Morning By Morning #31

He will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.

Jeremiah 23:6

From the pen of Charles Spurgeon:

Thinking of the perfect righteousness of Christ will always give Christians the greatest sense of calm, quiet, ease, and peace. Yet how often the saints of God are sad and depressed! I don’t think they should be and I don’t believe they would be if they could always see their own perfection in Christ. Some Christians always talk about the corruption and depravity of the heart and the innate evil of the soul. Although this is certainly true, why not look a little further and remember that we are “perfect in Christ” (Col. 1:28)?

It is no wonder that those whose thoughts continually dwell on their own corruption have such downcast expressions on their faces. But if we would only call to mind that “Christ Jesus…has become…our righteousness” (1 Cor. 1:30), we would “be of good cheer” (John 16:33 KJV).

Whatever troubles afflict me, although Satan assaults me, and even though there may be many difficult experiences to endure before I go to heaven, each trial is provided for me within God’s covenant of His divine grace. And there is nothing lacking in my Lord Jesus, for Christ has done it all. From His cross He said, “It is finished” (John 19:30), and if “it is finished,” I am “complete in him” (Col. 2:10 KJV) and can rejoice “with an inexpressible and glorious joy” (1 Peter 1:8), “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 and is by faith” (Phil. 3:9).

On this side of heaven you will never find a more holy people than those who have received the doctrine of Christ’s righteousness into their hearts. When a believer says, “I live on Christ alone, solely rest on Him for salvation, and believe that however unworthy I may feel, I am forever saved in Jesus,” then with a motive of gratitude arising within him, he begins to think, “Because this is true, should I not live for Christ? Should I not love Him and serve Him all the more since I am saved by His merits—not mine?”

“Christ’s love compels us…that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them” (2 Cor. 5:14–15). Once we understand it is by His righteousness imputed to us that we are saved, then we will more greatly value that righteousness so graciously bestowed to us from His abundant supply.

From the pen of Jim Reimann:

Spurgeon speaks of Christ’s “righteousness imputed to us.” Imputation is an accounting term, meaning “to credit to an account.” Christ’s righteousness is credited (or imputed) to our sin account. Yet someone had to pay with His blood!

It has been said: “Christ came to pay a debt He did not owe, because we had a debt we could not pay.” Because of that, and only that, His righteousness can be imputed to us. Our debt is forever canceled!

“When you were dead in your sins…God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code…that was against us;…he took it away, nailing it to the cross” (Col. 2:13 – 14).

“Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness” (Rom. 4:3).

Lord, how amazing that “Christ Jesus…has become…[my] righteousness”!