Daniel Lazich

One Lord will reign forever.

“…Then the Lord my God will come, and the holy ones with him.” Zechariah 14:5, last part. The prophet Zechariah uses the devastating effects of the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem as a backdrop to proclaim the day when God will destroy all evil. On that day, Zechariah says that the Lord will stand on the Mount of Olives and split it in two, creating a large valley. Zechariah 14:4. Perhaps this valley is where the New Jerusalem, which Zechariah describes in part, will descend from heaven. In the Bible, Jerusalem symbolically represents God’s people. “One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb. “And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and he showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.” Revelation 21:9, 10. In Revelation 19:8, we see that the bride is dressed in bright, clean clothes. The true City, the New Jerusalem, is not dressed in bright, clean clothing. So, this must refer to the saved people who have received the bright white robes of Christ’s righteousness. Zechariah, in chapter 14, also describes the glory of the City.

“And in that day, it shall be that there will not be any light, but there shall be cold and frost for one day, and that day shall be known to the LORD. It will be neither day nor night, but towards evening there will be light.” Zechariah 14:6, 7 (Septuagint). Prophet Zechariah does not say that God’s future dwelling among His people will have no sun, but because God is present there, the City will not depend on the sun for its light. The day when the LORD and the Bride of Jesus descend to the Earth will be dark. Apostle John explains why the City, God’s dwelling, will not rely upon the sun’s light. “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.” Revelation 21:23.

Zechariah also states that living water will flow from Jerusalem on that day (Zechariah 14:8). Jesus confirmed this and applied it to the redeemed. “Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” John 7:38. In the Bible, the living water refers to the Holy Spirit. The Spirit comes from God to all who believe in Him. Therefore, the Spirit will flow into and from each committed believer.

Zechariah continues: “The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name.” Zechariah 14:9. The Apostle Paul confirms it: “Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power. When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.”

1 Corinthians 15:24, 28. “He said to them, This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” Luke 24:44.

The day of the Lord. Read the next blog.

Jesus was sold for the price of a slave.

“I told them, If you think it best, give me my pay; but if not, keep it. So they paid me thirty pieces of silver. And the Lord said to me, Throw it to the potter – the handsome price at which they priced me! So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord to the potter.” Zechariah 11:12, 13. The prophet Zechariah, almost 550 years before Gethsemane, foretold how people would treat the world’s Savior. The thirty pieces of silver were the price of a slave — Exodus 21:32. The thirty pieces of silver were the lowest price one would pay for the life of a slave. This price for human life was considered an insult. Accordingly, the prophet Zechariah employs irony in saying, the handsome price at which they priced me. So, the prophet Zechariah, a priest, threw the thirty pieces of silver into the house of the Lord, to the potter. When was this fulfilled?

The one of the twelve—called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty silver coins.” Matthew 26:14, 15. Judas’s action confirmed Jesus’ knowledge that Judas had joined Him with the intent to betray Him. After the Passover meal, Jesus went to Gethsemane, where He prayed in agony, knowing He would face separation from the Father because of the world’s sin. When He finished praying, Jesus was arrested and condemned to be crucified according to the laws of the temple.

When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders… So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.” Matthew 27:3–5. What did the priests do with the thirty silver coins? It was against the temple law to keep it there. “So they decided to use the money to buy the potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners.” Matthew 27:7. Therefore, what the prophet foretold about 550 years earlier was fulfilled.

One Lord will reign forever. Read the next blog.

The thief and the false prophet were banished.

“I looked again, and there before me was a flying scroll. And he said to me, ‘This is the curse that is going out over the whole land; for according to what it says on one side, every thief will be banished, and according to what it says on the other, everyone who swears falsely will be banished.’” (Zechariah 5:1, 3). Ezekiel 2:9 describes the flying scroll as written on both sides. The angel, who earlier spoke to Zechariah, explained the writings on the scroll. Zechariah 4:1. Who is the thief? “I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber.” (John 10:1). Jesus referred to Lucifer as a thief who improperly became the prince of the Earth. Therefore, the open scroll signifies that the ownership of this planet stayed temporarily undetermined. At the right time, the Messiah, the world’s Savior, will resolve it appropriately. The Messiah would restore that which he did not steal. Psalm 69:4.

“The Lord Almighty declares, I will send it out, and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of him who swears falsely by my name. It will remain in his house and destroy it, both its timber and its stones.” (Zechariah 5:4). The curse written on both sides of the scroll represents the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who entered the house of the thief—Earth—defeated him, and restored the property to its rightful owner, God. “Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” (John 12:31, 32). We are assured that Jesus defeated the thief and redeemed the property because the book of Revelation tells us that the scroll, the deed to the property—the Earth—is rolled up and sealed with seven seals. (Revelation 5).

No one in heaven was worthy enough to take the scroll and break the seals. John was distressed. “I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll and look inside.” (Revelation 5:4). One of the twenty-four elders then drew John’s attention to the Lion of the tribe of Judah, who had triumphed and was able to open the scroll. (Revelation 5:5–14). Now, Jesus Christ, the only one worthy, is the King of this world and its people. Moreover, at the right time, He will destroy the former prince of this world forever. He will also obliterate those who falsely swear by the Lord’s name—the false prophet—forever. The prophets spoke to the people on behalf of God, revealing His plan for them. All who misrepresent God to others are false prophets and will perish with the thief, Satan, forever. “And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown….” (Revelation 20:10). They will never rise again.

Jesus was sold for the price of a slave. Read the next blog.

Snatched from the fire.

“Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. The LORD said to Satan, The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?” Zechariah 3:1, 2. The accuser, Satana in Hebrew, argued that Joshua was a sinner with nothing good in him; therefore, he could not stand in the presence of the Lord and represent God’s chosen people. Did the accuser have a basis for his claim about Joshua, the high priest? Yes, he did! “All have turned away; they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” Romans 3:12.

According to the Objective Moral Law, the high priest Joshua was a sinner and therefore judged unworthy. The filthy clothes on Joshua symbolized that he was a sinner. Zechariah 3:3. The angel told those standing with him to remove Joshua’s dirty clothes. ”Then he said to Joshua, ‘See, I have taken away your sin, and will put fine garments on you.” Zechariah 3:4. The fine clothing represents the righteousness from God bestowed on those who surrendered themselves to the Lord, Jesus Christ. Joshua was a helpless sinner, like a burning stick that cannot escape the fire on its own. Only the Lord could rescue the helpless sinner from the fire. Why did the Lord do it? “But it was because the LORD loved you and kept the oath he swore to your ancestors….” Deuteronomy 7:8.

The surrendered believers, who have given up their old, worthless selves, can come into the presence of the Lord just as they are. The Lord provides what is necessary to stand before Him blamelessly. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 3:10-15, states that he, by God’s grace, has laid a foundation, and someone else is building on it. The foundation Paul laid is unchangeable and eternal. “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:11. God does not require perfect knowledge, understanding, and excellent works. He asks for the righteous works found in Jesus Christ only.

However, the structure we, as sinners, build with imperfect materials must be established entirely on Jesus Christ, the one and only foundation. As Paul states, the fire at the end will reveal whether the materials used are good or not. If they are not, the fire will destroy them. Yet, the builder will be saved as one snatched out of the fire. If we unknowingly use inferior materials to build on the only foundation, Jesus Christ will not deny us eternity. Changing the one foundation or establishing another one will not be excused. Our righteousness and qualification for eternity with God depend solely on Jesus Christ. He is our righteousness. Romans 3:21.

The thief and the false prophet will be banished forever. Read the next blog.

The dead in sin – revived.

