³ Little children, let no man deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. Jesus only spoke, judged, and did as He was prompted and ordered by God; to practice righteousness we also must be able to only speak what we hear Him order us to say and only do what we are ordered to do by God. This ability only comes after we have crucified our selfish spirit, as sin has been destroyed by the Spirit through bearing the inward cross of self-denial; then we are walking the same way He walked and in the world as He was with perfection, purity, and holiness.

From the Word of the Lord within:

• "Christianity has no idea what I am or for what I stand.
• I stand for righteousness.
• I was sent to bare righteousness."

How did Jesus bare righteousness and show us what we must do to be righteous?

• Of my own self, I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, John 5:30
• The Son can do nothing of Himself [by his own will], but only does what he sees the Father do. John 5:19
• But so that the world may know that I love the Father, I only do exactly as the Father has instructed me to do. John 14:31
• I have many things to say and to judge about you; but he who sent me is true,
  and I speak to the world only those things that I have heard from him. John 8:26
• For I do not speak from myself [not my own words], but the Father, who sent me, himself commands me what I should say and what I should speak.
  And I know that [to obey] his command is life everlasting. Therefore, whatever I speak is just as the Father tells me to speak. John 12:49-50
• He who speaks from himself [speaking his own words] seeks his own glory, but he who seeks the glory of the One who sent him, that man is true, and there is no unrighteousness in him. John 7:18
   Jesus confirms righteousness only exists in a man if:
      1) he is sent to speak to specific person(s), and
      2) he does not speak from himself, (his own words).

Little children, let no man deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous. 1 John 3:7
(And there are millions of blind guides in Christianity that will deceive you to think your sins are excused because you believe in Jesus.)
"He who commits sin is of the devil, for the devil sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God is revealed [in us], that he might destroy [in us] the works [sin] of the devil." 1 John 3:8. "All unrighteousness is sin," 1 John 5:17; therefore, all sin is unrighteousness.

Don't buy the ministers' of the deficit sects lies to their members that they are righteous because they believe, even while they are still sinning, sin being wickedness. He who says to the wicked, 'You are righteous;' him shall the people curse, nations shall abhor him. Pro 24:24. All the pastors and ministers shall be cursed, who lied, saying that with belief in Jesus you are righteous while still locked in sin. The Apostle Paul instructed his true ministers thus: "Rebuke those who continue in sin before everyone, so that others may fear also." 1 Tim 5:20. John also wrote us in Chapter 2 about those who were out to seduce the believers, and told us that we needed no man to teach us, for the anointing of Christ's spirit would teach us all things and is truth, and is no lie. 1 John 2:26-27. He cautions us again, to let no man deceive you. From the Word of the Lord within: "Do not be misled over righteousness; all sin is unrighteousness." There is an imputed righteousness that comes with the measure of faith received with the fruit of the Spirit, which is rewarded to those who have crucified their selfish, evil spirit on the inward cross of self-denial, but not before. Believing in Jesus is not the faith that imputes righteousness; see Footnote2 of Romans 3 for the detail of imputed righteousness.

Then John clarifies those who are out to seduce and deceive: anyone who tries to tell you that you are righteous while you are still walking in your own imagination, by your own brain, (the carnal mind), therefore still sinning, still subject to anger, lust, profane language, lying, cheating, covetousness, greed, envy, etc., for he who commits sin is of the devil and definitely not righteous. They have seduced my people saying, 'Peace!' when there is no peace. .. with lies you have made the heart of the righteous sad, .., and have strengthened the hands of the wicked, so that he does not return from his wicked way, by (falsely) promising him life. Eze 13:2,10,22. As Peter also warned: they lure through the lusts of the flesh and much wantonness, those who were barely escaping from those who live in error. While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption; for by whatever a man is overcome, he is enslaved. 2 Peter 2:18-19. Sounds very contemporary, doesn't it?

