True Righteousness

People who pretend they are righteous cannot have compassion on the unrighteous, for they are not in touch with the truth about their own nature.  Jesus was touched by men.  He knew their shortcomings and sins, and yet had compassion on them.  Jesus loved men.

I had a dream about walking on dry twigs and branches. They had all been discarded and were tossed out.  The man who was leading me was an angel, taking me to the City of God.   After this dream ended, I knew that it is we who become dried and dead twigs when we do not bear fruit.  To bear fruit we must abide in Jesus, and cannot have a righteousness that is from ourselves (see John 15:1-6).  By taking me across the dried and dead twigs, the angel acquainted me with the failings of Man, and my own.

When we have our own righteousness we become as the hypocrites Jesus opposed: the scribes and the Pharisees.  We think ourselves better than others. Though Jesus was the Son of God, He did not lift Himself up above men but became their servant, and Savior.

Because Jesus became like a man He could be touched with our nature.  He did not hate our nature but chose, as a man, to not sin.  We cannot control ourselves nor other people by our dislike for sin, nor think that our dislike of sin makes us righteous.   In Revelation we read that the Ephesians could not tolerate wicked men, but this did not protect them from leaving their first love (Rev 2:2-4). Like Jesus, we must love Mankind.  And in loving, we become truly righteous.  Amen.