John 6:53 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

When I made Jesus the Lord of my life I hung on every word because I was so close to death. Having just become a new creation in Christ Jesus, being born again, I had a fresh memory of what it felt like to be without Him. His words were spirit and life, I knew what that meant to me.

Now years later, being secure, being comfortable in my relationship with my Lord, I have to admit not every word has that same sense of urgency as it did back then, I do not want to allow comfort to turn into complacency. I still need correction, instruction, direction and grace. When you walk in the spirit you get all that without the dread of death which you might have felt when you first came to Christ.

I can find meaning in almost every scripture I read, no matter where in the bible I read. I hear the spirit speak to me through my brothers and sisters in Christ. It isn’t always life affirming, it isn’t always about making a difference in my life, in my walk. If I tried to describe it, perhaps it is like laying on my side and feeling the blood pulsing strongly through a major artery. It is life affirming without being life altering.

I share my thoughts and what I see in the spirit and perhaps, God willing, they bring relevance to you, where you are today. If so praise God. I seek the words not because I fear death, but because I love the life. I want to keep the flow of life beating strong so that I can feel it.

John 6:68 Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.

Verily, verily.

Genesis 15:6 And he believed in the Lord; and he (God) counted it to him (Abraham) for righteousness.

I looked up the definition of righteous in several dictionaries this morning to help me with this devotional. What I discovered was that they all have their own opinion of what it means. None of them were in agreement and I found that profane and profound at the same time. I can do that, after all it is my opinion.

Perfection in morality says one. Morality is defined by the society in which we live. It varies from country to country and even within different religions. Morality cannot be used as a standard for determining righteousness.

Strict adherence to the law says another. Men write and rewrite laws. Depending on the country you live in, laws are based on majority rule. Majorities change and so do laws. Law cannot be used as a standard for determining righteousness.

Forget using religion to help, we cannot agree on simple concepts within the bible, so how can we agree on something as complex as righteousness. Each religion has their own views anyway.

I said earlier that what I found was profound. This is what I saw in first use definition contained in my KJV bible and all those dictionaries. Opinion. Yes, righteousness is an opinion. Yours, mine, and all those writers of dictionaries do not count. Only God’s opinion counts. “He (God) counted it to him (Abraham)”.

My opinion about how right or wrong you are in anything you do, say, or think, doesn’t matter when it comes to righteousness. What does God say? Do you believe God? Do you know God? His opinion is the only one that counts.

Philippians 3:9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: