The Practical Side of being Righteous

We cannot make ourselves to be righteous through any kind of 'work'. We are saved and made righteous in God's eyes through the 'work' of Jesus alone - through his death. However, there is a very real and very tangible, practical part of righteousness. It brings to my mind the discussion James has in the second chapter of his letter concerning faith and works. He says, in a mock discussion, "You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." It is not the works that save, but they are the proof that the faith is real. The order and motivation are what is important - the faith must come first and because of the faith, works will naturally follow.

Back to Matthew 25. Jesus is discussing the judgement and he compares it to a shepherd separating the goats from the sheep. He sets them on either side of Him and looks to the sheep and says (starting in verse 34) "Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me." The sheep in this story question the shepherd saying, "When did we do all of that?" To which Jesus replies, "To the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me."

So, the question for me is really, 'how do I treat the people I come in contact with?' Am I kind? Do I reach out to help people with their physical needs? Do I over-spiritualize things? Do I under-spiritualize things? My problem is more the latter. Often I only go into spiritual details with people in the church. I want to be balanced - the same person all the time - meeting spiritual needs and physical needs of people that I come across.

I just want to be better. I want to improve constantly. I don't want to settle for less than the very best that God has for me. I don't want to miss opportunities. I want to grow.