“After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence.” Hosea 6:2. About 750 years before the Messiah, Prophet Hosea predicted what God would accomplish for rebellious humankind in the body of Jesus Christ on the cross at Golgotha. Why did humankind need to be revived and restored? The first man, Adam, disobeyed God. As a result, humankind he represented became a natural sinner, a sinner by birth, condemned by the Objective Moral Law to eternal death. Humankind also lost the right to be children of God. God told humankind he created in Adam that once the first man, Adam, eats the forbidden fruit, he and all of future humankind will die forever (surely die). Genesis 2:17. Yet, in His patience, God left sinful humankind unpunished until the “fullness of time,” when the promised grace would come. Romans 3:25. When and how did sinful humankind die as the wages for sin committed in the garden of Eden? Sinful humankind surely died nearly 780 years after Hosea’s prophecy. How?

“But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” John 12:32. When God created the first man, Adam, He breathed the breath of life into him. The breath of life is “nashama,” in Hebrew, which means, in translation, “pneuma” – spirit, in Greek. Therefore, life—the spirit that sinned—had to die forever. Only God can destroy the human spirit because He gave it to humankind. God placed our sinful spirit, our sin, and our inclination to sin into the body of Jesus Christ on the cross at Golgotha. 2 Corinthians 5:21; Isaiah 53:6. By abandoning Jesus on the cross, God destroyed our sinful spirit and our sin forever. Romans 6:6. Then God, as He promised through the prophet Ezekiel, gave mankind a new spirit. Ezekiel 36:26. The whole of sinful humanity died in the body of Jesus Christ on the cross at Golgotha. “For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all; therefore all died.” 2 Corinthians 5:14.

The phrase “on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence” was fulfilled at the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We died in him on the cross at Golgotha, and we were raised again in him on the third day. “If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.” Romans 6:5. God did fulfill his promise; He made us alive again. “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,” Ephesians 2:6. Because we died in Christ, we also rose in him as a new humankind, and now we live in him. Romans 6:8.

Snatched from the fire. Read the next blog.

The gate of righteousness.

“Open to me the gates of the just king’s temple! I will enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.” The opening of the gates of righteousness refers to Jesus Christ, the gate through which the righteous will enter. Psalm 118:19. What are the gates of righteousness? The ‘gates of righteousness’ could not refer to the temple gate, because David wrote this before the temple in Jerusalem existed. David identifies the “gate” as the “gate of the Lord through which the righteous will enter.” Where do the righteous enter? They enter through the gate into the Lord’s presence in heaven. This raises two questions. What, or who, is the gate? Also, how do sinners become righteous to enter through the “gate of righteousness”?

Jesus Christ is the gate, or the “door,” to the Father. “Therefore Jesus said again, I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.” John 10:7. Jesus is the only gate for the righteous and the only way to the Father because he is the righteous gate. “Jesus answered, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6. Whether we come to the Father to praise him, as David desired, or to petition him concerning our burdens, we must go through Jesus Christ, or in his name, because he is the only way. The only gate for the righteous, Jesus Christ, is always open. Jesus, on the cross at Golgotha, proclaimed, “It is finished.” The curtain in the temple split in two, symbolizing that the soldiers had pierced Jesus’ body. Therefore, the gate for the righteous is irreversibly open forever. Matthew 27:50, 51. However, only the righteous could enter through the open gate, Jesus Christ.

How do sinners become righteous? Could it be achieved through careful observance of the law? “Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.” Romans 3:20. Long before the Incarnation, God announced through the prophet Isaiah: “But in the LORD all the descendants of Israel will be found righteous and will exult.” Isaiah 45:25. The apostle Paul applied this verse to Jesus Christ. “But now apart from law Righteousness of God has been manifested, to which the law and the prophets have borne witness: even the righteousness from God through trustworthiness of Jesus Christ, toward and upon all who believe: there is no difference:” Romans 3:21, 22. (my translation). So, by trusting Jesus Christ, we become righteous and thus qualified to come into the presence of our Father in heaven. We enter through the only gate available, Jesus Christ, and in his name. John 16:23.

