YOU WERE BORN WITH RIGHTEOUSNESS – Pastor Chris
Tuesday, October 9, 2018
For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ (Romans 5:17).
Righteousness is the nature of God, and a gift from God, but in the actual, vital sense, it’s a gift to the ungodly. The Christian didn’t “receive” the gift of righteousness; the Christian was born righteous. Paul’s submission about righteousness in the Book of Romans, and as you’d find in chapter 5 verse 17, is a generic argument on the legality of righteousness as it was accounted to Abraham, and therefore to all of us who believe in Jesus Christ. We may believe it’s given to us as a gift, but that’s not all that God gave us as a gift.
For instance, Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Eternal life is given to sinners, not Christians; that’s what a sinner receives to become a Christian. A Christian is one who has eternal life; not one who’s “receiving” the gift of eternal life. The Bible says anyone who believes, has eternal life. Once a man believes, right away, eternal life starts up in his spirit. So, eternal life is no longer being “gifted” to him; he was born into it. He came alive with it, when he received Christ.
It’s like when you were born of your mother; you didn’t have to first receive the gift of life to become human; you came into existence with life—the human life! Otherwise, you wouldn’t have been said to be alive. Imagine someone saying, “Now that the baby is born, she needs to receive the gift of the human life”; that’ll be absurd.
Likewise, legally, the whole world has been given the gift of righteousness; it’s this gift, when received, that enables one stand in the presence of God without guilt, fear, inferiority, or condemnation. When the gift of eternal life is received, one is born of God with this life at work in him.
Abraham was given righteousness as a gift; he was credited with righteousness for his believing. But the man who’s born again was born righteous; he can’t, therefore, be “receiving” as a gift, something that he’s born with; he’s born with the life and nature of God. Hallelujah!
PRAYER
Dear Father, thank you for inspiring in me the consciousness of my righteousness, which has placed me in a vantage position, far above the troubles, decadence and negativities in the earth realm. I manifest your righteousness in all I do, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
FURTHER STUDY: Romans 5:17-19; 2 Corinthians 5:21
1-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN Colossians 2:6-23 & Isaiah 48-49
2-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN Hebrews 3:1-11 & Ezekiel 1-2
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