Speaking From a Righteous Heart
by Pastor Jake
In the natural family of man there is the father and mother who are one; and then there are the children who are the offspring or seed of the father. The children bear the fathers name and thus they are known as his children. The children are taught by their father and after they have been fully trained they become like their teacher (Luke 6:40). As long as the children are obedient to the father, and do not rebel, they are entitled to share in all the things of the father; all that belongs to the father belongs to the children as well. Whatever the father commands his children to speak or do, they speak or do in his name and with his power and authority.
The family of man is patterned after the family of God. When man is “born again” he becomes a member of the family of God; God is his Father or his source of life and all that he is. He bears his Fathers name and thus he is known as a child of God. He is taught by his Father and after he has been fully trained he becomes like his Teacher. As long as the child is obedient to his Father, and does not rebel, he is entitled to share in all the things of his Father; all that belongs to the father belongs to the child as well. Whatever the Father commands His child to speak or do, he speaks or does in his Fathers name and with his Fathers power and authority.
“For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. O LORD of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in Thee (Ps. 84:11-12 NAS)!”
The purpose of this study is to learn of the power of God that works through. righteousness. But first we will review the meaning of the word “righteous”; for righteousness speaks of the condition of man’s innermost being or soul as it pertains to his relationship with his heavenly Father.
Nelson’s Bible Dictionary defines righteousness as “holy and upright living.” Webster’s New World College Dictionary defines righteous (or righteousness) as (1) acting in a just, upright manner; doing what is right; virtuous. (2) Morally right; fair and just. (3) Morally justifiable. (4) Good, excellent, satisfying, pleasant, authentic and etc. In summary; righteousness is the character or quality of being right or just.
Both Webster and Nelson define righteousness in terms of a persons character and behavior. But acting virtuous, moral, just and being “holy and upright” is measured by what standard? Righteous or righteousness must be a state of rightness that is determined by an authoritative source.
Nelson continues by stating, “The word ‘righteousness’ comes from a root word that means ‘straightness.’ It refers to a state that conforms to an authoritative standard.”
Since God is the Creator and the very foundation of all that exist there can be no other standard by which “straightness” or “rightness” is measured. God is righteous, just and faithful.
“Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, or shifting shadow (James 1:17 NAS).”
Thus when we speak of God’s righteousness we are speaking of all that God says and does as being in conformity, in harmony with or is faithful to His own character and nature Therefore all that is created, including man, was created in the beginning according to and in the righteousness of God.
Righteousness begins with faith.
“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him (Heb. 11:6 NAS).” Faith, like all things received from God, is a gift; it cannot be earned. “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast (Eph. 2:8-9 NAS).”
Faith is the revealed will of our heavenly Father believed and obeyed. By God’s election He calls and we believe and obey. After we have answered God’s call if we seek Him He will reward us with more faith; for “He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
In the beginning God created man in His image; man was righteous as God is righteous. Then man sinned and became unrighteous.
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus, in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus (Eph. 2:4-7 NAS).”
By God’s grace through faith man’s righteousness is restored. Therefore when we speak of the righteousness obtained through faith in Christ Jesus, we speak of all that a man says and does that conforms with who he has been created to be in His Lord and Savior.
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Eph. 2:10 NAS).”
All things created are patterned after the thoughts of God. Before all creation existed in the physical form it pre-existed in the sprit realm as thoughts in the “heart” or the soul of the Creator. When God was ready for it to be manifested His thoughts became His word as He spoke things into existence. This is God’s act in creating the natural universe and all that is in it.
The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews in the New Testament declared,
“By faith {or by revelation} we understand that the world was framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible (Heb. 11:3 NAS).”
From the righteous heart or the soul of God He speaks and things come to pass and are manifested or formed by His righteous word from that which is invisible. Thus we can see the endless, unlimited power of the word of God that works from and through righteousness.
The endless, unlimited power of God is in the heart and mouth of the righteous. The disciples of Jesus were trying to cast out a demon and had failed. They ask Jesus why were they unable to cast him out, and He replied;
“Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you (Matt. 17:20ffKJV).” “And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would obey you (Luke 17:5-6 NAS).”
From this Scripture we can clearly see that it is not the amount of faith that releases the power of God, it is the fact that even a small amount of faith makes the believer to be in right standing with God and thus the unlimited power of God can be released through him.
“The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain; and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the sky poured rain, and the earth produced its fruit (James 5:16f-18 NAS).”
The apostle James makes the statement ---”The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much” ---then he points to Elijah as an example. It was not the amount of faith that Elijah had; but the fact that the faith that he did have God had counted it to him as righteousness; thus his prayer was effective. Powerless words or unanswered prayer is a result of unbelief.
