Topical Bible: The Righteousness of God: we should Pray: To be Quickened In

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Topical Encyclopedia

The concept of the righteousness of God is central to Christian theology and is deeply rooted in the Scriptures. It refers to the perfect holiness and justice of God, which is both a standard for human conduct and a gift imparted to believers through faith in Jesus Christ. The righteousness of God is not only a divine attribute but also a transformative power that believers are called to seek and embody in their lives.

Biblical Foundation

The righteousness of God is revealed throughout the Bible, emphasizing His moral perfection and the standard by which He judges humanity. In the Old Testament, the righteousness of God is often associated with His covenant faithfulness and His actions in delivering and vindicating His people. For instance, Psalm 11:7 declares, "For the LORD is righteous; He loves justice. The upright will see His face."

In the New Testament, the righteousness of God is further expounded through the life and work of Jesus Christ. Romans 1:17 states, "For the gospel reveals the righteousness of God that comes by faith from start to finish, just as it is written: 'The righteous will live by faith.'" This verse highlights the transformative nature of God's righteousness, which is accessed through faith and results in a life aligned with His will.

Praying to be Quickened in Righteousness

Believers are encouraged to pray for the quickening of God's righteousness within them. To be quickened in righteousness means to be enlivened, invigorated, and empowered to live according to God's standards. This is a work of the Holy Spirit, who indwells believers and enables them to grow in holiness and obedience.

Psalm 119:40 is a prayerful expression of this desire: "How I long for Your precepts! Revive me in Your righteousness." Here, the psalmist expresses a deep yearning for God's righteous ways and seeks divine intervention to be revitalized in living them out.

The Role of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit plays a crucial role in quickening believers in the righteousness of God. Through the Spirit's work, believers are sanctified and transformed into the likeness of Christ. Romans 8:10-11 illustrates this process: "But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who dwells within you."

Practical Implications

Praying to be quickened in the righteousness of God involves a commitment to spiritual disciplines such as prayer, meditation on Scripture, and obedience to God's commands. It requires a humble acknowledgment of one's dependence on God's grace and a willingness to be molded by His Spirit.

Philippians 1:9-11 offers a model prayer for believers seeking to grow in righteousness: "And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God."

In summary, the righteousness of God is both a divine attribute and a transformative gift that believers are called to seek through prayer. By praying to be quickened in righteousness, Christians invite the Holy Spirit to empower them to live in accordance with God's perfect will, reflecting His holiness and justice in their daily lives.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Psalm 119:40
Behold, I have longed after your precepts: quicken me in your righteousness.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

The Righteousness of Christ, an Everlasting Righteousness
... did the Lord Jesus, the Sun of righteousness, rise gradually ... wrestle with the Lord
God, until God should be pleased ... We are told in the fourth verse, that "he ...
/.../selected sermons of george whitefield/the righteousness of christ an.htm

The Handwriting Blotted Out
... We are righteous in God's sight because the righteousness of God which is ... But thank
God for the gospel we preach! If we repent, our sins will all be blotted out ...
/.../moody/weighed and wanting/the handwriting blotted out.htm

Adoption --The Spirit and the Cry
... for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and "God ... what we should pray
for as we ought: but ... unutterable groanings within the child of God, so that ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 24 1878/adoptionthe spirit and the cry.htm

The Heart of the Gospel
... exercise of his divine prerogative is always unquestionable righteousness. ... him, and
before that sovereignty we bow ... man, who art thou that repliest against God?". ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 32 1886/the heart of the gospel.htm

"Who Walk not after the Flesh, but after the Spirit. "
... been driven out of their own righteousness to Christ ... animates it, and moves it in
God's ways, according ... even when renewed and quickened, that we should look on ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon vi who walk not.htm

Twenty-Eighth Lesson. Father! not what I Will;'
... made sin that we might become the righteousness of God. ... this too for us: He suffers
what we had merited ... with God Himself; how entire surrender to God's will is ...
/.../with christ in the school of prayer/twenty-eighth lesson father not what.htm

The Righteousness of Faith
... that we cannot, by any of our righteousness, (for indeed we have ... upon which they
grow,) appease the wrath of God, or avert the punishment we have justly ...
/.../wesley/sermons on several occasions/sermon 6 the righteousness of.htm

Young Man! a Prayer for You
... the powers on the side of truth and righteousness and God ... tongue a sharp sword."
Courage, my comrade, God is near ... We are not alone, for the Father is with us. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 37 1891/young man a prayer for.htm

Where to Find Fruit
... yourselves on the great atonement, and rested on the finished righteousness. ... had
not it been that there was a mighty God to trust to we should have given ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 10 1864/where to find fruit.htm

Another Mode of Justification
... have begun to do the Law, still we are accepted ... Christ's sake by faith; nor does
God owe us ... Law, so everlasting life, together with righteousness, is offered us ...
/.../melanchthon/the apology of the augsburg confession/part 9 another mode of.htm