In Colossians 1:22 we read, “He has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him.” Because of what Christ has done, all those who are by faith in Christ stand before the Father “holy and blameless and above reproach.” Justified (counted righteous) not because of anything we have done for ourselves, but because of what Jesus has done on our behalf.
In the eyes of God, the sinless life Jesus lived we lived. In the eyes of God, the sin-filled death Jesus died on that cross…we died on that cross. Think about this for a moment. We get the credit for all that is good in Jesus because He got the credit for all that was bad…and is still bad in us. This “Great Exchange” is greater than we could have ever imagined because it is ongoing.
Every day in thought, word, and deed we sin. Every day we are in need of the righteousness of Christ to cover those sins and this righteousness was never intended to be a one-time event. Every day we must look to Christ for His robes of righteousness to wear as we stand before the Father. Those who think they can stand before God because of the “good” they are doing just don’t understand how sinful they really are, how needy that makes them, and how dependent they are on Christ.
The apostle Paul knew how sinful he was, and how needy and dependent he was on Christ when he said by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). The Jesus Saul met on the road to Damascus was the same Jesus Paul needed on the roads he walked every day of his life. Paul knew that his acceptance before God was never based on the good he was doing because he knew too much bad went along with it (Romans 7). He looked to Jesus alone, by faith alone, which empowered him to live the life God had called him to live.
So, have you like Paul learned to look to Jesus for your acceptance before God…every day? Are you relying totally on Christ and Christ alone for both eternal life and everyday life? This will be our daily experience if we understand just how needy we really are. NEVER FORGET THAT…AMEN!
Grace for the Race 