“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”2 Corinthians 5:21 (KJV)
God's standard is real and it is high. Scripture teaches both how that righteousness is received and how it is then lived.
Two errors sit on either side of this subject. One lowers God's standard until holiness means very little. The other raises it so high that grace disappears and people live exhausted and afraid.
Scripture holds both together. The standard is not lowered: God is holy, and He requires righteousness. But the righteousness He requires, He also provides. Christ took what was ours so that we could receive what is His.
That exchange changes the motive of obedience. A person who has been given righteousness does not obey in order to be accepted. They obey because they have been accepted, and because they now love the One who accepted them.
So examine your life honestly, and do not excuse what God calls sin. But examine it as a child in the house, not as a stranger at the gate.
Holy God, I cannot produce the righteousness You require. Thank You for the exchange made at the cross. Clothe me in Christ, and teach me to walk in a way that honours You. Amen.
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A teaching on priority: what it means to put God's kingdom in first place when ordinary needs press hard.
“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
Matthew 6:33 (KJV)
God did not wait for the world to become lovable. He loved it while it was still in rebellion, and He proved that love by giving His Son.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
John 3:16 (KJV)
Mercy is not God pretending sin does not matter. It is God bearing the cost of it Himself and inviting the guilty home.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
1 John 1:9 (KJV)
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