Scripture to Read: Romans 4:4–5
Justification (being made right with God) has always been an issue for people. People want to be able to say, “Look what I did,” “Look what I brought to God so He will accept me as one of His.” Too many people cannot understand that being justified by God has nothing to do with what they’ve done, but it has everything to do with what God has done for them. God used Paul to give us a great illustration in Romans 4:4–5, “Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. 5 But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.” So, God uses the example of someone who has a job. That person gets paid for their work each day, and their pay is not a gift, but they have earned their pay through their work. But when it comes to being made righteous before God, people don’t gain their righteousness through the “good works” they do. But people can only be made righteous by God through our Lord Jesus Christ. The righteousness of God is given to everyone who chooses to place their faith in God through Christ. The reason righteousness comes from God through Christ is that God is the only one who can forgive sinners because Christ’s blood is the only thing that can wash us as sinners clean from our sin. God offers us His righteousness as a gift through Christ.
Challenge & Application
What did God teach you about His righteousness, and how do people gain His righteousness?
How should we, as believers, be living knowing God’s righteousness lives in us through His Holy Spirit?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!