Keep in mind, Jesus not only came to reintroduce the Kingdom, but He came also to restore righteousness and holiness to mankind; both of which we lost in the Garden of Eden. Many people have the wrong idea about righteousness. They assume that being righteous means doing right things. For some, it means wearing long dresses or coats and ties, or never smiling or laughing or having any fun. They think it means wearing a cross around their necks and carrying big huge Bibles. They proclaim this diluted message by adorning their automobiles with bumper stickers that say things such as "Honk if you love Jesus".
That isn't righteousness. Righteousness has more to do with a condition of life as opposed to religious actions. Right actions are important, but they should grow out of a person's condition of being righteous. Too many people get it backward, believing or assuming that acting right makes them righteous. This is not the case. Righteousness is actually a legal term that means to be rightly positioned. A righteous person, then, is someone who is in right-standing with the authorities.
When Adam and Eve sinned they lost the Holy Spirit. They lost their fellowship with God and fell out of right-standing with the sole ruling authority of the Kingdom of Heaven. The relationship they had once enjoyed with God as their Father was broken. Even though they have been created to dominate the Earth, with their connecting link to God's Kingdom severed, they did not know what to do or how to do it. Adam and Eve completely lost sight of their purpose.
Keep in mind, in a fallen world, there is no such thing as a "normal" person. God designed us for righteousness and holiness, and without them we are abnormal. We are deficient and defective, unable to function properly in the environment for which we were designed. That is why crime exists. That is why we as a race hate each other and why we fight and kill each other. Our lack of righteousness and holiness manifests itself in our lives. We destroy each other because we don't know why we are here. The very environment we were created to rule ends up ruling us.
Keep in mind, that Jesus restored us to righteousness; to right-standing with the Father, through His death for our sins. He made us righteous again, and when He did so, He also restored our holiness. Now, to be holy means to be pure, without spot or blemish, set apart exclusively for God. When Adam and Eve sinned, they showed contempt for their holy state and tool that which was meant for God and used it for profane and common purposes. That would be like taking a beautiful, solid gold goblet and using it to hold bacon grease.
That isn't righteousness. Righteousness has more to do with a condition of life as opposed to religious actions. Right actions are important, but they should grow out of a person's condition of being righteous. Too many people get it backward, believing or assuming that acting right makes them righteous. This is not the case. Righteousness is actually a legal term that means to be rightly positioned. A righteous person, then, is someone who is in right-standing with the authorities.
When Adam and Eve sinned they lost the Holy Spirit. They lost their fellowship with God and fell out of right-standing with the sole ruling authority of the Kingdom of Heaven. The relationship they had once enjoyed with God as their Father was broken. Even though they have been created to dominate the Earth, with their connecting link to God's Kingdom severed, they did not know what to do or how to do it. Adam and Eve completely lost sight of their purpose.
Keep in mind, in a fallen world, there is no such thing as a "normal" person. God designed us for righteousness and holiness, and without them we are abnormal. We are deficient and defective, unable to function properly in the environment for which we were designed. That is why crime exists. That is why we as a race hate each other and why we fight and kill each other. Our lack of righteousness and holiness manifests itself in our lives. We destroy each other because we don't know why we are here. The very environment we were created to rule ends up ruling us.
Keep in mind, that Jesus restored us to righteousness; to right-standing with the Father, through His death for our sins. He made us righteous again, and when He did so, He also restored our holiness. Now, to be holy means to be pure, without spot or blemish, set apart exclusively for God. When Adam and Eve sinned, they showed contempt for their holy state and tool that which was meant for God and used it for profane and common purposes. That would be like taking a beautiful, solid gold goblet and using it to hold bacon grease.
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