None Righteous vs Anyone Righteous

A couple of years ago I was in an airport van transiting to a hotel where I was to speak to a group of educators. There happened to be a Christian conference in the hotel at the time and riding along with me was a fairly well known Christian author and speaker. When he learned I was Jewish (easy to spot with the beanie on), he proceeded to "witness" to me, to tell me the message of salvation through faith in Jesus alone.

At one point, he asked, "If you tell a lie, what does that make you? Or if you steal from someone, what does that make you? And how many times does it take to qualify as a liar or a thief?" I know where this line is going so I say to him, "Just one, right?"

"That's right", he affirmed. "So how many times does a person have to sin to be a sinner?", he queried. "Ah - let me guess. Once?", I offered. "Right again", he confirmed. "So, do you know anyone that has never sinned?" "No, I don't." "So that means that all men are sinners and in need of a savior, because the Bible says there are none righteous, no not one."

"There are none righteous?", I asked. "That's right - not one. Look at Psa. 53:3 - there is none who does good, no not one."

I then told him I had a problem with his presentation. "I'm sure you've read all the chapters in Psalms and also the Book of Proverbs, right?" I asked him. "For sure. Many times."
"Then we have a problem. You are showing me one verse in Psa. 53 that says there is no one who does good. But if we take the phrase 'the righteous' and do a search in Psalms and Proverbs, we find it appears in these two books 43 and 54 times respectively. In Proverbs 10 alone, the phrase 'the righteous' appears 13 times. So, if there are no righteous ones, who are these people?"

"Oh, that's God's ideal. No one has ever lived up to it", he said.

So let's look at a few of these references and YOU decide if they are merely ideal or realizable in everyday life. Here are phrases from Proverbs 13 alone (NKJV).

Proverbs 10:3 The LORD will not allow the righteous soul to famish, But He casts away the desire of the wicked.
Proverbs 10:6 Blessings are on the head of the righteous, But violence covers the mouth of the wicked.
Proverbs 10:7 The memory of the righteous is blessed, But the name of the wicked will rot.
Proverbs 10:11The mouth of the righteous is a well of life, But violence covers the mouth of the wicked.
Proverbs 10:16 The labor of the righteous leads to life, The wages of the wicked to sin.
Proverbs 10:20 The tongue of the righteous is choice silver; The heart of the wicked is worth little.
Proverbs 10:21 The lips of the righteous feed many, But fools die for lack of wisdom.
Proverbs 10:24 The fear of the wicked will come upon him, And the desire of the righteous will be granted.
Proverbs 10:25 When the whirlwind passes by, the wicked is no more,But the righteous has an everlasting foundation.
Proverbs 10:28 The hope of the righteous will be gladness, But the expectation of the wicked will perish.
Proverbs 10:30 The righteous will never be removed, But the wicked will not inhabit the earth.
Proverbs 10:31 The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, But the perverse tongue will be cut out.
Proverbs 10:32 The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, But the mouth of the wicked what is perverse.