Beyond the Weekend: Taking Jesus Seriously
What if the most famous sermon ever preached wasn't meant to be admired—but lived? Jesus didn't give us the Sermon on the Mount to impress us. He gave it to transform us. This summer, we're diving into Matthew 5 to wrestle with the hard questions: How do I actually love my enemies? What does it mean to deal with anger at its root? How do I live authentically before God, not just before people? Jesus ended with a warning: hear these words and do nothing, and your life is built on sand. But hear them and act—that's building on rock. Are you ready to start building?
Question 27: What is Justification?
Read: Romans 3:21-26 Listen: Romans 3
Question: What is justification?
Answer: Justification is God declaring us righteous in his sight because of our faith in Jesus Christ.
And all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Romans 3:24
Paul writes to both Jewish and gentile believers in Rome, who are struggling with the question of how righteousness is perceived by God. The Jews grew up believing righteousness came by following God’s law. The gentiles wondered if they needed to covert to Judaism first. Paul declares that justification—God’s legal declaration of righteousness—comes the same way for everyone: through faith in Christ alone. This was revolutionary thinking. God declares people right with him solely through Christ’s redemptive work on the cross. Righteousness is not based on their ethnic background, religious performance, or moral achievements. The term “justified” carried legal weight in Roman culture, like a judge’s final verdict of “not guilty.” Paul shows his readers that Christ’s sacrifice provides the redemption that makes this divine verdict possible.
This same truth transforms how we approach God today. We do not need to strive to earn God’s acceptance through religious performance or good behavior. Like those early believers, we can walk with confidence before God, knowing we are justified freely by his grace. We live from a position of acceptance rather than working for acceptance. Our relationship with God rests securely on Christ’s atoning sacrifice, not on what we can achieve. This frees us to serve and obey God from gratitude rather than fear, knowing our standing with him is secure through Christ’s redemption alone.
TODAY: Thank God for justifying you through faith in Christ rather than through your works. Rest in the truth that you are declared righteous in God’s sight because of Jesus’s sacrifice. Let this assurance give you confidence to approach God in prayer and live from acceptance rather than striving for acceptance. Learn more about justification in our We Believe document.
