“God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished.” (Rom. 3:25 NIV)
In God’s great exchange, God charged our sin to Christ and credited Christ’s righteousness to us. This swap is referred to as Justification – meaning that in our standing before God by faith in Christ, we are righteous in His sight – the opposite state of being condemned for our sin.
To begin to understand the love that God has for sinners, Jesus told the story of the Prodigal Son. The boy went from home and lived a wasted life full of sin. The father, when he saw his son heading towards home ran and fell on his neck and kissed him, and further demanded a feast be prepared for his lost son now returned. This represented the love that the father in heaven has for each person who has gone their own way of the world.
We are no more righteous in our daily experience than Christ was sinful in His daily experience. When we trust in Jesus by faith, God regards us as entirely righteous. How can this be? God the Father credits the righteousness of Christ to us as we put our trust by faith in Jesus.
Looking at this personally: He died on the cross for you just as if you’d never sinned. Justification by faith in Christ offers us this exchange. Here’s how it works. When God charges our sins to Christ, they are no longer ours. He has removed them from us “as far as the east is from the west” (see Psalm 103: 12) and remembers them no more (see Hebrews 8: 12).
The penalty for our sin was paid at the cross, and this is actualized by our acceptance of this gift – by our faith when we say “Father in Heaven, I believe, and I accept your gift of forgiveness of sin for me – I am grateful for what my Lord Jesus did for me on the cross”.
There is a sense of guilt for sin once we see the aim of the gospel – that it is the good news of God’s plan our reconciliation and salvation from the curse of sin. By faith, I see that my sin is indeed covered by accepting Christ’s gift offered to me. Theologically Christ is our substitutionary ransom. Others may term his death as “propitiatory”. Propitious means bringing a favourable result by Christ’s atonement for our sin. In a nutshell, we are saved from the wrath of God towards the ungodly which will occur at the last Judgment. We are now saved by faith when we put our trust in Jesus Christ. We are now actually accounted as righteous and reconciled through Christ as a son or daughter of God.
Individually, a divine transaction occurs – I exchange my sin, for the gift of Christ’s righteousness offered to all men at the cross – men and women who accept this gift of grace. Two points are important to understand.
- God is infinitely holy. Grace and forgiveness are inaccessible without Christ. Without Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross, we can never approach God as our Father in heaven. God is holy and hates the sin that has become a part of mankind. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (see Rom. 3:23) Our Lord’s Prayer alludes to His holiness: “Our Father in Heaven…Hallowed be thy name.”
- God alone is the source of righteousness. By our accepting the gift of Christ’s lived-out righteousness by faith, God’s justice is satisfied. His penalty for sin – death – was exhausted on His Son at the cross. Christ’s death achieved reconciliation for all who call upon Him. The faith of Jesus attributes to you. This viewpoint that God takes of you, though a sinner, as righteous in Christ, is now accessible to you once you confess your sin and accept His gift of salvation.
We stand before Him just as if we’d never sinned, and just as if we’d always obeyed. What Jesus was in His life, we are in our standing before God because Jesus was our representative in both His life and death. His righteousness is imputed to us – viewed by the Father as own our own righteousness. This justification was offered by the death of Jesus Christ.
“Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses. (Acts 13:38-39 NIV)
Apostle Paul’s view was that by faith “I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith” (Phil. 3: 8b-9 ESV) It’s very clear: “through faith in Christ” we are gifted “the righteousness from God that depends on faith”.
The idea of Christ as our representative man when incarnated, which Paul makes clear is indeed an offer to be viewed by God, no longer as a sinner, but as a righteous person in good standing with Him. Thus we can approach a holy God daily by faith. For years, the church has found the study of Righteousness by Faith an encouraging topic. Note how Paul denoted Christ as a man, a representative man. This is very important to see. Adam, our forefather was our first representative man, representing sin and unrighteousness for the human race when he disobeyed God. Adams death passed unto all men.
Comparatively, Jesus represents us as forgiven for our sins, and righteous by faith in Him, as our last representative man. The new life we find in Jesus Christ passes unto all men who are saved by faith.
“As by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous” (Romans 5: 19 ESV)
The first many who were made sinners refers to the entire human race (except, of course, Jesus). The second many refers to all who are united to Christ by faith. Paul is not teaching a universal salvation of all humankind.
Let me illustrate. I know men who work hard at their physical jobs – they can get sweaty with grimy hands and clothes. They shower before dining with their family or play with their children or hug their wife. They don’t just put on clean clothes first! God does this to you. He washes you clean in the blood of His Son and then He clothes you in His perfect righteousness. The old hymn expresses the trust we have in Jesus. “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness.” His love activates our love.
Essentially love for Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of sin offered to us, is the primary motivation for accepting the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are called to a righteous life in Christ, and His love and the power of the Holy Spirit lead us in our quest for holiness.
Other related reading: The Manifesto of God’s Love