David [00:00:00 – 00:00:39]
Well, good morning, everyone. Today I want to talk to you about a gift. A gift so precious, so powerful, so undeserved, that it has the power to transform your entire life. It’s not a gift you can earn, and it’s certainly not one we deserve.
David [00:00:40 – 00:01:22]
It’s called the gift of righteousness. This gift is at the very heart of the gospel. It’s what makes our relationship with God. God possible. It gives us peace in our hearts and empowers us to live a new life. God wants us to walk in the fullness of righteousness so we can experience the fullness of who he is and who he created us to be. So let’s start with this. Romans 3:10 says, There is no one righteous, not even one.
David [00:01:24 – 00:02:11]
Okay? That includes me. And the hard truth is, that includes you also. In fact, it includes all of us. Righteousness means being right with God, means being holy, pure, blameless in his sight. As Romans 3:23 says, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Now, think of sin like a deep stain on a white robe. No matter how hard we try to clean it ourselves, that stain remains. In fact, Isaiah 64:6 gives us a picture of this.
David [00:02:12 – 00:03:20]
It says this, but we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are like filthy rags. We all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. We might do good things, we might try our best, but when it comes to righteousness, we need help, much like we need a washing machine and detergent. When it comes to removing stains, we need a righteousness not of our own, but one that comes from God. And God has provided that for us. Paul’s teaching emphasizes that God credits Christ’s righteousness to those who believe in him. 2nd Corinthians 5:21. And I’m reading from the Amplified Classic, 2nd Corinthians 5:21, the Amplified Classic.
David [00:03:20 – 00:04:16]
For our sake, he made Christ virtually to be sin who knew no sin, so that in and through him we might become endured, endued with, viewed as being in and examples of the righteousness of God. What we ought to be approved and acceptable and in right relationship with him by his goodness. Wow, that’s a powerful verse, guys. And many people call this the Great Exchange. Jesus took our sin and we received his righteousness. Wow, what a blessing. We didn’t have to do anything. We didn’t have to suffer or sacrifice anything to receive his righteousness.
David [00:04:16 – 00:05:36]
All we had to do was believe in and receive Him. He lived a perfect life and then he gave us the credit for it. He died our death so we could live his life. Think about that. He died our death so we could live his life. This means that believers are considered righteous in God’s sight, not because of our own merits, but because of Christ’s sacrifice in our behalf. Now let’s go back to second Corinthians 5:21 for a moment and the Amplified because Paul makes another profound statement here I want us to see before we move on. So again, 2nd Corinthians 5:21 in the Amplified classic says, for our sake he made Christ virtually to be sin who knew no sin, so that every in and through him we might become endued with, viewed as being in and examples of the righteousness of God, what we ought to be approved and acceptable and in right relationship with him and by his goodness.
David [00:05:36 – 00:06:17]
This verse has so much in it. The thought here is so profound that I think our mind sometimes can’t comprehend. Doesn’t simply state that we are righteous in Christ, it says we are righteous in Christ. But Paul goes on to say this. We are the righteousness of God in Christ. Hallelujah. We are the righteousness of God in Christ. And because Christ is in us, the complete Jewish Bible puts it this way.
David [00:06:17 – 00:07:22]
2nd Corinthians 5:21 the complete Jewish Bible says God made this sinless man be a sin offering on our behalf so that in union with him, we might fully share in God’s righteousness. Righteousness. Guys, right now, if you’ve received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are fully sharing in God’s righteousness. Whether you realize it or not. You have the fullness of God’s righteousness within you. So as a believer, when I say I am the righteousness of God in Christ, it does not only mean trusting. And Jesus Christ now puts me in right standing with God. It also means in spite of what I used to be, what I see in myself or what others remember about me, it doesn’t matter.
David [00:07:22 – 00:08:02]
God’s washed all that away and so we can come and fully share the righteousness, the righteous nature of God as a gift of his grace and favor in Christ Jesus. Think about that. You have all that God is within you. Hallelujah. You have all that God has within you and is all that God has. All that God is is within you. I encourage you. Get up every day and proclaim it.
David [00:08:02 – 00:08:22]
I am the righteousness of God in Christ. I am righteous. I am in right standing with Him. He accepts me. He approves of me. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. It is my privilege and honor to go forth and show forth his righteousness here in the earth.
