What is Holiness?

Righteousness… it sounds like a word for courtrooms and cathedrals. But in Scripture, righteousness is how God is, what God gives, and what God forms in His people… so He can send them as light into a world that has lost its way.

It begins with God Himself. “The Lord is righteous in all His ways…” Always true… always straight… always aligned with goodness. Righteousness isn’t a checklist — it’s the character of the King of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Jesus ties righteousness directly to His rule:
“Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness…”
Seek the way God rules, not the way the world rules. Seek what He calls right, not what crowds praise. Righteousness is God’s government made visible through His people.

And yet… we all fall short. So if God is righteous… and righteousness is required… and we are deeply not… where is hope? Here comes the miracle that changes everything — Jesus is our righteousness.

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us… so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.”
Not standing near Him… in Him. Wrapped in His perfection… covered by His record. Justification is God declaring:
Not guilty… fully accepted… made right.

But righteousness isn’t merely a legal declaration — it is armor for daily life.
“Put on the breastplate of righteousness…” Paul says.
Because the enemy attacks through accusation… he points to your failures and whispers, “You don’t belong.” The armor answers confidently:
My rightness is Christ Himself.
His faithfulness guards what is fragile in me.

Righteousness is protection in spiritual warfare…
and also purpose in spiritual mission.
We are not saved to be silent.
Jesus said, “Let your light shine… that they may see your good works and glorify your Father…”
Righteousness is evidence — the living proof that God is active in a human life.

And when righteousness appears… it looks like mercy.
Generosity instead of greed.
Compassion instead of indifference.
“The righteous are generous and share…”
“Blessed is the one who considers the poor…”
Holiness without mercy becomes arrogance.
Holiness with mercy becomes Christlike love — the kind that restores the broken and lifts the lowly.

And here is something we rarely connect — righteousness brings joy.
Scripture says, “The Kingdom of God is… righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
Joy isn’t a reward for flawless behavior — it’s the fruit of belonging to God.
Sin drains joy… shame suffocates joy… fear buries joy.
But righteousness — being right with Him — unlocks joy again.
The joy Adam forfeited when he hid among the trees… Jesus returns when He calls us back into fellowship.

This is why righteousness is woven into sanctification.
The Spirit forms inside us what God has already declared over us.
Like a living branch on a living Vine… righteousness grows.
Not taped-on apples… but fruit that comes from life within.
As Jesus said… “Apart from Me you can do nothing.”
Connected to Him… obedience replaces resistance… peace replaces anxiety… boldness replaces fear… and love replaces judgment.

Righteousness doesn’t stop with personal transformation — it advances through us.
Into workplaces… families… neighborhoods… and places deeply wounded by sin.
It becomes hope where despair ruled… justice where exploitation thrived… kindness where cruelty once lived.
It is light breaking into shadows.

And this story has a destination.
One day — righteousness will fill everything.
“We look for new heavens and a new earth where righteousness dwells.”
Not glimpsed… not partial… not debated… but present everywhere.

Every injustice overturned.
Every wound healed.
Every tear wiped away.
Every lie silenced.
Every heart made whole.

That is the finish line of grace —
righteousness fully revealed… because it is fully His.

So what now?
We do not work to become righteous —
we work because we are righteous in Christ.
We don’t strive to earn God’s attention —
we serve because we already have His affection.
We don’t chase moral success —
we chase Jesus… and righteousness follows like a shadow when the Light is near.

The calling remains simple — and impossible without Him:
Seek first the Kingdom and His righteousness.

Stay close to Jesus.
Wear His righteousness like armor.
Grow righteousness like fruit.
Display righteousness like light.
Give righteousness like mercy.
Hope in righteousness like glory.

Because righteousness is not just a rule to follow…
it is a life to live — the life of Christ in you —
until the King returns… and the world is finally made right again.