One of the biggest challenges we face as believers is navigating our external environment. Doing this successfully hinges on how well we divide the Old and New Testaments. Before the cross, man lived under a system where righteousness was based on doing everything just right. Thankfully, what Jesus did flipped the script.
Under the law, the people were measured by their performance; they were only considered to be in right-standing with God if they lined up with every command. The thinking was that rule-keeping and obedience produced righteousness, and anything less meant falling short. There was constant pressure to perform, but deep down, they knew they could never get everything perfectly right.
What was true under the law may no longer be true under grace; under that old reality, there was a distance between mankind and God. There was no one who could fully bridge the gap and stand in man’s place to bring him together with God. Now, however, everything has changed—we’ve got Jesus, the only one who can reconcile God and humanity. There’s no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.
After the cross, Jesus is now our mediator. Through Him, we don’t just approach God; we come boldly to the throne of grace, knowing that God’s original relationship with man that sin destroyed has been fully restored. That old feeling of being judged and found guilty has been replaced with innocence and freedom. Trusting in Him makes us the righteousness of God.
God is no longer an angry judge but a loving Father. Jesus had to explain this to His disciples when He explained that anyone who had seen Him had seen the Father. No longer do we have to earn righteousness; we simply receive it as a gift from Him. This gives us light, clarity, and hope.
Prayer:
Father, thank You for opening our eyes to the truth of who we are in Christ. Help us to walk confidently in the righteousness You’ve given us. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Scriptures:
Deuteronomy 6:25
Job 9:33, NKJV
1 Timothy 2:5, NLT
Romans 8:1, NLT
Hebrews 4:16
Romans 3:21
John 14:9