and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.
New International Version (NIV)
We need to get right. So what is our plan? Shall we try harder to do better and pull ourselves up by our spiritual bootstraps? As a veteran of that approach, the Apostle Paul votes, "No!"
Our own righteousness will not suffice. On this five hundredth anniversary of the reformation, we remember the quote of Martin Luther, "If any man could have been saved by monkery, it was I." He had lived the austere life of a monk trying to earn God's favor, to no avail.
Paul had found righteousness not through better rule-keeping but through the grace of Christ. Paul was trying to find law-breaking followers of Jesus when Jesus found him on the road to Damascus. He knew what it meant to gain Christ and be found in him.
If anyone is looking for you today, let them find you in the best place of all, "in Christ." To be found in Christ is to find that we are saved by our faith in his faithfulness. The Greek language in which Paul wrote uses the same word for faithfulness and faith. Paul's righteousness came through Christ's faithfulness. Paul put all of his trust in Jesus to make him right. Our faithful Savior did not fail him, and he won't fail us.
Pray with me:
Father, thank you for setting us right with you through Christ. Let us give up all to gain Christ and be found in him. Give us the grace to trust in your saving faithfulness today. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
I want to invite you to join me in memorizing 52 passages this year from the 2017 set of Fighter Verses. You can find the Fighter Verses App at the App Store on your phones or via this link http://fighterverses.com/the-verses/fighter-verses/. As we study the Bible this year, let's look at each text and learn what it says about God.
Joyfully,
Duane
Copyright 2017. All Rights Reserved.
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