Devotion #2: Righteousness of God

Many of us have heard of the Ten Commandments. Our minds recite, “Do not steal, do not murder, etc.” It is living a righteous life 101. The dictionary definition of righteousness is “the quality of being morally correct or justifiable.” In the Old Testament, God gives His people a standard for living righteously through the Law of Moses, but as we see throughout the entire Old Testament, no one can follow it properly. The greatest, most godly people from the Old Testament cannot even follow it perfectly. Moses, one of the greatest Bible characters, fell short of righteousness. His anger against the Israelites and his pride caused him to slip, even if it was just for a moment. He paid the price for it because God did not allow him to enter the Promised Land because of his disobedience. Psalm 53:3 says, “They have all fallen away; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one.” There is not a single person on Earth who is truly righteous and good. It is made abundantly clear in the Bible that God is the only truly righteous being. So, what does that mean for us?  

Romans 3:21-24 says, “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it - the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through: the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” We can never be truly righteous because the standard for righteousness is God, and none of us have or ever will live up to that standard. Sure, we can come close to following the Ten Commandments, be considered good people, and follow the laws for the most part, but Paul makes it clear in Romans that the Law just cannot save us because we are still flawed and imperfect people. 

However, God made a way for us to be made righteous through Him because we obviously cannot be made righteous by our own works. Jesus, a perfect man who knew no sin, died on the cross as the ultimate sacrifice for all of our sins, past, present, and future. It is through Jesus’ death and resurrection that we can be declared righteous in God’s eyes. It is through faith in Christ Jesus that our sins become justified, and we are made righteous. Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Jesus paid the price (which was death) for our sins as a way to satisfy God’s justice and ultimately show God’s righteousness so that we can be set free from sin and be made right with God.  

Finally, 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV) says, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”