Man regards his heart as that physical part of him that performs the most important function in his body; for it is the heart that pumps the life giving blood through out his body;
“for the life of the flesh is in the blood, (Lev. 17:11 NAS).”
The Holy Scriptures speaks of a man’s “heart” as being vital to his spiritual life as well. But of course the Scripture is not speaking of man’s physical heart. The Scripture is using the heart as a likeness to a man’s soul; for a man’s soul is the center, the innermost being or the life of man (see Gen. 2:7).
Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary defines the scriptural meaning of the word “heart” as “the inner self that thinks, feels, and decides.” Nelson states further that in the Holy Scripture “the word heart has a much broader meaning than it does to the modern mind. The heart is that which is central to man. Nearly all the references to the heart in the Bible refer to some aspect of human personality.” The innermost being of man, his soul or heart, is the source of all that he expresses in word or deed.
“The good man (or righteous man) out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man (or unrighteous man) out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart (Luke 6:45 NAS).”
Man speaks and acts upon what he believes in his heart or soul; thus what man believes in his heart and speaks with his mouth is the power that directs his life.
“Behold, the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder, wherever the inclination of the pilot desires. So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. Behold, how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire (James 3:4-5 NAS)!”
God made a covenant with Moses when He called him to lead His people out of the land of Egypt and for forty years God put the words into Moses and Aaron’s mouth s and perform signs, wonders and miracles through him.
“And the LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes him dumb or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? “Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say (Exod. 4:11-12 NAS).”
“And you are to speak to him (Aaron) and put the words in his mouth; and I, even I, will be with your mouth and his mouth, and I will teach you what you are to do (Exod. 4:15 NAS).”
God choose David to be king of Israel and by him slew giants and put armies to flight and performed many feats through him.
“The Spirit of the LORD spoke by me, and His word was on my tongue (2 Sam. 23:2 NAS).”
God tells His people in the book of Deuteronomy,
----”For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach. “It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?’ “Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?’ “But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it (Deut 30:11-14 NAS).”
The apostle Paul refers to these words when he writes of God’s covenant concerning salvation (also see John 3:16-17).
“But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”-- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation (Rom. 10:8-10 NAS).”
“-----and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit (1st Cor. 12:3ff NAS).”
By the Holy Spirit the word of God is put into the mouth of the righteous believer and he speaks unto salvation. From his innermost being, his heart or soul, man believes in the works of God through His Son and so experiences both love from God and the presence of Christ in his heart.
“----and hope does not disappoint, because the LOVE OF GOD has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit WHO WAS GIVEN TO US (Rom. 5:5 NAS).”
The prophet Isaiah tells us of a covenant that God has made with those who by faith turn from sin and turn to Him for salvation.
“And a Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” declares the LORD. “And as for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the LORD: “My Spirit which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,” says the LORD, “from now and forever (Isa. 59:20-21 NAS).”
God’s covenant is with His sons through Christ Jesus the Redeemer and His Spirit is upon His sons and they are led by Him.
“For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him (Rom. 8:14-17 NAS).”
“Jesus therefore answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner. “For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and greater works than these will He show Him, that you may marvel (John 5:19-20 NAS).”
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go to the Father (John 14:12 NAS).”
Our heavenly Father gives us His Spirit; that by His Spirit all of His great attributes may be manifested in us. The foremost of these is love, for “faith works by love (Gal. 5:6ff NAS).”
He is also our helper and teacher.
“For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, {set their minds on} the things of the Spirit (Rom. 8:5 NAS).”
The Holy Spirit of the Father is the one who puts the Fathers words in His son’s mouths. The mind set on the things of the Spirit communicates with the Spirit; and the thoughts of the Father are freely given to the sons by Him. Then when the sons speak the words given to them by the Spirit it is the “utterance of God (see 1st Pet. 4:11 NAS).”
“For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words (1st Cor. 2:11-13 NAS).”
“--- he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no man. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ (1st Cor. 2:15-16 NAS).”
God creates His sons to be a tree of life, wisdom and justice for those who partake of their fruit.
“A soothing tongue is a tree of life,---(Prov. 15:4f).”
“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being (heart or soul) shall flow rivers of living water (words that give life)’ (John 7:38).”
The fruit the tree bears is words that give life.
“The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, (Prov. 10-11f NAS).”
“The tongue of the righteous is as choice silver,---(Prov. 10:20f NAS).”
“The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom,---(Prov. 10:31f).”
“The lips of the righteous bring forth what is acceptable,--(Prov. 10:31f NAS).”
