Righteousness Like Waves of the Sea

Pictorial Language Series

There are people that are snobbishly self-righteous – they are better than anyone else and, as far as they are concerned, they themselves can do no wrong. There are also people that feel following customs of a national or ethnic group make them righteous – these are people pleasers, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it’s just not complete. There are probably other applications/explanations of the word.

For me, righteousness is doing the right things God’s way, using the measuring stick that he provides (e.g. the Bible). Right away, unlike those that are self-righteous, these ones recognize that true righteousness is accompanied with humility, in recognition of the fact that before God, we are mere dust. So then, how can we imperfect humans actually display, possess righteousness like the waves of the sea?

The first mention (that I could find) of a man being counted by God as righteous was Abram (later renamed Abraham). The reason God credited him thusly? It was because of the faith that Abram put in Jehovah. Next, was the instructions that Moses was giving the Israelites and how to explain their worship to their future generations. In Deut.6:24,25, Moses said that righteousness was gained by obedience and observance of all the instructions Jehovah had given them. King David said that God rewards him (David) “according to my righteousness … according to the innocence of my hands.” See also Prov.13:6. (It is noteworthy that David said this because he really was not completely innocent in God’s sight. Yet, as a whole, God considered King David in such positive light that he was spoken of as the progenitor of Jesus. So even after a major failure, we can still rise to Jehovah’s favor again. This reminds me of the proverbial saying: “The measure of a man is not the he falls down but that he picks himself up and keeps going.”)

Isaiah associated righteousness with ones who carried the law in their hearts. This goes beyond obedience and observance to an authority. It is motivated by love of God. Finally (although I could cite many other scriptures), I’ll make one stop in the Greek Scriptures.  At 1 John 3:7 we learn that righteousness is a way of life, it is a “practice” we cultivate throughout our lives.

Wrapping it up then, the list below summarizes the ways our righteousness can be developed to be like the waves of the sea (the waves of the sea, out in the open sea, can be relentlessly pounding, overwhelming in majesty and magnitude, and formidable):

• Faith in God
• Obedience to and observance of God’s laws and principles
• Innocence (not disobedient and not deceptive)
• Heartfelt
• Motivated by love
• A Way of Life, a habit

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Isaiah 48:18 Peace Like A River

Pictorial Language Series

The first part of Isaiah 48:18 reads: “If only you would pay attention to my commandments! Then your peace would become just like a river”

Admittedly, I have no clue how Isaiah's contemporaries would have viewed the above scripture -- specifically how peace is like a river. But it seemed to be a quaint mental challenge to come up with ways a river might illustrate peaceful living.

Abundance: In my mind, a river is bigger than a babbling brook, wider and longer than a stream. There is no shortage of water. Likewise, our peace is abundant.

Unstoppable Strength: The waters usually have strength in their currents. I've known of rivers having such a strong undertow, that people have been swept away, never to be seen again. Although peace may be considered by some as diminutive, weak, when we meet people who are truly strong of heart and determination, there is nothing that can wreck their peace. Their peace comes not as a reaction to external stimuli (gifts, wealth, pleasure, etc.) but from a strong character that flows throughout their whole being.

Length: Rivers can take hours, even days to follow. When it makes a relatively straight line, a person could look in either direction and not see the beginning nor end of it. The peace that Jehovah gives will likewise be unending.

Nourishing: A river will nourish the land in near proximity of its banks. At one point, Jehovah told Abraham that “by means of your offspring all nations of the earth will obtain a blessing for themselves because you have listened to my voice.” Much later, Christianity was opened to “people of the nations” so that there was neither Greek nor Jew for they are all equal in God’s sight, thus fulfilling the prophecy. Today, the Good News that we preach is refreshing like a cold drink on a scorching day. As “the land” of people we preach to begin to soak up the life-giving waters of truth, they go from a parched, arid ground to a lush botanical garden of spirituality.

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