THE RIGHTEOUS SHALL FLOURISH

 “In his days the RIGHTEOUS shall FLOURISH; and abundance of peace, until the moon is no more”– Psalm 72:7

“The RIGHTEOUS shall FLOURISH…”! This is an inviolable divine principle. Righteousness is the platform for Flourishing. God has ordained the righteous to flourish rather than to be famished; to blossom instead of being barren; and to bloom rather than reverse into gloom. To “flourish” means: to increase in health, wealth, and well-being; to enter into a state of prosperity and progress; and to become superbly successful and grow exuberantly in line with God’s Will.”

Psalm 72 describes the prayers of King David, for his son to experience the Reign of Righteousness. Verse 7 affirms: “In his days the righteous shall flourish; and abundance of peace, until the moon is no more.” That is, the righteous shall FLOURSIH in PERPETUITY! The psalm further speaks of: the mountains bringing “peace to the people…by righteousness” (v.3); justice to the poor, deliverance to “the children of the needy,” breaking in pieces of the oppressor, and redemption “from oppression and violence” (v.4, 12-14); generational fear of the Lord (v.5); descent of righteousness “like rain upon the mown grass, like showers that water the earth” (v.6); abundance of peace (v.7); display of divine dominion “from sea to sea, and…to the ends of the earth” (v.8,11); subjugation of the enemies (v.9); pervading prosperity (v.10, 15-16); permanence of prayers and praises (v.15b); and pervading blessings and glory (vv.17-19). Verse 16 assures that “There will be an abundance of grain in the earth, on the top of the mountains; its fruit shall wave like Lebanon; and those of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth” – abundance, fruitfulness, and flourishing. Truly, “Righteousness exalts a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people” (Pro.14:34).

Flourishing in the portion of the Righteous! So, let’s underscore more firmly what it means to be righteous. To be righteous is to have a right standing with God by justification at the new birth based on Christ's completed work of grace (Rom. 5:10). This is in addition to choosing to do what is right before the Lord; things which align with His will and ways. That is, righteousness is both imputed and acquired. A righteous person is the one who has wilfully and sincerely repented of his or her sins and has accepted the Lord Jesus as his or her Lord and personal Saviour (Imputed Righteousness). As a result of the imputed righteousness, the person begins to walk in newness of life, abstaining from sins and fleshly lusts and living in obedience to the Word of God with a steadfast hope of eternal rest in heaven after this world (Acquired Righteousness). On the other side, the wicked is that person who stands wrong before God. He or she is not a partaker of divine justification, lives by choosing opposite to God’s Will, and aligns to things that don't glorify God on the earth.

After you have been made righteous in Christ at salvation, you need to choose righteousness as your daily standard of living; for every blessing in God's kingdom works only for the righteous. The Bible is full of promises of God, and all are blessings meant for the righteous alone. And whenever the Lord gives a promise, it must surely come to pass, unless the condition to be fulfilled by man is not met.

As a believer in Christ you are not meant to be a spiritual dwarf. Rather, you are meant to flourish and grow throughout your Christian life. Your faith and spiritual insight should increase. Your love and compassion for other people should grow richer and deeper. Your hope of an eternal with God should become more intense. Your zeal and commitment to the house of God must grow stronger and better, in the area of soul-winning and the various services in the Church. Here is God's plan for you - FLOURISH! Do well, prosper, bring forth fruits, bubble with life, strength, energy, and vitality; live life with God's abundant and full supply - in perpetuity!