Righteousness is by grace through faith. Why do Christians struggle so to be righteous when righteousness is the free gift of God.

Salvation is by grace through faith. Salvation is more than being born again and escaping from the punishment for sin. Salvation is forgiveness and it is also being set free from slavery to sin and the sinful nature.

Here's how it works: God speaks His vision of hope to us. We hear. We receive God's Word, His Utterance, and believe Him. Faith comes by hearing the Word (utterance) of God. Faith, then, gives us access to grace. Jesus stands at the door knocking and faith allows us to open that door. When we open that door, grace flows in with all the glory of God, and it brings God's free gift of righteousness with it. We yield ourselves to that righteousness, God does His works through us. This is doing the right things right. It is the only way we can do anything right.

(some caveats about hearing God's Voice)

This is the righteousness that is by grace through faith.

Righteousness is according to Scripture

It should be noted that God's righteousness will always lead to the ways that are clearly stated in Scripture. Though we may not even be able to discern those ways of God at this point, God will pull back the veil from our eyes so that we can understand Scripture. From what has been said so far, it may be thought that this righteousness is a lone-wolf activity. It is nothing of the sort. In fact, it is part of the experience of entering into Christ. This is the work of discerning what is and what is not the Body of Christ, and discerning what is and what is not your own particular place of service within this Body of Christ, and finally becoming what God created you to become in the Body of Christ. This work is done by what every joint in the Body of Christ supplies. (Ephesians 4:15-16)

Humanity cannot self-generate righteousness

In light of the fact that it is God who leads and it is God who works, we all need to realize that there is no way that a human being can self-generate victory. We can take ground and hold ground, but not by self-effort. This is a spiritual battle, and the victory is a spiritual victory. There is no way that a human being can self-generate wisdom (Romans 1:28). Wisdom is a gift (James 1:5-8). Doing things right is also a gift (Romans 5:17). Doing things right is righteousness. Some have lied and said that there is a righteousness that does not do righteousness. That is not true. The One Who is righteousness does right things (1 John 3:7).

If we hear and understand God's will in our minds/souls/hearts and yield ourselves to Him, we are fighting a battle. We are, in fact, taking ground away from Satan who is the enemy of our souls/minds/hearts. When we yield ourselves and allow the Spirit of God to do His work, we begin to see the fruit of the Spirit. We begin to see God's righteousness, and this righteousness is a free gift from God. Spiritual maturity is holding ground, which is the same thing as faithfulness, stability, and holiness. Holding ground is also by grace through faith. We see that righteousness is a process that is in the moment. Holiness is a planting that is done by God through the process of righteousness. Redemption is the freedom from slavery to sin that results from the progression of holiness in our minds.

The battleground is the mind

The battleground of the current conflict is in the soul, which the Bible sometimes calls the mind or heart. Online Bible's Greek-English lexicon says that the word, quch psuche, is translated as soul, life, mind, and heart. The human is a three-part being, spirit, soul, and body (1 Thessalonians 5:23). In our spirits, we have great unity with the Holy Spirit, but the battle is for the soul, the mind, the heart, the life. We are tempted when we are drawn away by our own desires from our own minds (James 1:13-15), which are driven by principalities and powers and by the world (Ephesians 6:12). Our minds were created to be in submission to the mind of God. We were made to be in the Anointing. Our minds are to be renewed, and they are renewed in the flow of the Anointing.

