1 Corinthians 1:28-31 & Romans 4:23-25, 8:31-34
I. Your righteousness in Christ means you can be confident God loves you.
A. We Christians are in Christ Jesus (1 Corinthians 1:30). We are united with the resurrected Jesus so that what is true of Jesus is now true of us. One thing that is true of Jesus is that He is righteous. That means that because of your union with Jesus, you are considered to have the same perfect righteousness that Jesus had. When you put your faith in Jesus that He died for your sins on the cross as your perfectly righteous representative, you become righteous as He is righteous.
B. Romans 8 gives us confidence in God’s love so that we can live without fear. Over and over again Romans 8 says, “Think! Are you afraid? You aren’t thinking. Are you worried about what you need? You aren’t thinking! Are you feeling guilty? God has already given you His verdict that you are as righteous as Jesus. You aren’t thinking!” My union with Jesus, the truth that I share the righteousness of Jesus, gives me confidence. I am loved by God.
II. Your righteousness in Christ means you can be confident God will protect you.
A. We all have enemies who want to harm us. Sometimes those enemies are people who want to bring us down. And in Revelation 12:10 Satan is called the accuser of our brothers. In Romans 8:33-34 we read, “It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn?” God’s verdict on our lives is that we are righteous because we are united by faith with the righteous Jesus. No one then can condemn us. No one can call us guilty. Not even Satan.
B. You are justified. You are just as righteous as Jesus as far as God is concerned. What is true of you now is written in Romans 8:1: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” God the Judge will protect you from all accusations. Jesus is interceding for us (Romans 8:34). The word intercede is often used in courtroom settings. Jesus is your defense attorney to protect you from accusation.
III. Your righteousness in Christ means you can be confident God will give you eternal life.
A. Jesus was raised for our justification (Romans 4:25). What does that mean? When Jesus was raised from the dead, he was vindicated by God in that moment. Jesus was not a criminal who deserved to die on a cross. No. He was the perfectly obedient son of God, and when God raised Jesus from the dead, He declared loud and clear that Jesus was the righteous Son of God. Since what is true of the risen Jesus is now true of us, when Jesus was declared righteous at His resurrection, who else was declared righteous? You. And who else will rise from the dead? You.
Application:
God wants you to live confidently because He has declared you righteous.
Sources:
The Bible
Commentaries by G.K. Beale, Tim Keller, Colin Kruse, Tom Schreiner & Frank Thielman
Sermon Discussion Questions
1) How confident are you that nothing can separate you from God’s love? What can you do to grow your confidence in this fact?
2) How can you be sure that God will protect you from both the accusations of people and the accusations of Satan? What does it mean that Jesus intercedes for you (Romans 8:34)?
3) What is the connection between Jesus’ resurrection and our justification (Romans 4:25)? How does resurrection vindicate both Jesus and us?