YOU ARE MADE RIGHTEOUS
By Bishop Mike Okonkwo
Sunday 18th August 2024
“For He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” 2 Corinthians 5:21 (KJV)
From the scripture, you can see that you did not keep any rule to be righteous; neither did you obey anything nor made any effort to be righteous. He who knew not sin became sin that you might be made. So, you didn’t earn righteousness. You were made righteous! Your responsibility is to believe what God has made you.
The problem with religion is that it tells you to have faith in self-effort more than what God has done for you. But you need to know that your self-effort is nothing but filthy rags before God and cannot be accepted. The righteousness of God is a gift.
Righteousness means right standing with God. It means standing before God as if sin doesn’t exist. It is standing without any fear, guilt or condemnation. Righteousness is standing without any sense of sin. In other words, you are not conscious of sin. You are standing with a knowing that when you rebuke Satan and his cohorts, they are bound to obey. Righteousness is the believers’ bill of rights.
Righteousness is standing on an equal basis with God. Righteousness is God’s DNA in your genes. It also means standing, knowing that heaven’s resources are available. It is God assuring you that He will never be mad at you again, even when you blow it. It is what makes the believer reign in life. It helps you to know that no one is on your shoulder and trying to beat you with a big hammer on your head. Righteousness should make you go all out for God. Jesus Christ could face the wilderness because ever before he stepped out, the Father affirmed Him ‘This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased”.
You have been accepted in the beloved! That is what the gospel is all about. It is God showing that you have His righteousness.
Further Reading: Romans 5:19; 10:2-4; 1 Corinthians 1:30
Daily Bible Reading: Morning- Psalms 100-102; Evening- 1 Corinthians 1