The dead in sin. Read the next blog.

God abandoned the Savior of the world.

“Scorn has broken my heart and left me helpless; I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found none.” Psalm 69:20, 21. Long before the Messiah suffered on the cross at Golgotha, David prophesied what the Savior of the world would endure. On the night of his arrest, Jesus went to Gethsemane to pray. He asked his disciples to stay awake with him, but they fell asleep. The disciples couldn’t grasp the urgency of staying alert and praying. As the night in Gethsemane wore on, the cry, “I look for sympathy, but receive none,” became true. Maybe the apostles didn’t yet understand why the Messiah had to suffer, so they didn’t see why they needed to pray. Matthew 26:38, 40.

“Then he said to them, I am overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death…” Matthew 26:38 (my translation). Why was Jesus overwhelmed with sorrow? He knew that the moment had come for him to separate his perfect life from his body, take on sinful human life, and die an eternal death by being abandoned by the Father. “He who did not know sin was made sin.” 2 Corinthians 5:21. Did the Father abandon Jesus? God provided the answer through the prophet Isaiah long before it became a reality. “For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will bring you back.” Isaiah 54:7. Our spirit, which sinned in the Garden of Eden, could die an eternal death only if God, who gave it to humankind, forgot it. God accomplished this while Jesus was on the cross at Golgotha. That is why Jesus cried out, “My God…why have you forsaken me?” Mark 15:34, as prophesied by David. Psalm 22:1.

When Jesus finished praying, the mob sent by the high priest arrested him. Peter tried to defend Jesus with a sword, but Jesus told him to put it away. Jesus reminded the arresting crowd and the disciples that this had to happen to fulfill the Scriptures. At that moment, his disciples deserted him. “But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.” Matthew 26:56. “Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, placed the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips.” John 19:29. In this way, the guards fulfilled the prophetic writing of David.

The gate of righteousness. Read the next blog.

He led the captives.

“When you ascended on high, you have led captives in your train.” Psalm 68:18. In Psalm 47, David poetically describes the enthronement of Jesus Christ as the King of kings and Lord of lords on the day of his resurrection. The Bible does not specify who the captives are. Jesus ascended on high and sat down to reign as the King of kings on the day of his resurrection (John 20:17). However, Jesus led all of humankind, whom he had freed from slavery to sin and darkness, into the kingdom of Light and Righteousness and restored them to God as his children. He then received all authority (Matthew 28:16–19). The Bible also tells us that when Jesus died on the cross, graves were opened and many came to life (Matthew 27:50–53). The authors of the New Testament do not clarify whether these were the “captives” Jesus led in his train.

In Revelation, John tells us that when he went to heaven at Jesus’s invitation, he observed, “At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it! … Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads.” Revelation 4:2, 4. The white clothing represents the righteousness from God, Jesus Christ. All who surrender their old selves and accept the righteous life of Jesus Christ receive the white robes of his righteousness. The gold crown signifies our victory in Jesus Christ. In him, we are more than conquerors. Romans 8:37.

Some believe the twenty-four elders are exalted heavenly beings, members of God’s counsel. However, God is Sovereign, the eternal One. He created everything; therefore, He neither needs nor has counselors. “Who can fathom the Spirit of the LORD, or instruct the LORD as his counselor? Whom did the LORD consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way? Who was it that taught him knowledge, or showed him the path of understanding?” Isaiah 40:13, 14. Therefore, if the twenty-four elders represent the redeemed, they could not be God’s counselors, no matter how righteous and holy they are. Consequently, it is reasonable to conclude that they are the captives Jesus presented as proof of his victory.

God abandoned the Savior of the world. Read the next blog.

The Conqueror.

