Proverbs 21:2, “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the Lord pondereth the hearts.”

It is impossible for a righteous God to ask His people to be less than righteous. Of course, the problem is that “there is none righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10; c.f. Psalm 14:1-3; Ecclesiastes 7:20). All people are sinners by their very nature. How can the unrighteous ever stand before a righteous God? They must be made righteous.

Praise God! He provides righteousness for all who will receive by faith His gracious offer. This is the only way for the unrighteous—that’s all of us—to be made righteous. Only God is able to provide what we all need, and that provision is made possible through Christ alone. Jesus Christ, the Lord and Savior, died for the sins of the world, “the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18).The judgment that should have been ours, due to our unrighteousness, was placed on Jesus instead of on our heads. Where the judgment belongs. As Peter wrote, “Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed”(1 Peter 2:24). God justifies (that means declares as righteous) the ungodly, not when they do good works, but when they repent—turn from their sin—and believe—put their faith in Jesus—(c.f. Mark 1:15; Acts 20:20-21; Romans 10:9-11). As the apostle Paul wrote, “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness”(Romans 4:5). Remember, repentance and faith are two-sides of the same coin, and the only way to be righteous before God is to trust Christ and receive His righteousness as God’s free gift. Right position—being in Christ—enables and leads to right practice.