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relationships with God, others, creation, and ourselves.
Righteousness is not abstract morality, it is fidelity to the relationship in context. Jesus doesn’ t throw the piano away; He retunes the heart. Are you desperately hungry and thirsty for that? Parents are righteous when they nurture and discipline their children in love— not just when they follow a set of parenting rules but when they act in covenant love toward their child( Ephesians 6:4). Friends are righteous when they are loyal, honest, and sacrificial, living out Proverbs 17:17:“ A friend loves at all times.” Right friendship involves constancy, not convenience. Judges are righteous when they uphold justice without partiality or bribes( Deuteronomy 16:18 – 20). It’ s not about procedural correctness but fidelity to justice and truth in how they treat people. Business owners are righteous when they pay fair wages and treat employees with dignity( James 5:4). Their righteousness is expressed through relational equity and integrity. Jesus wants us to be rightly related to God, others, creation, and ourselves.
Excerpted with permission from Becoming Like Jesus by Matt Chandler. Copyright 2026, Thomas Nelson.
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Matt Chandler has served as the lead pastor of The Village Church in the Dallas – Fort Worth area for over twenty years and is the executive chairman of Acts 29, a global church-planting network. He is known for his clear, gospel-centered preaching, deep commitment to biblical theology, and passion for forming healthy disciples and churches. Matt is also an author, speaker, and podcast host, and has spent decades helping believers follow Jesus with courage, humility, and conviction in everyday life. He is married to his wife, Lauren, and together they have three children. 32