Thankful for His Righteousness

I was raised an only child. I know the first thing you think is spoiled. I hate that image. However, I probably was spoiled but I was not rotten. I worked hard at being the perfect daughter. I learned to live life on a pedestal. Let me tell you it is hard and exhausting trying to keep from falling off that pedestal once you work your way up on it. It creates a fear of failure and a fear of making a simple mistake. It brings insecurity when you are not sure if people will still love you if you were to fall off. I hate life on that pedestal yet I so often fall back into old habits of trying to live on one. That is how it would feel if we could make our self righteous. We are not perfect. We all sin. So it is impossible for us to be righteous on our own. Thank God I don’t have to. It is not about my righteousness, which is as filthy rags, it is all about Jesus and His righteousness. When I gave my life to Him and let Him become my Savior and Lord, I received His righteousness. When God looks at me, he sees Jesus! Hallelujah!
Let me share with you an illustration I have used in many of my classes. If you haven’t done this you might actually want to do it for a visual, to keep in your Bible. Take a filthy, dirty piece of paper. You might have to dig a piece out of the trash. Write your name across the paper. This paper represents you before Christ. Scripture says our righteousness were like fifty rags to God. Now get a clean, pretty envelope. Put the dirty piece of paper inside the envelope, and write Jesus on the outside of the envelope. Now seal the envelope. If you have a wax seal or a gold sticker seal, use it to seal the envelop. The Bible says we are sealed in Christ by the Holy Spirit. When God looks at us, He sees Jesus. Our dirty sins are hidden inside Christ. That is why you are righteous as as follower of Jesus!
It is all about Jesus! It is not about you being good enough. It doesn’t matter if you have failed. It only matters if you have been sealed in Christ by the Holy Spirit!

It's in Christ that you, once you heard the truth and believed (this Message of your salvation),, found yourselves home free--signed, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit.

Ephesians 1:13