“This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:22-24 NIV

Would any of us consider ourselves righteous? No? Me either, for we have all sinned and fallen short. Most of us have pasts and problems that would prohibit us from even using the term, righteous, to describe ourselves. But God does see us as righteous. How?

At the beginning of Romans 3 Paul refers to both Psalms 14 and 53 and to Ecclesiastes 7 when he writes, “As it is written: ‘There is no one righteous, not even one.’” Romans 3:10 As Paul continues, he explains that under the Law there are none righteous, except Jesus, who with His life, sacrificial death and resurrection changed everything, for everyone who believes.

We, through our faith in Jesus, have been redeemed and justified. Redeemed because Jesus paid our debt, He took on our sins and gave us life everlasting. Justified because we have been given grace (justice) in place of our sinfulness (injustice). We have been given righteousness and set free by our faith in Jesus.

This week, sisters and brothers, ignore your past and embrace God’s view of you as a believer, as a beloved child, as righteous. Be thankful for grace, be free from condemnation, be joyfully redeemed, and live justified.

I thank God for each of you! And I thank you for joining me this week as we strive to see ourselves as God sees us, through our faith in Jesus, as righteous.

Blessings and righteousness!