteousness of God is! It is absolutely necessary for the kingdom life. If we realize this, the churches in the Lord’s recovery will be greatly strengthened. Hallelujah, our kingly Savior has been resurrected through the righteousness of God!

In Matthew 28:20, the Lord told His disciples, “Behold, I am with you all the days until the consummation of the age.” In the Lord’s resurrection with His righteousness the kingdom is present, and we have the authority, commission, and position, to disciple the nations. In this way the kingdom is spreading.” (Life-Study of Matthew, pp. 817-824)