Ask a Christian of your acquaintance what he thinks righteousness is. He most likely will respond: "I am not righteous, only Christ is righteous. God sees the righteousness of Christ in me."

If you said Christ commanded us to let the light of good works shine in us he would not believe you. He probably would become very confused and accuse you of legalism.

There are two different forms of righteousness. One is the righteousness that is ascribed to us because we have placed our faith in Him who justifies the ungodly. The other is the actual righteousness of the new covenant in which we become a new creation. The eternal moral law of God is written on our mind and heart.

God wants us to cease attempting to create our own righteousness by following the Law of Moses or any other moral code. God desires that we seek Christ each moment of each day, obeying the Spirit of God, until the fruit of the moral character of Christ is revealed in our life.

God wants us to seek Christ each moment of each day, obeying the Spirit of God, until the fruit of the moral Character of Christ is revealed in our life.

If there is no transformation of character, if there is no new righteous creation coming forth, then we may be a member of a Christian assembly but we certainly are not abiding in Christ. We are a member of the Christian religion but not a disciple of Jesus.

It is no wonder the Muslims call America "the great Satan." They know America contains many Christians. Yet moral filth pours forth from Hollywood. And while numerous Christians deplore the moral filth coming from Hollywood, they themselves have not been transformed morally because of unscriptural doctrine. They are trusting in imputed righteousness but are filled with worldliness, malice, slander, hatred, unforgiveness, stubbornness, self-will, lying, stealing, immorality, drunkenness, pride, haughtiness, meanness, selfishness, witchcraft, bitterness, and every other behavior that will never be accepted in the Kingdom of God. Because of this lack of Christian morality, Hollywood and the secular government have no moral light to guide them.

The leaders of our government that do profess to be Christians are trusting in grace to bring them to Heaven. Meanwhile our government seems to have more than its share of fraud and corruption. The Christianity is in name only.

This is the condition of the United States of America as we enter the third millennium. God is not waiting for more spiritual babies clothed in the diapers of imputed righteousness. He is looking for a people strong in righteous behavior, set in battle array, who are prepared for the age of moral horrors we are entering.

But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, (Romans 3:21,22—NIV)

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (II Corinthians 3:18—NIV)

To be continued.