DECLARED RIGHTEOUS BY THE BLOOD OF JESUS

Romans 3:20-26:

20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.


21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,


22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;


23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,


24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,


25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,


26 to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

In the last verse, the words "just" and "justifier" in the Greek are rendered this way: "...that He might be righteous, even declaring righteous, him which believeth in Jesus." From this passage of Scripture, we can see from God's standpoint that righteousness is not an attainable goal that we can get by our works.

Many people have used this Scripture passage down through the years to try to get people to do things, so they could get righteous. However, in the economy of God there is nothing that we can do to be righteous. Thank God there is nothing that we have to do to be righteous.

If we lived ten million years and did ten million good works, we would never be righteous in God's sight, because we can't obtain righteousness by our own efforts. That's where many Christians are deceived by the devil.

Some Christians think that going to church makes them righteous. Some think that doing good deeds makes them righteous. Some Christians think that selling chicken dinners and having barbecue dinners on Saturday afternoons to raise money to support God's programs makes them righteous. Some think that having women's day and men's day programs to raise money is being righteous.

None of that can make you righteous. None of that-not one single work that you can ever do will make you righteous. Thank God we have been declared righteous in Jesus Christ. God counts us as righteous because Jesus is righteous.

Righteousness is a gift from God through Jesus Christ. You can't earn it. You can't work for it. You can't do any good works to get it. You have to be accounted and declared righteous by God. When He declares you righteous, you are righteous indeed! You are righteous if you are a born-again Christian and you are as righteous as you are ever going to get.

I used to think that I had to do things to get righteous, and then when I didn't do those things I felt unrighteous. I didn't understand that God had declared me righteous through Jesus Christ. I'm not teaching you some denominational doctrine; I'm not giving you what this church believes, or what that church believes. I am giving you what the Bible says about righteousness.

In America, we use linear measurements-inches, feet, yards, etc. Now, you can say, "Well, I think that is an inch," or "That seems to me to be about a foot long." It doesn't matter what you think a foot is. If what you think to be a foot does not conform to twelve inches on the ruler, it is not a foot. It is not what you think about how long a foot is it's what the ruler has to say.

When it comes to righteousness God's Word is the ruler. It is what God says, not what you think, not what your denomination says or what my denomination says; righteousness is only so because God says it is so.

Romans 5:17 says:

For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

The word "reign" literally means to rule. "For if by the one man's [that one man was Adam] offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift [free, not earn or purchased] of righteousness will reign [rule] in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

Not rule in heaven, not rule in the sweet by-and-by, not rule when you die, but "reign in life." That means now in this life. The Amplified New Testament says, "shall reign as kings in life." In this life you are to rule. Rule what? You are to rule your circumstances. You are to rule your environment. You should exert an influence on things around you.

Jesus did and in Him we should too!