He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. 

                                                                                                                 Psalm 23:3 

We have seen that our righteousness comes on the basis of our faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross. Today, we have yet another passage echoing this same theme. Consider the following: 

…that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.

                                                                                                               Romans 10:9-10 

With salvation comes righteousness (being made right with God) and with righteousness comes salvation. The two are not mutually exclusive. In fact, we cannot experience one without the other. To say that we are saved is to imply that we have been made right with God (our righteousness) and to say that we are righteous is to imply that we are saved.

Have you ever noticed that most (if not all) of the scriptures dealing with salvation use language rooted in certainty? For example:

…if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved…

                                                                                                                    Romans 10:9

They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”                                                                      

                                                                                                                     Acts 16:31 

Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

                                                                                                            Romans 8:1 

…that whoever believes in Him (Jesus) will not perish, but (will) have eternal life. 

                                                                                                                        John 3:16

Such confidence we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

                                                                                                         2 Corinthians 3:4-6 

This language is even spoken of regarding our prayer life:

Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.

                                                                                                               Mark 11:24 

But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting…

                                                                                                            James 1:6a 

Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart. 

                                                                                                         Psalm 37:4

So if the Bible is full of certainty when it comes to our redemption in Jesus, His forgiveness over our lives, righteousness applied to our spiritual account, and confidence and assurance as accompanying our prayers, then why does there seem to be so much uncertainty in the body of Christ (the church)? I believe the answer is that we have moved away from the truths of scripture and replaced them with religious or philosophical thought based on the notions of men.

When we trust in Jesus for salvation, righteousness accompanies that salvation. And when God declares us righteous, we are free to confess the name of Jesus and proclaim what He has done for us.

When David declared that God would “guide him in paths of righteousness,” he was resting in the truth that as a child of God, he could be confident of God’s provision and guidance over his life. This guidance certainly didn’t mean that he would never fall or make mistakes (we are still free to make decisions), but what it did mean was that there was security in knowing the Lord in all circumstances, even after moral failure.

As Christians, we are to be confident in our right standing with God. This righteousness is credited to us on the basis of our faith. When we begin to move back into a mindset of moral perfection as a basis for righteousness, we set ourselves up for disappointment (with ourselves and others), possible disillusionment, and when this philosophy is allowed to run its course, despair and depression.

As a believer, you are in right standing with God and therefore you are to approach His throne with confidence and boldness (Hebrews 4:16, Ephesians 3:12). This is all made possible by Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Why not spend some time thanking Him for this wonderful privilege and then go out and proclaim what Christ has done for you to others who so desperately need to hear good news! (Romans 10:14)