Today's so-called Christians think they are righteous because they "believe in Jesus" or have been water baptized; in so doing, Christianity has made a mockery of the Lord's highest priority command in the New Testament: "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness..." Mat 6:33. When contemplating those who think they have the righteousness of Christ because they believe that Jesus is the son of God, the Word of the Lord within said: "They throw the word 'righteousness' around without any understanding of what it means. They are filthy dreamers." They are filthy because their hearts are defiled with all manner of sins they still commit with disregard to the Lord's many warnings and requirements, and they are dreaming that they are righteous.

What is righteousness? (The definition of righteousness)

It is interesting that righteous is defined as just in both French and Spanish. To be just in this context means to make decisions that are reasonable and morally right. Certainly we know that God's decisions are morally right, even always perfect. Why?—because He remembers every thought, every word, and everything that ever happened to anyone who stands in front of Him for judgment. If we try to judge someone, we don't have that complete record to gauge whether there were circumstances that led, pressured, or even forced them into the violation we are trying to judge. For example, there was a study made of prostitutes, (male and female), on the streets of San Francisco, and the overwhelming majority of them had been raped by a member of their family at an early age. A child that is raped often feels that they were somehow partially guilty for what happened; then they begin thinking that they are no good and only fit to repeat the error with others. God would know all those circumstances in exact detail, including all the thoughts they ever had. He also has a record of every anonymous pleading He ever made with each of us to depart from evil. So He could make a correct decision regarding such a person, but it is impossible for us to do the same. There is an old Indian proverb: "never judge a man until you have walked a mile in his moccasins." God has been with us every step throughout everyone's lives, but we haven't taken one step with them. So to be righteous is to stop making decisions out of our carnal minds, (that are enmity to God and incapable of being subject to the law of God), and only do as God tells us to do, only say what God tells us to say, and only judge as God tells us to judge; then, and only then we are righteous because everything we do has been directed by the just, righteous God. When making decisions with our carnal mind, the best we can do is make a less bad or less evil decision; only God always knows the best thing to do and the best words to say. Jesus only spoke, judged, and did as He was prompted and ordered by God; to practice righteousness we also must be able to only speak what we hear Him order us to say and only do what we are ordered to do by God. This ability only comes after we have crucified our selfish spirit and sin has been destroyed by the Spirit through bearing the inward cross of self-denial; then we are walking the same way He walked and in the world as He was with perfection, purity, and holiness. We must be restored to the image of God that Adam lost in the Garden; to put on the newly created nature [of Christ], which is created in God's image of true righteousness and holiness. When we are righteous, everything we say and do is just, fair, morally correct, perfect, true, holy, virtuous, good, and pure. When we are righteous, everything we say and everything we do is right — righteousness.

"I, the Lord, speak righteousness, I declare things that are right." Isa 45:19.

To say and do everything that is right, to be righteous, is to be guided by Christ the light, within us, guiding us with words to speak and deeds to be performed, which deeds honor and glorify God and are our supreme joy to complete. To be righteous is to be free from sin, no longer walking in the darkness of our carnal mind and evil imagination, no longer fulfilling the lusts and desires of our flesh, but to be walking in the light, serving and pleasing the Spirit.

Yield..your members for instruments to be used for righteousness by God. Rom 6:13

From the Word of the Lord within: "We go to him, and he rains help on us; well does this exercise of God purify those who do. Come to me with the hope of speaking and acting righteously." God makes us a fit instrument for his hand to direct in works of love, to show the world the love of God, to shake the nations, and to hold out the word of life and faith. God's works are performed by his people with great joy because they know all their words and deeds are perfect and virtuous, which give pleasure to God and advance the creation; thus they are working true righteousness.

Now you know the true meaning of Jesus' words: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter into the kingdom of heaven; but [only] he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." John 7:21. The Father's will is for you to only think the thoughts He provides, only speak the words He tells you to speak, and do only what He commands; and William Penn wrote that "true worshipping of God is doing his will."

The reference to "little children" in Greek of this verse does not mean children of God or sons of God but rather is a term of kindly address of teachers to their disciples: tecknia <5040>.

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