Exceeding Righteousness

24 March 2015

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"For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:20)

In the next section of His sermon, Jesus is going to correct many of the doctrinal errors the Scribes and Pharisees have taught the people for several generations. However, we must understand His purpose in correcting these errors. Jesus is not saying we need to go back to the law and follow it better than the Pharisees. 

"Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin." (Romans 3:20)

God never intended the law to be used as a way to gain access to heaven. Jesus teaches the proper interpretation of the law so that the people of God can properly live out their practical sanctification day by day. 

Our own righteousness is no better than that of the Scribes and Pharisees. We need something much greater to justify us before a Holy God. 

So how can anyone enter into heaven?  That is the very question that Jesus answers in His conversation with Nicodemus. As recorded in John Chapter 3, Jesus says that a man must be born again in order to see or enter into the kingdom of heaven. There must be a fundamental change from the inside, not just an outward conformity to the law, in order to stand in the presence of a Holy God.

We learned in yesterday’s post that we are judged righteous based on the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ. This declaration of righteousness states that we are not guilty of sin. However, the possibility of sin still exists in our bodies. The new birth begins a change in us that will ultimately be completed in the resurrection. This change moves us toward a time where not only are we not guilty of sin, we are no longer capable of it!

And let us not forget, this new birth is much like our natural birth in that we have no control. It is done by the sovereign and irresistible power of the grace of God.

"The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit."(John 3:8)

Tags: harmony_of_the_gospels, john, justification, matthew, regeneration, romans

Welcome

Brentwood Hills Primitive Baptist Church is a community of believers working together to transform our lives to the image of Jesus Christ. We believe it is our duty and privilege to live the gospel of the doctrines of grace in such a way as to edify the families within our church and other children of God in our community. Through regular worship based on strong Biblical principles, fellowship, admonishment, and outreach, we glory in the grace of the sovereign God working in our lives thereby showing the Spirit of God in the world.

Brentwood Hills was organized in 1906 in Fort Worth, Texas as Laodicea Primitive Baptist Church. You can find much of the history of the church, as well as other churches here: Primitive Baptist History Database

We identify ourselves as an old-line Primitive Baptist church. If you read our Articles of Faith, you’ll see that we hold to such doctrines as the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. We recognize the King James Version (KJV) as the only English translation worthy of being called the Bible. We believe in salvation solely by the grace of a sovereign God. We believe that Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, came to the earth to do the will of His Father, which was to deliver from the sentence of death all those the Father gave Him before the world began. We believe that Jesus fully satisfied the Father by atoning for all the sins of all His people. In time, we believe the Holy Spirit comes to each person that belongs to Jesus and regenerates them. Then (and only then) can anyone have faith, which is a fruit of the Spirit, by which you are able to believe the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. Whether or not you ever hear the gospel, or believe it if you did hear it, or obey it if you did believe it, rest assured that Jesus will remain forever faithful to you because, if He died for you, He will never deny that you belong to Him.

We believe that everyone for whom Christ died will without fail be raised again from the dead to a glorified life. Even if we are alive when He returns to raise the dead, we shall be changed to a glorified life. All the Redeemed will meet the Lord in the air. Then He will take us to Heaven and there we shall forever be with the Lord. The wicked will be raised at the same time as the righteous, but the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment along with Satan and his angels. Until that glorious day when Christ returns to raise the dead, He has provided a place for His people to find rest for their souls. This place is the Church. Jesus Christ set-up His church on this earth before His death on the Cross. The church is there for those of His people who have come to believe that God saved them by His Son, Jesus Christ. To believe that Christ “paid it all” gives believers the strongest motivation to serve Him. Once enlightened to this glorious truth, then the child of God should feel an obligation to become and remain an active member of the His church. To serve the Lord in His church makes for one of the great blessings to experience this side of Heaven. It fulfills you to serve in His church and it gives your life purpose and meaning.

Living in Liberty

Elder Bryce Lowrance

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