ReNEWed Hope Monday Gathering Week4: Breastplate of Righteousness October 3, ~Now Believers are to Put on the Breastplate of Righteousness

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1 ReNEWed Hope Monday Gathering Week4: Breastplate of Righteousness October 3, 2016 ~Now Believers are to Put on the Breastplate of Righteousness Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness..." Ephesians 6:13-14 ESV Breastplate of Righteousness protects the vital organs of the body: Heart, liver, lungs, and stomach. Any of these places, if pierced could be fatal blow and lead to death. What is the definition Righteousness? 1. the quality or state of being righteous. 2. righteous conduct, fairness, honor, justice, respectability. 3. the quality or state of being just or rightful. God alone defines Righteousness and He has given it to us in His Law. But those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say, Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God s Book of the Law. So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, It is through faith that a righteous person has life. Galatians 3:10-11 NLT Option 1: Self-righteousness We can choose to rely on our own righteousness which the Bible defines as filthy rags We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Isaiah 64:6a NLT Option 2: No righteousness Realize our own inability to save ourselves or be good enough but still refuse to turn to the Savior Jesus Christ. Option 3: Christ's Righteousness Receive Christ's righteousness as our very own. His righteousness becoming ours as a gift, not worked for or earned, but simply received as a gift from God by faith in Jesus. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23 NLT

2 Quote: If at the outset we try to do anything, we get nothing; if we seek to attain something, we miss everything. For Christianity begins not with a big DO, but with a big DONE. - Watchmen Nee And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 1:30-31 ESV...in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith Philippians 3:7-9 ESV If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him. 1 John 2:29 ESV But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. Romans 6:22 NLT He (Abraham) did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. And therefore it was accounted to him for righteousness (Romans 4:20-22). HOPE: Death is defeated! For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless. 1 Corinthians 15:53-58 NLT Satan's Fiery darts of Accusations: And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser (the devil) of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. Revelation 12:10 ESV 1. What are some of the main accusations/lies that Satan throws at you in regards to righteousness?

3 Allowing sin unchecked in our lives: Come and listen, all you who fear God, and I will tell you what he did for me. For I cried out to him for help, praising him as I spoke. If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. But God did listen! He paid attention to my prayer. Praise God, who did not ignore my prayer or withdraw his unfailing love from me. Psalms 66:16-20 NLT 2. Is there an area of sin/unrighteousness that you have been allowing In your life that Jesus wants you to confess to Him? Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death. The righteousness of the blameless keeps his way straight, but the wicked falls by his own wickedness. The righteousness of the upright delivers them, but the treacherous are taken captive by their lust. Proverbs 11:4-6 ESV Application to your life: 3. What does God want you to take away from this morning and apply to your life? Small Group Work: 1. Share one thing that spoke to you from the lesson. 2. Were you able to get into the word a little more this week?

4 Action Steps: 1. Read Ephesians 4:22-24 and underline any key words or phrases that jump out at you. Put off your old self [completely discard your former nature], which is being corrupted through deceitful desires, 23 and be continually renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh, untarnished mental and spiritual attitude], 24 and put on the new self [the regenerated and renewed nature], created in God s image, [godlike] in the righteousness and holiness of the truth [living in a way that expresses to God your gratitude for your salvation]. 2. From the following verses list the things we are told to put off: Ephesians 4:25 Ephesians 4:26 Ephesians 4:28 Ephesians 4:29 Ephesians 4:31 Ephesians 5:3-5 Are there any in that list that you have a hard time putting off? What comfort do these things give to you that make it hard for you to get rid of? What sort of detriments have they brought to your life?

5 Write a prayer to Jesus confessing this and asking Him to renew your mind to walk in His righteousness in this area. Putting off doesn t automatically equal putting on. Wearing the breastplate of righteousness means replacing your old garments with carefully selected attributes that align with the light of Christ. 3. Read the following verses. What does Paul command us to put on? Ephesians 4:2-3 Ephesians 4:25 Ephesians 4:32 Which of these are the most difficult for you to put on? Ask Jesus to help you in this area.