7 Reasons Why You Should Awake to Righteousness

Why should you awake to righteousness? That is a good question, one that everyone should ask themselves. Even King Solomon, the man reputed to be the wisest in his lifetime, searched and asked questions that filled his thoughts to no end: What was the meaning of life?

In Ecclesiastes chapters 1 and 2, Solomon recounts his pursuit of wisdom, pleasure, achievement and wealth. He had everything a person could ever want, yet at the end of all his striving, he said it was vanity, a chasing after the wind. Everything felt meaningless when disconnected from God. His restless search serves as a mirror for us all. If even Solomon, with unmatched intellect and opportunity, could not find lasting purpose outside of God, what hope do we have unless we anchor our lives in Him?

The apostle Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 15:34 come as a sharp yet loving wake-up call: Awake to righteousness. The word righteousness in Hebrew is tzedek, meaning righteousness or justice and it is one of the defining attributes of the LORD God of Israel. To walk in righteousness is to walk in step with God Himself.

In contrast, our world today is obsessed with being woke – a counterfeit awakening. What presents itself as awareness is often a distortion of truth, subtly turning hearts and minds away from Christ. The woke agenda is not rooted in tzedek, God’s justice, but in human ideology that undermines His Word and His design. It aims to reshape values, especially in the minds of the next generation, leading them away from biblical righteousness. We must be vigilant. We are not called to be woke, but to awake—awake to righteousness, to truth, to the heart of God.

It’s interesting that in Ephesians 6, we are told to put on God’s armour and one of those pieces is the breastplate of righteousness. Why is this important to note? Firstly, we understand now that righteousness is part of God’s character but Proverbs 4:23 tells us to guard our heart because out of it flows the issues of life. So the meaning that Solomon had been searching for was in himself all along and today we are told to guard it with what? The breastplate of righteousness! In simple terms, we guard our hearts by embracing the character of God.

7 Reasons Why You Should ‘Awake to Righteousness’

Here are seven reasons why awakening to righteousness is essential for your life today:

1. Because Knowing God Brings Real Life

Paul links the absence of righteousness to a lack of knowledge of God. This is not mere ignorance but spiritual disconnection. To know God is to encounter tzedek—His character, His justice, His mercy. It is through knowing Him that we find our true identity and calling. Solomon discovered that life without this knowledge is ultimately empty.

2. Because Sin Lulls You Into Spiritual Sleep

Sin is not just a set of wrong actions but a condition that numbs the heart and dulls spiritual awareness. It promises freedom but delivers bondage. Paul urges the Corinthians to stop sinning, not as a cold command but because sin keeps them spiritually asleep. Like Solomon, who tried to satisfy his soul through every worldly pursuit, we too will find that only God’s righteousness can awaken us to true life.

3. Because Righteousness Aligns You With God’s Kingdom

Tzedek is foundational to God’s rule. Psalm 89:14 says, “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne.” When we awake to righteousness, we step into alignment with the order of heaven. We don’t just live moral lives; we live as citizens of a kingdom built on God’s justice, reflecting His nature to the world.

4. Because It Restores Right Relationships

Righteousness is deeply relational. Solomon found that wealth, laughter and status could not replace genuine connection with God or others. When we awake to righteousness, we restore the bond that sin fractured. Right standing with God leads to right relationships with people, rooted in grace, truth and love.

5. Because the World Desperately Needs It

We live in a world riddled with injustice, confusion and moral drift. Those who are awake to righteousness are called to be lights in darkness, carriers of hope and agents of change. Your life lived in tzedek becomes a testimony, a quiet rebellion against the brokenness around you. God uses ordinary people awakened to His justice to bring an extraordinary impact.

6. Because You Were Made for Holiness

When Paul says awake to righteousness, he is calling believers to live according to who they already are in Christ. Holiness is not outdated or unattainable. It is the natural result of being made new by God. We are called to reflect His nature, not through striving but by walking in step with the Spirit. To be holy is to live awake, alert and available for His purposes.

7. Because Time is Short

Solomon reflects on the brevity of life: “For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it” (Ecclesiastes 2:21). Life is fleeting. The opportunity to live for something greater than yourself will not last forever. Every moment is a gift, and to awaken to righteousness is to invest your time, energy and choices in what truly matters.

Final Thoughts

To awake to righteousness is not just a moral choice—it is a return to your spiritual design. It is a choice to reject the counterfeit gospel of the world, including the dangerous deception of being woke, which seeks to redefine truth, identity and morality. That path leads to confusion and compromise. Instead, we are called to be rooted in God’s Word, consistent in putting His agenda first, and bold in raising our families in truth.

Solomon’s life shows us that all earthly pursuits are meaningless apart from God. Paul’s words remind us that the greatest tragedy is to live asleep to what matters most. So arise. Refuse the noise. Reject the agenda that leads to spiritual drift. And awake to the righteousness that comes from God alone.