“You ascended on high, you led captivity captive; You received gifts for mankind, truly for the disobedient, so they may dwell there. The Lord God be blessed;” Psalm 68:18. The Septuagint. Apostle Paul applied this verse to Jesus Christ. Paul states, “But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. This is why it says: When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.” Ephesians 4:7, 8. The Masoretes, from around the third to the ninth century CE, were responsible for deciphering the Hebrew text and creating a consistent Old Testament text that upholds Jewish tradition. Accordingly, they altered some words and rearranged parts of the Bible that were in use before the ninth century CE. Nonetheless, the Septuagint and Paul’s translation preserve the original text.

In biblical times, victorious kings and generals would return with captives as proof of their triumph. They would usually give gifts to men and receive gifts from men. The early Christians attributed this verse to Jesus Christ, God’s gift to humankind. God, in Jesus Christ, gave the gift of eternal life and His righteousness to rebellious humankind. God gave us the perfect, eternal new human life of Jesus Christ and made self-surrendered believers righteous in Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:8; Romans 6:23; 1 John 3:1. Jesus defeated God’s enemy, Satan, and rescued humankind—the captives in the kingdom of sin and darkness. Jesus began his mission here on earth by saying, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Luke 4:18, 19.

Jesus defeated the prince of this world while nailed to the cross at Golgotha. Then he ascended to heaven on the morning of his resurrection. He ascended to the Father to have his victory accepted and to receive all authority. When Jesus revealed himself to Mary on the morning of his resurrection, she wanted to worship him. But Jesus told her, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” John 20:16, 17. What captives did he lead in his train? Read the next blog.

He led the captives. Read the next blog.

The Christ’s temple.

“Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: ‘Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin-offerings you were not pleased. Then I said, Here I am – it is written about me in the scroll – I have come to do your will, my God.” Hebrews 10:5–7. The Apostle Paul applies these verses to Jesus Christ. Paul quoted the Septuagint, the Bible Christians have used for centuries.

“But a body you prepared for me” is a correct statement concerning Jesus Christ because he is the High Priest in the order of Melchizedek, not Aaron. “The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind: ‘You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.’” Psalm 110:4. Melchizedek was a priest to the God Most High, and he officiated in his body, not in a human-made temple. Similarly, Jesus, as the High Priest, fulfilled his mission as the Redeemer and Savior of the world while in the body here on earth. “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. That God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.” 2 Corinthians 5:18, 19. God accomplished this by placing our sins on Jesus, the barrier that separated us from God the Father. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21. Jesus was made sin but not a sinner.

The phrase “I desire to do your will, O my God,” in Hebrews 10:7, refers to what? What was the will of God? “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” John 6:40. Where are we to look on the Son? “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life in him.” John 3:14. The will of God has been accomplished once and for all. Therefore, all should look to the Son of God on the cross at Golgotha. By trusting Jesus Christ that he has accomplished everything needed for our salvation, we have eternal life in him, here and now.

The Conqueror. Read the next blog.

The Son.

“I will proclaim the LORD’s decree: He said to me, ‘You are my Son; today I have become your Father.’” Psalm 2:7. David was a shepherd, a warrior, a musician, a poet, and a king. Many unique experiences marked his life. Yet through it all, he learned that relying on the Lord was the only answer. He also knew that humankind needed a Savior. God loved David and promised that through his descendants the Savior of the world, the Messiah, would come. Accordingly, David used his poetic talent to write about the promised Messiah, the Lord. In the verse above, David refers to the Messiah, the Son of God. In Hebrews 5:5, the Apostle Paul applies Psalm 2:7 to both the Son of God and the Son of Man, Jesus Christ.

Through the prophet Ezekiel, God promised to give fallen humankind a “new spirit,” a new life (Ezekiel 36:26). The human spirit that God placed in humankind at creation sinned in the Garden of Eden and, therefore, had to die an eternal death with no way out. At the incarnation, God gave fallen humankind a new human spirit, the human spirit of Jesus Christ, which comes from God, not from man. “The angel answered, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” Luke 1:35. The new human spirit, the new life of humankind, came from God, but Jesus’ body was formed in the womb of Mary, a human being. Because the new human spirit came from God the Creator, Jesus, as the representative of the new humankind God created in him, was the Son of God in the same sense that the first Man, Adam, was the Son of God (Luke 3:37–38).

