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Can we be righteous?

Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness. Genesis 15:6

2 “As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice,
the Almighty, who has made me taste bitterness of soul,
3 as long as I have life within me,
the breath of God in my nostrils,
4 my lips will not speak wickedness,
and my tongue will utter no deceit.
5 I will never admit you are in the right;
till I die, I will not deny my integrity.
6 I will maintain my righteousness and never let go of it;
my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live. Job 27:2-6

God called Abram righteous. Job called himself righteous and God affirmed Job's righteousness in his discussion with Satan and when He talked to Job’s friends.

So yes, we can be righteous. Righteous means being in a right relationship with God. If you are obeying his word, listening to Him in prayer and walking with God throughout your life, God says you are doing everything needed to be in a right relationship.

Are you perfect? No. Abram was not perfect. Job either. David made huge mistakes, yet God said David was after God’s heart. If perfection was the key, then only one person, Jesus Christ, would attain that.

Righteousness requires repentance when mistakes are made, restoring that right relationship by asking for forgiveness.

Remember, it’s according to God’s standards for righteousness, not ours, that we must follow. If we call ourselves righteous by saying “I go to church, tithe and pray now and then” then we are self-righteous because we have determined our own standards for righteousness.