Whoever pursues righteousness and unfailing love will find life, righteousness, and honor. - Proverbs 21:21 NLT
I'll share this, God has been working on me when it comes to righteousness. I'll keep this post short because I will discuss the topic in greater detail in a podcast.
He's challenging me to understand the difference between right and righteousness. When I say right, I'm referring to the desire to always be right. Not the inherent rightness of righteousness.
It's no coincidence that the verse mentions the pursuit of righteousness and unfailing love together. Perfect love keeps no record of wrongs (1 Corinthians 13:5), so righteousness can't simply be about being right, it has to be more than that, deeper than that. See, true, godly righteousness pairs with unfailing love.
Jesus is the perfect example, right? Jesus is righteousness. Jesus is also unfailing love and its perfect example. Jesus, of course, was always right, but His pursuit was one of righteousness and unfailing love.
If you're working to pursue the two, righteousness and unfailing love, you'll find life, righteousness, and honor. In Jesus is fullness of life, righteousness, and honor. When you work like Jesus worked and pursue what Jesus pursued, you'll be able to receive what Jesus has to offer.
So, how has God been working with me in understanding the difference between right and righteousness? Well, that's a podcast chat, and I'll just say it's a humbling lesson.