Adam, the representative of the first humankind, deliberately chose to disobey God’s simple command, and, accordingly, the Objective Moral Law condemned all humankind, in Adam, to eternal death with no way out. “So it is written: The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit.” 1 Corinthians 15:45. The Apostle John agrees, “In him was life, and that life was the light of men.” John 1:4. By taking on a human body, the life-giving new human spirit of Jesus makes all who believe in his name children of God. (John 1:12).

The Christ’s Temple. Read the next blog.

The source of our righteousness.

In the Old Testament era, God repeatedly urged His people to trust Him and submit to His will. However, many, like Job and his friends, wrongly believed that doing what is generally accepted as right would lead to a righteous, blameless life. They failed to see that humankind’s spirit sinned in the Garden of Eden, making humankind a natural sinner. A life filled with continuous good deeds and effort cannot overcome sinful human nature. Only God can resolve the problem of sinfulness. Therefore, God promised to bring His righteousness to completion at the right time. Still, people found it hard to understand because the promise was for the future, not the present.

“The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. In his days, Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteousness” Jeremiah 23:5, 6. (The emphasis is mine.) These verses reveal what the Branch will be for fallen humankind. He will be their Righteousness from God. The Branch, Jesus Christ, did not give us righteousness. He did not merely declare us righteous. The Branch, Jesus Christ, became our righteousness forever.

Only by remaining in Christ can we be blameless in God’s eyes. The righteousness from God is ours here and now through trusting Jesus Christ. No human effort, religious practices, teachings, or other means can make us righteous in God’s sight. We are not righteous like Jesus; we are righteous *IN JESUS* ONLY. “But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” Romans 3:21, 22. It is not I, but Christ must be the conviction for each self-surrendered believer. Christ Our Righteousness is not just a theory but a daily experience for those who are saved.

The Son. Read the next blog.

Job defended his integrity. Continued.

Occasionally, Job affirms that his hope is in the Lord, but because his friends insist he has sinned, he quickly defends his integrity and self-righteousness. He even dares to challenge God to a dialogue. “Only grant me these two things, O God, and then I will not hide from you: Withdraw your hand from me, and stop frightening me with your terrors. Then summon me and I will answer, or let me speak, and you reply. How many wrongs and sins have I committed? Show me my offense and my sin.” Job 13:20–23. Job fails to realize that a mere mortal, a sinner, cannot become righteous simply by doing good deeds or speaking the right words. Even if a fallen human, a sinner, performed the noblest acts, he could not make himself righteous. Righteousness cannot come from a sinner, no matter what he does.

Before Job’s experience, another wise man wrote, “There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins” (Ecclesiastes 7:20). Because fallen human beings are born sinners, even their best efforts cannot change their sinful nature. Once a sinner, always a sinner. Sinful human beings must have their sins removed to be made righteous, which they cannot do through perfect speech and obedience. If sin remains, the sinner cannot be justified; therefore, his self-righteous behavior would be evil in God’s eyes. The prophet Isaiah said the same: “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away” (Isaiah 64:6).

Job insisted until the very end that he was righteous. He claimed that God had no reason to punish him. “Let God weigh me in honest scales, and he will know that I am blameless.” Job 31:6. “So these three men stopped answering Job because he was righteous in his own eyes.” Job 32:1.

Finally, God, as Job requested, spoke to him and questioned him. Job was confident he could answer God’s questions and prove his self-righteousness. However, he couldn’t find the right words to respond. When God finished questioning him, Job declared, “My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.” Job 42:5, 6. Job repented of his self-righteousness because he finally understood that God, and only He, is the source of all righteousness.

The only source of righteousness. Read the next blog.