2 Corinthians 5:21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

As we live in a world where people tend to believe their ways are right in their own eyes, we find it hard for many to accept the absolute standard of righteousness. True or false becomes relative, and many believe they can do whatever they think, or feel is right. This week, we extend an invitation to participate in our bible study and weekly devotional as we delve into our theme for July: “Righteousness.” It’s a time of spiritual growth and reflection, and we’re excited to explore this powerful concept together.

According to Merriam-Webster, Righteousness is defined today as:

• 1: acting in accord with divine or moral law: free from guilt or sin.
• 2a: morally right or justifiable, a righteous decision.
• 2b: arising from an outraged sense of justice or morality

In its deeper spiritual meaning, righteousness is the quality of being right in the eyes of God, including character (nature), conscience (attitude), conduct (action), and command (word). Righteousness is, therefore, based upon God’s standard because He is the ultimate Lawgiver (Isaiah 33:22). 

Jehovah Tsidkenu

The problem with God’s righteousness as our divine standard for deciding right and wrong is that we, as fallen, sinful people, so often fall short of this standard. We find ourselves daily living out the reality of the Apostle Paul’s conclusions in the book of Romans: “There is none righteous, not even one,” (Romans 3:10), and this is true because, like Romans 3:23 says: 

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

This gap between God’s righteous demands and our inability to meet His righteous standard was, however, bridged by Christ, the “Righteous One” (Romans 1:17). Christ lived a life that completely fulfilled God’s demand of righteousness, and, thus, He offered Himself on the cross as a perfect sacrifice for our own sins to reconcile us to our holy and righteous God: “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them.” When we by faith alone trust solely in Christ for our salvation, His perfect righteousness is credited to us: 

“God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:19-21).

We then can stand justified (which, in a legal context, means declared righteous or innocent) before God because when He sees us, He sees Christ’s righteousness that we have received: “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). Christ’s perfect, righteous life was a fulfillment of the hope in Jeremiah’s day that “Behold the days are coming…when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch…and this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The Lord our righteousness’” (Jeremiah 23:5-6).

Christ knew no sin. He was made Sin; not a sinner, but Sin, a Sin-offering, a Sacrifice for sin. The end and design of all this was, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him, might be justified freely by the grace of God through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus. Bible Hub