God loves Righteousness

“For the righteous LORD loveth righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright.” (Ps 11:7 AV)

It is in our nature to please others.  Not everyone.  But those whom we value or those who we know would appreciate our efforts are the ones we tend to go the extra mile for.  Above, David tells us exactly what the LORD loves.  There is no mystery here.  He loves righteousness.  Righteousness is the essence of His character.  When He sees those who are capable of living in righteousness, it delights Him.  He sees those whom He has created reflecting what is important to Him.  He sees His values and character reflected back to Him.  When mankind lives in accordance with His word, His presence is drawn towards them in appreciation and delight.

There was no time I felt closer to my father than when he noticed I had made a right choice and he appreciated it.  The same was true of my own sons.  School is a type of proving ground for our young men and women.  Not that I believe everyone should send their children to a school as opposed to home-schooling, but there were some things my sons learned earlier than later.  And it served them well.  There was a time when each of my sons had to learn to do the right thing when it seemed like the world was against them.  They had to learn to do the right thing when no one else would.  Peer pressure is a heavy pressure to endure when you are in middle or high school.  Each one of them had to face it.  When they did, they successfully navigated those waters.  They were able to stand on the character which was instilled in them and walked away having done the right thing.  When they did, there was a strengthened bond which grew between son and father.  Dad was proud.  Dad was pleased.

God is no different.  When we do the right thing, we make Him proud.  The greatest compliment we can give to our Father is to walk in obedience and faith towards Him.  By walking in obedience and faith we testify that we trust Him implicitly and His character is worth emulating.  The promise is the countenance of God beholds those who live in righteousness.  But this means the opposite is also true.  The countenance does not behold those who live in wickedness.  The choice is ours.