Finding God

No one can come to God except through Jesus Christ (John 3:14), and no one can come to Jesus unless the Father draws them (John 6:44-47). The Father draws us so we seek God. Even our seeking is a free gift from God. Everyone who seeks God does find Him (Luke 11:9). God speaks (Romans 10:17), and so does the enemy of our souls (John 8:44). God speaks His hope into our heart. God's hope sure. It is the thing that He intends to do. We choose to listen to God's voice and ignore the enemy (Hebrews 3:15). We listen if we have ears to hear (Matthew 13:9-13). faith comes by hearing (Romans 10:17). Faith gives us access to God's grace, God's Holy Spirit, His mercy and power (Romans 5:2). Jesus stands at the door and knocks, and we open the door to Him by faith. Grace, the free gift of God, flows in with wisdom, righteousness, holiness, redemption, love, joy, peace, and all that is needed to overcome the enemy of our souls. We choose to yield to the grace of God rather than trying to do our own human works (Romans 6:13). As sin reigned bringing death, in the same way grace can now reign in our hearts through the righteousness that is a free gift from God. God gives us righteousness because we ask Him for it and believe that He will give it. As we allow God to control us in this way and do His work through us, we are changed by degrees in ever more glorious likeness of Him (2 Corinthians 3:18). We increasingly take on His likeness and image. This leads to eternal life. (Romans 5:21)

The moment we are born again, we are seated with Christ in heavenly places, the the air. This is intimate knowledge of God (Romans 1:28). The air is a spiritual position, not high in altitude but high in authority. We obviously are not experiencing this level of redemption in our bodies, and our hearts aren't even aware of it, but we are having redemption in our spirits and we are seated with Christ in heavenly places at this level. Our minds are being transformed slowly. This transformation of the mind is also redemption, being totally set free by degrees, by the blood of the Lamb. Gradually, we are beginning to have discernment, provided that we are yielding to the Spirit of God. When we yield to the Spirit of God, we begin to know Him. (John 17:3) Eventually, not only our minds and hearts but even our bodies will be totally redeemed. Most people consider redemption to be the same thing as being born again, but think of this: the Romans 8:18-23 talks about the redemption of our bodies. It is obviously not talking about being born again.

The Holy Spirit

God is calling to you. He is saying, "Let it flow." Let the anointing of the Holy Spirit flow. If you have ever been in a Spirit-led church service, you know what He means. The flow of God's Spirit is the most wonderful experience that you can ever have. It cleanses you from the inside out. God wants to go with you everywhere. The Holy Spirit is like a mighty river. Out of your innermost being, rivers of water flow. This is not a trickle or a sprinkling. Jesus wants to go with you everywhere... to work... to the store... to church... to everything you do. You were created to be in a submissive relationship with your Creator. This is the only place where you will find fulfillment.

As God's Spirit flows, He cleanses. He makes us clean, line on line and precept on precept, here a little and there a little. The Anointing Oil of the Holy Spirit is God's sweet judgment that cleanses us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:6-10). It cleanses us from all the things that Jesus did not author (Hebrews 12:2). It cleanses us from all that is not of faith (Romans 14:23).

God does His work through us. This is the process of the free gift of righteousness, that is, righteousness by grace through faith. Through this process of righteousness, something of our carnal mind is transformed and cleansed. God is now doing a work of transfiguring us and creating a clean heart in us from glory to glory. We can't store up the Holy Spirit (Jeremiah 2:12-14), but righteousness and holiness consist of a constant, perpetual flowing of the Anointing, the Holy Spirit, of God, which flows out of our innermost being as a fountain of living water (John 7:38-39). The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost. (Romans 5:5) This flow is meant to take place in the context of the Body of Christ. And the Body of Christ must be built according to the pattern that God provided in Scripture, which is the very pattern that the Spirit leads us into--if we are willing to listen to the Spirit and yield to the Spirit.

You may not understand all about how this works, but you will have assurance in your spirit that understanding every part of this is not necessary. The flow of the Anointing is what is needed. Taking ground is one thing, but holding ground requires a mighty flow of God's power, because the enemy is always trying to win back ground through his deceitful and clever lies (Matthew 12:43-45). While we are faltering creatures, sometimes in the Anointing and sometimes out of the Anointing, God's will is that we always stay in the Anointing and receive His blessing, whether at work, at play, in the home, in the church, or wherever we are. He works with us toward that goal.

FREE on-line BOOK (a classic): The Real Faith, by Charles S. Price

FREE on-line BOOK (a classic): The Meaning Of Faith, by Charles S. Price