Be silent before me so that I may speak;
Then let come upon me what may.
Why should I take my flesh in my teeth,
And put my life in my hands?
Though He slay me,
I will hope in Him.
Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him.
This also will be my salvation,
For a godless person cannot come before His presence.
Listen carefully to my speech,
And let my declaration fill your ears.
Behold now, I have prepared my case;
I know that I will be vindicated.
Who could contend with me?
For then I would be silent and die. (vv. 13-19)

Remove Your hand from me,
And may the dread of You not terrify me.
Then call and I will answer;
Or let me speak, then reply to me.
How many are my guilty deeds and sins?
Make known to me my wrongdoing and my sin.
Why do You hide Your face
And consider me Your enemy?
Will You scare away a scattered leaf?
Or will You pursue the dry chaff?
For You write bitter things against me
And make me inherit the guilty deeds of my youth. (vv. 21-26)

Can any creature be guiltless before God? The answer is no. Theologians and ministers say that Adam was perfect before eating the forbidden fruit or getting tempted. But if he was so perfect, why did he betray God? If he was perfect, why couldn’t he resist the temptation? Why did he trust in the lie? Believing that Adam was perfectly moral and holy leads us to a man-made god. And most churches follow this idol.

The Reformed theology has become the Roman Catholic by focusing on the law and the punishment. Ironically, the Protestant and the Roman Catholic churches do not keep the law. They think keeping the law has to do with deeds and self-will. But keeping the law is from understanding God, having the Spirit of God. The Spirit does not teach what they teach.

God does want us to follow the law and be obedient to Him. But we do not serve God as slaves but as the children of God. The Father punishes His children for discipline. But He never casts them out of His house. In God’s plan, everything was made for His kingdom. Therefore, everything will be wiped out in the end. Only the kingdom remains. And the kingdom is the church founded by Jesus Christ.

Be silent before the Lord God!
For the day of the Lord is near,
Because the Lord has prepared a sacrifice,
He has consecrated His guests. (Zephaniah 1:7)

In chapter 13, Job does not yet know why the world was created so he speaks only about his virtue and integrity. God knows that Job is blameless and upright. However, He never used the word “righteous” to describe Job.

The LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.” (Job 1:8)

On the other hand, Abraham was righteous.

Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. (Genesis 15:4-6)

Righteousness is about being one with God. Only God is righteous. The saints are called righteous because of the faith gifted to them. We must ask then: what do we believe? Our faith must be from our understanding of God and His plan. Abraham believed in the promise of the Saviour. Therefore, our righteousness is tied to that faith. The Saviour died and was resurrected so that we would be reborn as the children of God. If we think the cross of Christ is not enough for our righteousness, we are not righteous. Many renowned theologians and ministers from the Protestant and Roman Catholic churches deny that our righteousness is from the cross of Christ. They say that it is not enough. They believe we are righteous because of Christ’s perfect law-keeping. The theory is called the Active Obedience of Christ. They try to take us back to Egypt, the land of the dead.

He will revive us after two days; He will raise us up on the third day, That we may live before Him. (Hosea 6:2)