David [00:08:22 – 00:09:26]
Wow. Hallelujah. So here’s what we know, here’s what we discovered. God’s righteousness is a gift to us. And so how do we receive that gift? Romans 3:22 tells us. Romans 3:22 says, this righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. When we come in faith and confidence and trust in Jesus Christ and receive him as our Lord and our Savior, knowing that he bore all of our sin, our sickness, all of the wrong in us on the cross in our behalf, and he was raised from the dead righteously. We get this gift of righteousness as we receive him as our Lord and Savior.
David [00:09:27 – 00:10:19]
And so he is in us, and we are in Him. Not through performance, not through perfection, not through trying to do it ourselves. Earn it, be worthy of is simply through faith in Jesus. Just like you’d reach out to receive a gift that someone is giving you. We receive righteousness by trusting in what Jesus has done for us. It is truly a gift. It is not a wage that means you can’t earn it, you can’t deserve it, you’ll never be worthy of it. You simply receive it.
David [00:10:21 – 00:11:04]
Thank you, Father. Thank you for your righteousness. Thank you for this gift you’ve given us in and through Jesus Christ. To all who believe, it says, to all who believe, no one is disqualified. Jew, Greek, red, yellow, black, white. This is God’s gift to all mankind. If you have believed in and received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are righteous. You walk and live in the righteousness of God.
David [00:11:06 – 00:11:34]
Say this, I am righteous. Say it again. I am righteous. Hallelujah. You are. The gift of righteousness makes all that God has for you available to you right now. If you are in Christ, you are an heir to all the Father has. You’re an heir of God.
David [00:11:36 – 00:12:51]
Now we can drill down deeper into that principle, and we will, as we go through this study over the next few weeks, because we’re going to be talking about this for several weeks. But the righteousness is not something humans can earn through their own efforts or adherence to the law. And I say that again because I want us to get is simply a gift we receive. Romans 3:28 in the Amplified classic says, for we hold that a man is justified and made upright by faith, independent of and distinctly apart from good deeds, works of the Law. The observance of the law has nothing to do with justification. What this phrase means is anyone who believes in Christ has been reconciled and put in right standing with God. It means to be put back in your place, your position that is rightfully yours. Because of what Adam and Eve did at the fall of man.
David [00:12:51 – 00:14:42]
Satan robbed them of their rightful place and position. But we have been put back into it, not based on our own works, what we’ve done or what we haven’t done, but on the basis of what Christ has done, which is the only form of righteousness that is acceptable to God. Philippians 3:9 in the Amplified classic says, and that I may actually be found and known as in him not having any self achieved righteousness that can be called my own, based on my own obedience to the law’s demands, ritualistic uprightness and supposed right standing with God thus acquired, but possessing that genuine righteousness which comes through faith in Christ, the Anointed one, the truly right standing with God, which comes from God by saving faith. Hallelujah. All of this comes to us because of the sacrifice of Jesus and God’s heart to be in relationship and fellowship with all of his children. All we have to do is believe in Jesus as our Lord and Savior and receive the gift of righteousness from our Father God. Hallelujah. Now let’s talk about what it means for our daily lives to live and walk in God’s righteousness.
David [00:14:43 – 00:15:22]
Once you’ve received this gift, everything in life changes. First, when you receive it and you know about changes how God sees you. God sees you totally different. You are a new creation in Christ Jesus. You are no longer guilty. You are not condemned. God has wiped away all of your past. He sees nothing but that pure and holy and righteous being, that child of God.
David [00:15:24 – 00:16:04]
Romans 8:1 says, There is therefore now no condemnation for those who were in Christ Jesus. You aren’t condemned. God is not condemning you. The Lord is not condemning you. The enemy may accuse you and come to you and try to condemn you and tell you that God’s condemning you or others are condemning you. But that’s all a lie. God has cleansed you, sanctified you and made you you righteous. The second thing, not only does it change how God sees us, it changes how we see ourselves.
David [00:16:04 – 00:16:40]
It changes how you see yourself. You are not just a forgiven sinner. You are the righteousness of God in Christ. And again I say, get up every day and declare it. I am the righteousness of God in Christ. That means when God looks at you, he sees Jesus, you don’t have to walk around in guilt or shame anymore. You were clothed in his righteousness. Hallelujah.
David [00:16:40 – 00:17:12]
Isaiah 61:10. This is from the New King James Version. Isaiah 61:10 says, I will greatly rejoice in the Lord. My soul shall be joyful in my God, for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation. He has covered me with the robe of righteousness. As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with jewels. Hallelujah. God has made you righteous.
David [00:17:12 – 00:17:36]
He’s given you the garments of salvation. Hallelujah. The robe of righteousness. And that’s how he sees you. You are his righteous child. Hallelujah. The third thing we see here, it changes how you live. When we receive this gift of righteousness, it changes how we live.
David [00:17:36 – 00:18:00]
This righteousness empowers us to live differently. Not to earn God’s love, but because you already have it. Just to receive it and walk in his love. It’s like wearing royal robes. Ha ha. You begin to carry yourself differently. You’re wearing royal robes. You walk differently.
David [00:18:00 – 00:18:31]
You show up differently. You begin to pursue holiness not out of fear, but out of love. Out of love. You want it because God’s love has said, you are righteous. Come, I’ve got more for you. Come, receive all of it. James 5:16 says this. The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
David [00:18:32 – 00:19:09]
Wow. You were righteous. And your fervent prayer makes a difference in your life and in the lives of others. Hallelujah. When you know you’re righteous in Christ, you pray boldly, you love freely, and you walk confidently. Hallelujah. I get up every day expecting God’s best, declaring that I’m going to receive it, and walking in love. Because I know God loves me and he wants to love others through me.
David [00:19:10 – 00:20:04]
And as we walk in love together, wow, we see amazing things happen. God’s righteousness is a gift to all who will believe in Christ Jesus and receive Him. There is no way to improve on God’s plan. The cross was God’s masterpiece. The sacrifice of Christ and then his resurrection from the dead was God’s masterpiece. We simply receive it so we can reign in life. Romans 5:17 tells us this. And this is from the New American Standard Bible.
David [00:20:04 – 00:21:02]
I like the way it says it here. Romans 5:17. For if by the transgression of one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one Jesus Christ. Another verse Paul uses talks about the fact that we are to reign in life as kings. We are part of the royal family now, and God has made us righteous through his abundant grace so that we can reign in this life. We can overcome in this life. We can be victorious in this life. We accept this by faith and trust God’s opinion of us at all costs.
David [00:21:03 – 00:22:20]
Because when we look at ourselves sometimes, we sure don’t look or feel or sound righteous. But yet here’s what we know. As the enemy comes to condemn us and condemnation tries to dig its claws into your mind, think this one thought over and over and over again. Christ became the culprit of all my sin, from the least of it to the greatest of it, making Himself liable to restore me and all those injured in his love. Everyone who receives Christ and walks in his love is restored to that place, that position that God created us to be. Paul says in Ephesians, we’ve been recreated in Christ, put back in our proper place and position. Hallelujah. Hallelujah.
David [00:22:20 – 00:23:06]
Hallelujah. God’s gift is so powerful. Now imagine someone living on the street. You’ve seen them, they’re dirty, they’re broken. And then one day a king comes and not only invites them into the palace, but removes their rags and clothes, helps them clean up, get washed, and then clothes them with his own royal robe. He says, here, take this. Wear this. That’s what Jesus did for us.
David [00:23:07 – 00:24:04]
That’s what Jesus has done for you. He just didn’t clean us up. He gave us his robe of righteousness. Hallelujah. We are clothed in his righteousness. We are clothed in his righteousness. So today I want to ask you a couple questions. Have you received this gift of righteousness? Do you acknowledge it? It’s not just something you hear about or know about, but are you truly walking in it? Second, if you have received Christ, and as we said today, righteousness is yours and is a gift the Father God has given you.
David [00:24:05 – 00:24:54]
Are you walking in it every day? Don’t let the enemy take you to that place where you’re still trying to earn what Jesus has already given to you. Let the truth of this gift given to you settle in your heart. You were not condemned. You were not distant or far away from the Lord. You are the righteousness of God in Christ. Hallelujah. I am the righteousness of God in Christ. You can say that to yourself all day long.
David [00:24:56 – 00:25:37]
Live from that place. Rest in that truth in him, in Christ. We are God’s own righteousness on display to the world around us. Hallelujah. I encourage you live there. Let the world see what the fullness of grace looks like through you. Let’s bow our heads in prayer today. Lord Jesus, we thank you for the gift of righteousness.
David [00:25:37 – 00:26:23]
Thank you that you took our sin and gave us your perfect life. Lord, I thank you that we walk in this. I pray that we receive it deeply into our spirit and that we rest in it, Lord, that we rest in it fully. And I pray that we reflect your righteousness daily to everyone we come in contact with. May we walk in the fullness of your righteousness every day. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. So be it.
David [00:26:25 – 00:26:39]
Praise God. You are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. Pastor Kanye is coming with the closing word and thought. God bless you.
