100% Forgiven! 100% Righteous! 100% Holy! – Saturday, 17 March

As believers, we are now saints (holy ones) and have been made holy and righteous because we are in Christ.
 
“For he (God) hath made him (Jesus) to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him (Jesus).”
2 Corinthians 5:21 KJV (Brackets mine)
 
As believers, we are now the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. This means that we are 100% right before God – not because of our own goodness, but because Jesus has given His goodness to us and made us right. This means that we are always in God’s good books. We never have to and can never earn favour with Him. We never have to do anything good to be in God’s good books, and we can never do anything so bad that we’d be out of His good books! We are completely accepted, highly favoured and deeply loved, independent of our performance or lack thereof!
 
“… as He is, so are we in this world.”
1 John 4:17 KJV
 
As Jesus is, so are we in this world (right now, not in the life to come). This verse shows us that our righteousness (right standing with God) is 100% equal to that of Jesus’ righteousness – it is His righteousness which He has given to us. When God looks at the believer, He sees the believer in the same state of perfection as Jesus.
 
“There is therefore now no condemnation (or disapproval) for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Romans 8:1 ESV (brackets mine)
 
“Now the decisive conclusion is this: in Christ, every bit of condemning evidence against us is cancelled.”
Romans 8:1 Mirror Translation
 
We are 100% forgiven, 100% righteous and 100% holy. There is no place at all for any shame or condemnation in our lives. Any shred of condemning evidence against us has been cancelled (destroyed or invalidated). We should not allow ourselves to suffer any guilt or shame. Jesus has made us worthy!
 
“Therefore, since we have been justified (made right) by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Romans 5:1 ESV (brackets mine)
 
We have peace with God; God is not against us. He is not angry with man. The sin problem has been dealt with and we have been made right with God. All we need to do to experience this new life is believe.