God's Righteousness

Isaiah is a wonderful book. You should definitely spend some time in it if you haven't recently. A few days ago I was reading in chapter 59 and came across a nugget of theological truth that wowed me...
Some quick points of contextualization before we dive in. Isaiah is discussing the brokenness of humanity. "We hope for light... but walk in gloom (v9)." It's as if Isaiah is saying that as much as we dream for the perfect world, we awake to hurt and pain.

That being said, come and read with me starting midway through verse 15 to the end of 16:

The LORD saw it, and it displeased him
   that there was no justice.
He saw that there was no man,
   and wondered that there was no one to intercede;
then his own arm brought him salvation,
   and his righteousness upheld him. (59:15-16)

There are two key parts here to look into, the first being "his own arm brought him salvation".  That simply means that God brought about salvation by himself, by his own strength. He didn't need any help. So next time you try and pretty up and look good enough for Jesus to pick you, know that you're wasting your time. I fall into this unthinkingly. I have to remind myself that this scripture doesn't say his own right arm and Matt's persistent attempts to do good brought him salvation. When I read what goes through my mind, it sounds just as ridiculous as it seems.

God doesn't need us to save. He does it by his own power, which brings us two the second point, "his righteousness upheld him." What ensure God's decision to save? His own righteousness. Righteousness is the standard to which all saving power can be measured. Isaiah already established in the first portion of the chapter. (If you need further proof start with Genesis 3 and read through Malachi. Take a short break and crack open the Gospels and listen to how Jesus describes mankind. Take a deep breath, and observe how Paul, Peter, James, and other followers of Christ spoke of our corruption.) Man's own righteousness is not enough to save. It might as well be a sieve attempting to keep back a burst dam. God is truly righteous. His righteousness is why His choice to save carries weight whereas our choice to save is worthless. We can't save, but God can save everyone, everywhere.

How awesome is our God! God has the power to rescue us because of His own nature. He doesn't exert strain or have to struggle to save, He simply saves because that is who He is. The Passion account shows just how much God desired to be with us, and just how much He loves us. But the truth reigns true nonetheless. God's DNA is righteousness. Praise Him!

Learning a little more everyday,
-matt