In this context, Sister White says that we must never say: I am saved. In terms of moral perfection, there is always a battle to be won. There will never come a time in this life, not even after probation is over, when you won`t have to struggle with one, until glorification. But there must be progress because you are hungry and thirsty. I would like to remind you that this justice is not achieved by respecting the rules. How can we achieve this justice that we hunger and thirst for? Look at 2 Corinthians 3:17–18. First, verse 17: Verse 17 speaks of the Old Testament Writings in their entirety in the phrase „the law or the prophets.” Verse 18 may also refer to the entire Old Testament in the words „the law.” But the conclusion drawn from these two verses focuses on the commandments in verse 19 and righteousness in verse 20. From these advances in the text and the topics chosen for discussion in the sermon, up to Matthew 7:6, it is undeniably clear that our Savior wants His primary purpose to be the moral law or the ethical teachings of the Old Testament. It does not discuss in detail far-sighted prophecies, history, civil agreements, or other features of the law and prophets.
Instead, it gives a powerful analysis of ethical norms. In a world that has gone astray and in a society that is collapsing under the weight of self-interest, political posturing, and carnal desires, people must hear and listen to „the word of righteousness” (Hebrews 5:13). Christ is the answer, and the gospel is the message of a sinful world. That has always been the case. And always will be. For Paul, the gospel of Jesus Christ thus had concrete consequences that influenced the attitude of Christian believers toward the legal and ethical norms of pagan society. Faith in Jesus Christ makes a difference in attitudes toward righteousness and ethical rules. Of course, the Pauline churches were small groups with little influence and few powerful or noble members (1 Corinthians 1:26). Nor is Paul`s theology aimed at a transformation of the Roman Empire. Rather, he respects political leaders as God`s ordinance for this world (Romans 13:1-7), and he does not develop legal norms for „his” communities. But there is no doubt that for Christians, the law of „this world” is not the last and last measure. Rather, as Paul said in 1.
Corinthians 6:1-11 explicitly states that the „community of saints” that will judge the world will not bring its own affairs before judges outside the community. This passage shows that Paul respects the legal system of pagan society, but calls for higher standards for believers in Christ based on the special position of the „saints” who still live in this world. Thus, „righteousness” is also understood as God`s faithfulness to fulfillIng His obligations to man and His creation, because He as creator has a relationship with them. Yet the fallacy of the human mind continues to distort Scripture, so that people understand Jesus` most haunting comments as the exact opposite of what he said. Eager to get rid of the moral commandments of the Old Testament passages, many verses 18 explain the following: „Well, of course, Jesus kept the commandments of the Old Testament. And since he has accomplished them, they will be abolished, and we can ignore them. But Jesus does not indicate that a day will come when parts of the law will disappear. The first thing I want to do is look at the word justice. In the Bible, it can contain four different meanings.
We must first look at all four, and then ask ourselves: What context did Christ have in mind in the first place? Matthew 5:6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be breastfed. Apart from me, you can do nothing Our part is to stay in Christ, His part is to give birth to moral justice. I will say more about that shortly. But I want to go to number 3. In the biblical tradition, therefore, law and religion are interpreted from the point of view that God Himself is just, that His righteousness can pass through the human understanding of law and justice, and that human law must always be measured in relation to God`s righteousness, which can occur as His mercy and generosity. In this context, a Christian perspective on the law will always be critical, as it will measure human law against God`s standard of justice and compassion. This perspective must be conveyed in different cultural and religious contexts as an independent vision based on the biblical concept of law and justice to the present day. This means that, on the one hand, Christians are attached to the concrete legal systems of their respective countries.
At the same time, these legal systems are critically reflected against God`s commandment as a measure of human life according to God`s will. If we were to take all the requirements of the moral law and summarize them in one commandment, it would be this one; „Be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect” (5:48). The moral law is only a reflection of God`s perfection or His righteous glory. This is exactly what Paul meant when he defined sin as „missing the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). This is nothing more than what the law and the prophets demanded: „Be holy because I am holy” (Lv 11:44-45; 19:2, 20:7, 1 Pet 1:16). The Sermon on the Mount speaks of righteousness. The gospel speaks of righteousness. This is a fact that many modern evangelicals seem to have overlooked. The first thing I want to mention about this moral justice is that you cannot produce it yourself.
We are not justified by faith in Christ and sanctified by our own strength. There is cooperation, but remember what Jesus said in John 15:4-5: Because of His righteousness, God puts people (and creation) back into the state He intended for them. In this context, God told Israel that all their righteousness was impure like dirty rags. She looked horrified again and I told her I had good news for her. God gave the Messiah to your people and, unfortunately, your nation rejected Him. But it`s not too late. She said that I was born Jewish, that I will die one. I told her that she didn`t have to become a gentile, that Christ was also Jewish. But she would have to become a pious Jew. Moral justice is the righteous life—the righteousness of character and behavior that pleases God. Not the justice that respects the rules of cold religious, but the warm and inner justice that flows from the Spirit in us. This is the justice we should be hungry and thirsty for.
But rarely in church discussions about justice is the idea subject to biblical evaluation. First of all, the English language has certain shortcomings with regard to the dikÄ expression of the New Testament. From its Latin roots, English gets words „justice,” and from its German root, it gets words „righteous.” A simple table helps. In addition to the above, we also want deliverance from this body of sin. A Christian who is hungry and thirsty for justice realizes that there is something that is an obstacle. We call this sinful nature. Paul calls it the law of sin in my members. Paul will weep in Romans 7:24: Dunn summarizes God`s righteousness as „the fulfillment of his covenant duty as god of Israel in Israel`s deliverance, salvation, and justification, despite Israel`s failure.” It is immediately clear that the Latin and German derivatives convey two very different meanings and humors, although they translate identical NT-Greek words. Politicians and social commentators will argue for a just society, but they will rarely argue for a just society. And a magistrate is expected to be fair, but not necessarily fair. Justice seems to apply to the law and public life, while justice seems to apply to privacy.
The verb „to do/declare right” is a heavy periphrastic to „justify”, and the very Old English „rightwising” is not a real substitute for „to justify”, although „straighten” may suffice. But God has not forgotten to feed you. It is always ready to satisfy your hunger. And Jesus said: If you eat me and drink me, it will produce sources of water and you will never thirst again. Only Christ satisfies. Our justice never satisfies us. Moreover, God has promised a day of judgment when law will triumph and injustice will be overthrown, and after which there will be „new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Pet 3:13). We also aspire to this last legal defence, and we will not be disappointed.