“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, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.”
Romans 3:23-25 (ESV)
Paul tells us that the righteousness of God is available to all through faith in Jesus Christ. We have all sinned. Every one of us has fallen short of God’s glorious standard. Yet all who believe can receive God’s righteousness by His grace, as a gift, through the redemption available in Christ Jesus. This offer is made without distinction to every man and woman.
But being made right in God’s sight isn’t to show our righteousness. It’s to show God’s righteousness. This is something He’s doing. It is God’s righteousness that is pure and undefiled that He wants us to receive. It is His gift, His Son, His power. Jesus shed His blood so that we can be restored, redeemed, and come back to relationship with our Creator without the separation we created through our evil way of living.
Hebrews 9, verses 12–14, tells us that Jesus entered the holy place through His own blood, securing an eternal redemption. His sacrifice has a purpose: to purify our conscience from our evil deeds so that we can serve the living God. It is not just so that we have fire insurance, so that we can be free to sin, live apart from God, and live for ourselves. The blood of Jesus was shed so that we can worship God, talk to God, and be with God again.
Today, do you recognize that all of us have fallen short, yet all of us can receive the righteousness of God like a gift, by believing in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice? Remember that this cleansing, this righteousness, this redemption is for something. It’s to serve God, not ourselves. Let’s remember how much more the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us and makes us new today than the blood of animals by serving, by worshiping, by living for Him, not for us.