Many believers have been bullied into believing that the Mosaic law and the arguments of the Pharisees are paramount.  Christ has certified that Moses had no heavenly bread and that both Moses and the prophets lose their edge with his arrival.  So let us visit again the typical approach to righteousness. We will never have any righteousness for which we can take credit.  Righteousness, whether our status or behaviour must be attributed to Christ’s intervention and gift.  We must lay to rest the anxiety surrounding proving to God and our fellow pilgrims that we are obedient to the Law. Since the Law did not give us righteousness we should not expect it to maintain the righteousness that comes to us as a gift.

No debt we can pay

“Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due.”

Romans 4:4, NASB

Do we owe our fellows a show of loyalty to Moses and the prophets?

Grace sits opposite debt.  Ofeilema is “what is owed”. The gift does not arise because of a need to have a performance of any obligation.  We can surmise that this saying of Paul is not a polemic against James, but Paul was  personally familiar with James’ bullying of the church. God did not need to see works to justify Abraham, therefore Abraham was not made just by works.  His works are like ours: good and bad.  He was not a sinless man, just a man  justified by grace through faith. James demands a show of works while never acknowledging the atoning and forever efficacious sacrifice of Christ.

Do we owe God obedience to Moses

We can get ourselves bogged down in the hundreds of demands and prohibitions of the law and not show the excellence of Christ, which we must all admit is a deep seated love. Loving the Law does not bring peace. Genuine peace arises beyond our understanding, and is the foundation of God’s  mercy and grace.  We can keep festivals, sabbath days and be loveless. We can eat vegetables and shun deeds of kindness to undeserving people. If there is a royal law it must be the one that reflects the very heart and soul of God in love’s supremacy.

Even the most unprincipled people claim works as righteousness

Ignoring all the evidence from Abraham , David and the prophets we dare to say

• righteousness is through compliance with statutes and judgments
• righteousnessness IS compliance with statutes and judgments.

Faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness  (Romans 4:9b)

τῷ Ἀβραὰμ ἡ πίστις εἰς δικαιοσύνην.” (Romans 4:9b, MorphGNT)

Not reading Romans 4:9b as FAITH IS RIGHTEOUSNESSNESS is the result of corrupt intent to propose that Christ cannot be greater than Moses. The fact that Christians have survived all attempts to silence the message of salvation testifies to the simplicity and clarity of grace and righteousness as gifts.