Two levels of righteousness
In Luke chapter 18, the Holy Spirit declares the following:
"18And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 19And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God. 20Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother. 21And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up. 22Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. 23And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich. 24And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 25For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God." (Luke 18:18-25).
Luke Portrayed Jesus as Son of Man...his passage very clearly illustrates the fact that "eternal life" is more than just escaping the fire of hell. When the ruler asked Jesus what he had to do to inherit eternal life (v18), the Lord did not ask him to repeat the "sinner's prayer". Instead, Jesus listed 5 of the 10 commandments in verse 20:
Do not commit adultery (Deuteronomy 5:18)
Do not kill (Deuteronomy 5:17)
Do not steal (Deuteronomy 5:19)
Do not bear false witness (Deuteronomy 5:20)
Honor your father and your mother (Deuteronomy 5:16)
These are the other 5 commandments that Jesus did not list:
Do not have any other gods before the Lord God (Deuteronomy 5:7)
Do not surrender to any graven images (Deuteronomy 5:8-10)
Do not take the name of the Lord your God in vain (Deuteronomy 5:11)
Keep the sabbath (Deuteronomy 5:12-15)
Do not covet your neighbor's wife or any of his belongings (Deuteronomy 5:21)
When one compares the two lists, it becomes evident that the former list focuses on one's external interaction with others, while the latter list focuses on one's internal interaction with God. Even though the last commandment of the latter list seems to focus on our interaction with others, it really doesn't. I must admit that, as I was reading Deuteronomy 5:21 before summarizing it in the list above, I began to chuckle. Why? Because a literal understanding of that verse seems to equate the neighbor's wife with his ox and his other animals:
"Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour’s wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour’s house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour’s" (Deuteronomy 5:21).
Consider now what the Spirit declares in the following passage:
"9For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? 10Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope." (1 Corinthians 9:9-10)
If God sees an inherent value in humans that exceeds that of oxen, why would God apparently place the neighbor's wife in the same list as his ox, his ass, and his other material possessions? Because He is revealing a basic truth about covetousness. When a man covets his neighbor's wife, he is, in effect, reducing her to a mere object of possession. He is reducing her to an object from which he will derive temporary benefits, in the same way that he can derive temporary benefits from a luxury car or a microwave oven. Such a man is unable to see the "God-value" in his neighbor's wife, the "God-value" that makes man different from animals. We are the only creatures that were created in the image and likeness of God, and we are the only creatures with the potential to be One with God. God is Holy, meaning that He is worthy of reverence and respect. Since woman was also created in God's image and likeness, she must be treated with a certain reverence and respect. Even though she is a weaker vessel than man, she deserves to be cherished and honored. When a man covets his neighbor's wife, he is denying her "holiness"; he is denying the fact that, as a "holy" vessel, she has been set apart unto her husband in the natural realm, and unto God in the spirit realm.
"Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered." (1 Peter 3:7).
Notice that a husband's "prayers" are hindered if he does not cherish his wife. As we have said before, prayer is an act of prophetic intimacy with God, meaning that true prayer is "an exercise in Oneness with God". If a husband does not honor his wife, he is failing to see that she also has access to God's eternal life, i.e.- to Oneness with God. He is therefore failing to see the "God-value" in her, and, when he does so, he belittles his own "God-value", thereby hindering his own intimate access to God.
From all of the above, we can conclude that Deuteronomy 5:21 is not so much a commandment regarding our interaction with others. Instead, it is a commandment regarding our interaction with God. We can therefore say that the 10 commandments are divided into two groups of 5. One group deals with external, moral behavior towards others, and the other group deals with our internal behavior towards God.
In the case of the ruler who asked Jesus about "eternal life" in Luke 18:18-25, Jesus only listed the 5 commandments that had to with moral behavior towards others, to which the ruler responded, "I have kept all of these from my youth" (v21). When Jesus heard this, He did not say, "Liar, liar". Instead, He says to him, "You lack one thing" (v22), as if to say, "Yes, you have kept these 5 commandments, but the Father is calling you to enter into the other 5, and, in order to do so, you must do one thing first".
The fact that Lord assented to the ruler's claim in verse 21 reveals that the ruler was indeed a "righteous" man. This ruler was a "model citizen" who didn't steal or kill or commit adultery; he did not spread false rumors about others, and he was very respectful of his parents. In other words, no neighbor of his could hold anything against him because he had harmed no one. He was the type of person who paid all his debts and fulfilled all that was required of him. However, Jesus was now asking him to do something that was not required of him. In other words, the Lord was now asking him to do something to which he had the option of saying "no"; He was asking him the following: "Sell all that you have and distribute unto the poor, and follow Me" (v22). The ruler had no "obligation" to freely give unto others what was legitimately his. This ruler had never kept anything that was not his, but he was now being asked to give away what was his. No one could hold it against him if he refused this offer. It is obviously not a crime to keep what is yours. Yet, this optional offer was the key for this ruler to move from the 5 commandments that he had kept into the 5 commandments he was being called to keep.
All of this means that, in God's eyes, there are 2 levels of "righteousness":
The righteousness where you fulfill your obligations
The righteousness where you voluntarily give of yourself for others..
Interesting and revealing the Truth..Those at "level-1" righteousness abide by the saying, "Live and let die", but those at "level-2" righteousness abide by the saying, "Die and let live". Those who stay at "Level-1" are worried about their own righteousness, which motivates them to fulfill all their legal obligations towards others, but they are not worried about the righteousness of others. Level-1 believers are worried about being right with God themselves, but they are not concerned about others being right with God.
Those who stay at "level-1" righteousness can fulfill the 5 commandments that deal with our external interaction with others. These 5 commandments do not demand an intimate awareness of God. In fact, a person can even be an atheist and live by these commandments (in their literal sense). There are many people who do not have any intimacy with God, but who believe in the commandment "Thou shalt not kill".
On the other hand, those who move on to "level-2" righteousness can live out the 5 commandments which the Lord did not mention to the ruler in Luke 18:20; these 5 other commandments deal with our internal interaction with God. Therefore, level-2 believers can have direct and intimate access with God, which means that they have unhindered access to eternal life, i.e. to Oneness with God.
---Yeshua our Saviour shall check our level of righteousness---
By Julie's Faith Speak Toriaga
