<blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p>Your initial question seemed to me to be a trap - and regardless of which way I answered it, you would have found fault with it.<p><hr></blockquote><p>Scott, you presume much! You earlier claimed ignorance of God's view of your righteousness, even though, as you know, He has clearly revealed that in His word; but now you are claiming to know what I would have done in a situation before it occurred! <br><blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p>The fact is that if such righteousness is given me, then it is Christ's righteousness, not mine to be proud of.<p><hr></blockquote><p> Who said anything about being proud of an alien righteousness, Scott? Not me! The question was: In God's sight, does your righteousness exceed that of.... The Scriptural view, which you seem to reject, is that [color:blue]the righteousness of Christ, which alone exceeds all others, IS RECKONED UNTO BELIEVERS AS THEIR OWN</font color=blue>. <br><blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p> I am dirt, I am nothing, I deserve nothing from God<p><hr></blockquote><p>Well, not totally true. What about: everlasting condemnation, wrath and anger, trouble and distress (Romans 2:8-9)? <br><blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p>Now, do I make the bold, prideful or presumptuous claim that I am Christ? No, by no means!<p><hr></blockquote><p>But you apparently have no problem with the bold, prideful and presumptuous, [color:purple]non-black and white fallacy</font color=purple> that God's eternal acceptance of you requires [color:purple]something more, less or other than</font color=purple> <font class="big">[color:white]the perfect righteousness of Christ reckoned to you and counted as yours in God's own sight</font color=white></font>.<br><blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p>Then I will sit myself at the lowest place, and IF I am invited up to a higher place than someone else, THEN I will be thankful and honored by His Grace<p><hr></blockquote><p>You seem to have it all planned out pretty well for someone who does not claim to believe what the Scripture clearly teaches about justification and imputed righteousness!<br><br>Scott, true humility cannot be found apart from embracing both the Bad News of the Law and the Good News of the Gospel. From what you have said, I fear you have too low a view of both. This humility, this meekness, would never dream of thinking it a boast to own the righteousness of Christ, for it knows that such a gift comes totally, undeservedly from God alone; rather it would boast in the giver of that gift, and boldly rejoice in His salvation.<br><br>[color:blue]God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; <br>God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong;<br>He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things--and the things that are not--<br>to nullify the things that are,<br>so that no one may boast before Him.<br>It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus,<br>who has become for us wisdom from God--<br>that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.<br>Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."</font color=blue> (1 Corinthians 1:27-31)

In Christ,
Paul S