Righteousness

Righteousness

One of our dear brothers had a vision during the conference in July this year. He awoke suddenly in the middle of the night. In the brother’s vison, Johan O. Smith stood in front of him and in a clear, gentle, and good voice had said,

“Concerning the development at Brunstad, you must greet the brothers and tell them that there are three things of importance they need to remember: righteousness, righteousness, and righteousness. Even though you can become tired and weary in the midst of all that work, this will drive the work forward.”

I firmly and unequivocally believe that it was Johan O. Smith who revealed himself to the brother, and all the friends must take this message to heart. God’s kingdom consists of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. Rom. 14:17-18. If a person does not lead a righteous life, joy and peace will vanish. We must be diligent in doing righteousness in all our ways. It is the only thing that leads to peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. You can deceive people, but you can never deceive God.

“For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? Now, ‘If the righteous one is scarcely saved, where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?’” 1 Pet. 4:17-18.

When a person has a good conscience and lives an overcoming life insofar as he sees and understands, then it takes a special godliness to come to a deeper acknowledgment of unconscious wickedness that clings to us. If we are to get at the root of this wickedness and destroy it, we need to pay attention to the light until we receive revelation in a deeper light and a deeper acknowledgment of the truth. Where other people cannot judge us, we nevertheless have to give account to God who has eyes like flames of fire and who knows all things. By communing with Him, we will always find something from which to cleanse ourselves.

According to the time, many should have become teachers of righteousness, considering all the preaching, help, and grace they have partaken of. Nevertheless, there are many who are babes in Christ, who have not grown and developed. The reason for this is a lack of righteousness. There is power in the prayers of a righteous person (Jas. 5:16), and without righteousness, you also do not partake of the spirit of counsel and strength. Isa. 11:2-3. God’s Spirit is permeated by righteousness, and therefore He is called the “Teacher of righteousness.”

“Nevertheless, the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are His,’ and ‘Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity [unrighteousness].” 2 Tim. 2:19.

It is unrighteous to judge others instead of judging yourself. Matt. 7:1-2; 1 Cor. 11:31-32. It is unrighteous to seek your own instead of seeking the things that are in Christ. Phil. 2:20-21. It is unrighteous to seek the honor of men, parading before them and wanting to be seen by them. Matt. 6:1-6. It is unrighteous to want to please men. Col. 3:22; 1 Thess. 2:4.

Being honest, upright, and truthful in word and deed is righteous. Giving honor to whom honor is due and not being partial to the rich is righteousness. Lowering the peaks and lifting up the valleys so the friends can advance on the even and just way is righteous. Not giving in to flattery or being fooled by gifts is righteous. Being on guard against your own inclinations is righteous. Cleansing yourself from sympathy and antipathy is righteous.

Powerful, invisible effects proceed from a righteous man’s life. Such people are the most important people on earth. Their life has a strong, drawing effect to Christ. “A man is not established by wickedness, but the root of the righteous cannot be moved.” Prov. 12:3. The accuser gains power through unrighteousness, but because of righteousness the prince of this world has no part in us. Only by being clothed with the armor of righteousness can we stand against the wiles of the devil and stand, having overcome all things.

The building will not remain standing unless you have put your affairs in order and done a thorough work of it so that you are building on a pure foundation. There has to be righteousness in money matters and you must be able to suffer injustice with joy. God’s temple—divine life—is permeated by righteousness, starting with the foundation and right through the entire building.

Therefore we must begin our discipleship in righteousness; we must continue in righteousness; and we must also finish our life’s course in righteousness.

Jesus says, “He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still [become more sanctified—Norw.]. And behold, I am coming, quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to everyone according to his work.” Rev. 22:11-12. It appears that a time will come when everyone will be “locked in” to the stage of development in which he is at that point in time.

Blessed is everyone who hungers and thirsts for righteousness and who consciously seeks God’s kingdom. They will be satisfied with righteousness and will receive their reward from the Lord in eternity.