Day 7: God’s Righteous Rescue

Anonymous

Romans 3:21-26

21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it — 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

When Paul speaks of “the righteousness of God” he is describing not only God's character, but what God does for us. God's righteousness is not just an attribute of His, it is an act He carries out to secure our salvation.

Romans 3:23 says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. We are all sinners and this is a fact that should condemn us, but through God's mercy, it is actually what rescues us. God cannot overlook our sin because He is perfectly righteous and it would go against His character. However, it is that very same righteousness that leads Him to acknowledge the need to save us.

The righteousness that exposed our need for a Savior is the very same righteousness that brought about our salvation. When Scripture says God is righteous, it means He is just. So to satisfy this justice and pay for our sin, Jesus Christ was sent to absorb the full wrath of our sin on the cross. We are “justified by his grace as a gift through the redemption that is Jesus Christ”. Jesus was a gift. He was a gift to us from God to pay for our sins. Paul says that Jesus was “put forward as a propitiation” to bear the penalty we deserved. He rescued us from the punishment of our sin. He was sent to rescue us, as a result of God's righteousness. Our salvation is entirely from God. There is nothing we could have done to earn it. The same part of Him that went against our sin is the same part that saved us from it.

God is both just and the justifier as we see in verse 26. He remains perfectly righteous while simultaneously rescuing us from sin. He remains perfectly holy while declaring us righteous through faith.

Through our faith in Him we receive atonement from Christ's blood. God rescued us from our sin and declared us righteous through faith in Jesus. Faith is not the cause of our rescue, it is the result of it. We did nothing to deserve the Savior. Our faith saves us from the penalty of our sin because it connects us to Christ.

Our rescue is secure in Jesus, and we receive it through faith. We move from that which should condemn us, to that which justifies us, the moment we place faith in the Lord.

Prayer Prompts:

• Practice gratitude and thank God for His righteous rescue! Thank Him for sending the gift of His son. Think of a way He is both just and the justifier and praise Him for it.

• Ask God to reveal an area of your life where your faith needs deepening. Where are you still relying on your work to rescue you and not the work of Jesus on the cross?

Day 6: Authority to Forgive

Written by Tom Giles

Mark 2:1-12

1 And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. 2 And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. 3 And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. 4 And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. 5 And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 6 Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, 7 “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 8 And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— 11 “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” 12 And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

Desperate times can cause one to take desperate measures. After the “9/11” attacks, we learned that millions of people began praying and attending church.  People when overwhelmed with despair will often resort to a “higher power” to give them hope. We see in this passage from the book of Mark, four men, and their paralytic friend took desperate measures; climbing a house, cutting a hole in the roof, and lowering the paralytic down to Jesus by rope, with the hope that Jesus would heal this man. When Jesus saw the men’s genuine faith, He said to the paralytic; ‘Son, your sins are forgiven’(v5). It is amazing to see how Jesus recognizes and blesses genuine faith. However, it is even more amazing that Jesus addressed this man’s spiritual condition before addressing his physical condition. This can be quite convicting to us, as we often neglect our unrepentant, or ungrateful, hearts when we seek Jesus’ favor. In Psalm 51:17b it states, “a broken and contrite spirit, O God, you will not despise”

This passage in Mark also emphasizes Jesus’ desire to reveal and establish His divine authority, particularly over sin. However, this was resisted by the vengeful Pharisees who rebuked Jesus, claiming; “He is blaspheming, only God can forgive sins” (v7). Unfortunately, this type of rebuke is still seen in our world, and especially our culture today. We are being taught that all religions worship “the same god”, and that Jesus was just a good man, a wise teacher, but had no godly authority. We are also being taught that sin is “relative” and defined by one’s own moral standards.

Thankfully, those who know Jesus as their Lord and Savior, know that” All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom.3:23), and that, “His name is Jesus, and He will save the people from their sins” (Matt.1:21). We as Christ followers know that the God of the universe gave Jesus “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Matt.28:18). We know that through Jesus’ death and resurrection “we have redemption through His blood for the forgiveness of our sins” (Eph.1:7). Jesus confirmed this truth to the Pharisees when He told them, “so that you may know that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sins” (v10). Jesus finally demonstrated His divine authority to all the crowd when He healed the man’s paralysis while saying “I say to you, get up, pick up your bed, and go home” (12). Needless to say, “they were all amazed, and were glorifying God” (12).   

The forgiveness of sins is Jesus’ greatest miracle to all humanity. A healed body will eventually perish upon death. However, a restored soul through Jesus Christ will live in eternity.

Prayer Prompts:

• Ask God to remove obstacles in your life that hinder your faith from being expressed into action.

• Worship and praise Jesus for His forgiveness of your sins, then ask for His power and grace to forgive others.

Day 5: Good News for the Broken

Written by Lizbeth Robinson

Luke 4:16-21

16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. 17 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.” 20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

Jesus, the Messiah, who came to us as a baby, grew up to be a man who taught in the synagogue. On this particular Sabbath day when he was asked to read from the scroll of Isaiah, he made a revolutionary statement. Imagine yourself in that synagogue and Jesus tells you and all those present, that he is the fulfillment of the words spoken long ago. He is the one that Scripture was written about. He came to preach the good news, to bring liberty and restoration. If you profess Jesus as your savior, have you also accepted that he came to set you free from the pain and bondage that you carry?

My earthly father has been a source of deep heartache in my life. I have watched him turn from God’s goodness and walk through profound tragedy without the hope of Christ. The thought of him not knowing God moves me to tears. I cling to this truth: that Jesus came to set my father free and also to free me from carrying the weight of this grief alone.

You may be carrying fresh wounds from a divorce or the traumatic loss of someone you love. Or perhaps your suffering is quieter, broken dreams, unmet longings, hope deferred, or the lingering shame of your past. Scripture assures us that the Lord is close to the brokenhearted. Jesus declared that He was sent to proclaim liberty to the captives and to recover the sight of the blind.

Whether your pain is raw and tender or you have carried your suffering in silence for so long, this is the year of the Lord’s favor. The Spirit of the Lord draws near to bind up what has been shattered and to speak freedom into the captive places within you. Today can be a new beginning, one marked by divine grace and redeeming love. He is near you even now.

Prayer Prompts:

• Invite God into the places in your life that keep you captive. Pray for those areas that are broken and need the healing touch of Jesus.

• Pray that you would have eyes to see the hurting around you today, and that you would be a light of Jesus’ freedom and encouragement to them.