“The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice (Ps. 37:30 NAS).”
“Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones (Prov. 16:23-24 NAS).”
“With the fruit of a man’s mouth his stomach will be satisfied; He will be satisfied with the product of his lips. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit (Prov. 18:20-21 NAS).”
But what about the words of the deceived, self-righteous “religious”? Does their words have any power? They cannot understand the word of God because they do not have the Spirit of God.
“But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised (1st Cor. 2:14).”
By their own intellect the natural man attempts to interpret the Holy Scriptures and thus they pervert the word of God; they hold to a form of godliness, although they deny its power (see 2nd Tim. 3:5). They appear as being righteous but or as “wolves in sheep clothing (See Matt. 7:15).”
“Their words are as poisonous vipers and those who listen to them become as “white washed tomes filled with dead men’s bones, (see Matt. 23:27).”
They do not belong to the body of Christ but are deceived religious parasites that attempt to suck the very life out of the church, which is the body of Christ. They persecute the righteous and hinder the works of God. The scribes, who were interpreters of God’s law, the Sanhedrin court and the religious, self-righteous Pharisees and Sadducees are examples of such as these in modern times.
And what about the miss-guided, unwise, foolish, unlearned, the depraved and unrighteous,------those whose mind is set on the things of the flesh? Does their words have any meaning?
“For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God (Rom. 8:6-8 NAS).”
A person whose mind is set on the things of the flesh (worldliness) is easily deceived; he does not even know that he communicates with the spirit of the destroyer. He speaks the words of the devil and does not realize it. The fruit of his lips speak death to themselve and to all who eat of their fruit (listen to their words). They have become the image of the serpent without even knowing it.
“The good man out of his good treasure brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of his evil treasure brings forth what is evil.
The “good treasure” is the Spirit of Christ within the righteous and the “evil treasure” is the spirit of God’s adversary within the unrighteous.
“Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated? “But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders. “These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man (Matt. 15:17-20 NAS).”
“A soothing tongue is a tree of life, but perversion in it crushes the spirit (Prov. 15:4 NAS).”
“The tongue of the righteous is as choice silver, the heart of the wicked is worth little. The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of understanding (Prov. 10:20-21 NAS).”
“The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom, but the perverted tongue will be cut out. The lips of the righteous bring forth what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverted (Prov. 10:31-32 NAS).”
“And I say to you, that every careless word that men shall speak, they shall render account for it in the day of judgment. “For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned (Matt. 12:35-37 NAS).”
Before our Lord sent out the seventy disciples He gave them authority and power along with complete instructions as to what they were to do and say (see Luke 10:1-20). They heard Him, believed Him and did exactly as He had instructed them. His word was “in their heart and in their mouth.” As they did according to His instructions they were astounded at the results. They returned to Jesus rejoicing that even the spirits obeyed them. Jesus said to them,
“Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven (Luke 10:20 NAS).”
Faith had made them righteous and the power of God was working through them; those who have faith such as these, truly they are sons of God.
God’s power and authority is with the righteous----His sons. He has made a covenant with His sons and He has put His word is in their mouths. The sons of God love their Father, and love has trust; and trust inspires patience. When a son speaks the word that his Father put into his mouth he waits patiently for it to come to pass. He stands boldly and firmly on the word he has spoken for he trust his Father and is confident that in due season He will perform it. The same principle applies to prayer as well; for a son abides in Christ and His word abides in the heart and mouth of the son and he knows whatever he ask it will be done (see John 15:7).
In summary we can confidently say, according to the Holy Scripture, that salvation through Christ Jesus is the process of being fully restored to the purpose man was created for in the beginning. Just as Jesus glorified the Father so shall the sons begotten by Him glorify the Father. Jesus was the beginning, the corner stone; the apostles were the foundation of what has now come---the consummations of all things. Now is the age that the unique Son of God, and those that come to the Father through Him, will once again manifest the glory of the Father with authority and great power. Through His sons God defeats the enemy and they rejoice with shouts of victory.
A prayer of the righteous: Please “Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth: keep watch over the door of my lips.” Let not my lips speak unjustly, nor my tongue mutter deceit. Let my ear test words, as the palate tastes food. And let my tongue declare Your righteousness and Your praise all day long. Strengthen me to guard my ways, that I may not sin with my tongue: I will guard my mouth as with a muzzle, while the wicked are in my presence. For, “let him who means to love life and see good days Refrain his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking guile.” Amen.
Words for this prayer taken from Ps. 141:3; Job 27:4; Job 34:3; Ps. 35:28; Ps. 39:1 and 1st Pet. 3:10 NAS.