One way of looking at 'not establishing our own righteousness and submitting to the righteousness of God' is to recognize that no one path leads to victory in God.  We must learn not to depend on anything we have done to merit our blessing but to live entirely by faith.  If we think that going to church merits our reward or that prayer merits our reward or silence merits our reward or religion merits our reward or working with the poor merits our reward or knowing scripture merits our reward, we do not understand God or grace.  If we live by faith God will navigate our path through the winding road of effort, religion, prayer, charity, and scripture study.  If we trust in the Lord, if we lean not on our own understanding, if we acknowledge him, he will direct our path.  Every step of obedience to God by his Spirit leads us closer to victory.  Every hurdle, every challenge, every trial overcome leads us closer to victory.  Trusting in the Lord means that we will face obstacles, it means that doors will be closed and others opened for us to walk through.  Because our relationship to Christ is a personal one, others may not understand, agree, or accept the choices we make.  Our path is predestinated by God if we are the elect and staying on the path requires faith, trust, and obedience.  When once we realize that friendship with the world is enmity with God the path gets much narrower, others will forsake you, and our choices become few.  It can be a lonely time until we get the victory.  But once we get the victory our life becomes a sign of the power of God and a sign of the Resurrected Christ.  Once we get the victory there is freedom and there is peace.

            The way to start the journey is to recognize that Jesus is calling us to forsake the world and believe in him.  We begin by recognizing our need for a Savior to set us free from sin.  When we ask him into our heart we sign a death warrant to our old man and ask Jesus to make us new creatures willing to follow him wherever he leads knowing that he alone has the words of everlasting life. We then ask him to give us his Spirit believing he has only good things for those who ask him.  When once we receive the Spirit we begin the faith journey, reading scripture, going to church, praying, giving of our resources, and establishing new habits and practices.  As we put God's word into practice, storms will arise, but building our house on his word, on the rock,  will ultimately lead us to victory.  He will let circumstances upset the apple cart, but if we put our trust in him, not in our own works of righteousness, we will come to know the truth and the truth will make us free.  If we trust in him, and rise above our habits and practices, we will learn to live by faith.  If we learn to live by faith, we will learn to rest in him, in the Cross and in his blood, for health, peace, joy, and overall prosperity. 

            The church stagnates when it rests in religion, when it rests in works and does not rest in God, when it ceases to operate by faith, and begins to trust in its own goodness and righteousness.  But let a man or woman of God transcend their religion, then they have found the path to victory.  They will live by faith and that faith is pleasing to God.  They will not live by a method but by the Spirit of the living God and peace and joy and prosperity will be their eternal reward.

amen