The Only Way to a Righteous Life

Romans 5:19

For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

As a result of the disobedience of Adam, we were born with a sin nature.  Because of Adam's disobedience, we naturally put ourselves first in all things.  This behavior alone puts us in direct violation of what Jesus taught were God's greatest commands.  "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself."

The violation of either one of these two commands is enough to condemn us to eternal death.  We cannot remove the condemning stain of this sin on our own.  There is no escape or recovery from this sin except through the redemption provided through Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

As a result of the obedience of Jesus to the calling of His Father in heaven, we are made righteous in the eyes of the Father.  God removed our sin through the sacrifice of His own Son.  He removed our sin in the only way that was acceptable to Him - through the shed blood of His Son which cleanses us.  We accept His mercy and eternal atonement through our surrender to His Son, Jesus Christ.

It is important to understand that God does not hold us responsible for inheriting sin.  He will not condemn anyone because of the sin that was inherited.  He will condemn those that refuse to accept Jesus as the only measure of deliverance from their inherited sin and their ongoing iniquities.  He will condemn those who choose to live in submission to the darkness of the flesh rather than under surrender to the light of the world, Jesus Christ.

Let us strive to have those around us see that we love God above all things and that we love them as we love ourselves.  Let us show the world what is only possible through Jesus Christ.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we ask forgiveness for the sin in our lives.  We pray that You will reveal to us all the places in our lives where we are living in darkness, instead of in the Light.  We ask You, Lord, for the grace to be able to repent of all the sin that remains in our lives.  We thank You, Father, that through Your mercy You have made a way for us to be delivered from the condemnation that we deserve.  We praise Your name, Father God, because through Your perfect love we have been given an eternal inheritance that we did not and cannot earn on our own.  We bless the name of Jesus who now dwells within us.  We pray that we may become Light to the darkness in world around us through His presence.  We ask all these things in the name of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ.