I’m not much of a roller coaster gal, but I’ve been to plenty of amusement parks in my life (mostly for the food!) and I’ve noticed how many rides have a height requirement at the entrance. Many times you’ll see a child approach the measuring stick with hesitancy in hopes they grew a little taller since the year before, and then in delight enter the ride when they pass the test.
What’s interesting about this is the standard didn’t change. The child did. And this is true of God’s Word too.
The standard didn’t change. We did.
Faith in Christ raises us to God’s standard. Unfortunately, there are many people who carry around their own measuring stick, “mentally” disqualifying themselves from God’s favor before they ever approach Him. This is what I did.
I assumed the standard was too high for me. I understood a standard to be a basis of comparison or an approved model, but what I didn’t understand is that in the eyes of God, CHRIST IS THE STANDARD. God doesn’t use Christ as a comparison model but as a qualification. In other words, accepting Jesus as our Savior automatically “qualifies” us because when God sees us, He sees the “standard.”
God isn’t looking for our flaws or shortcomings. He’s looking for Jesus.
And Romans 8:2-4 helps us understand what God is specifically looking for. It says, “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.“
The bible says to be qualified there is a requirement– a “righteous requirement.” What could that be, you ask? If we dig a little deeper, we find it written out plain and simple: “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
The righteous requirement was for Jesus to exchange His righteousness for our sin.
I don’t think I have to explain what sin is— but it would be good to better understand RIGHTEOUSNESS.
The first mention is found in Genesis 15:6 as God is talking to Abraham. He told him to look at the stars in the sky and number them if he was able. As Abraham looked up, the Bible says, “And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.”
God made a covenant with Abraham. A covenant is a promise, or agreement, between two parties, where each one offers its best to the other. But the question I immediately have is how could God, being perfect, actually make covenant with an imperfect man?
The answer is, He couldn’t. So He made covenant with Himself on Abraham’s behalf. Hebrews 6:13-15 says, “For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself,saying, “Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you.”And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.”
In other words, God had everything to offer Abraham, and in exchange, all He wanted was to be believed.
Abraham looked at God’s promise (stars in the sky) and chose to BELIEVE. This is what we need to do too — when we look in God’s Word (His promises) we too need to BELIEVE. Abraham had opportunity, like all of us, to doubt but because he chose to believe, he received the promise.
TO RECEIVE you must BELIEVE.
Romans 4:20-22 says, “He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. And therefore ‘it was accounted to him for righteousness.'”
The problem with most people is, they aren’t fully convinced of God’s Word. And we don’t value or understand “covenant” as much as we should. But God is all about keeping His Word (His covenant, His standard of righteousness).
God’s part of the covenant is a provision of salvation and eternal life (with all the benefits). Our part of the covenant is to believe. Just as Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness, when we believe God and accept Jesus as our Savior, it is accounted to us for righteousness. In other words, we are qualified.
“If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:9-10).
Where did you believe? (In your heart). What did you receive when you believed? (Righteousness).
This is the standard that God has made. As soon as we throw away our own measuring stick and accept His way of doing things, we are automatically raised to the required height to pass GO. No more striving, no more proving. Jesus fulfilled the righteous requirement for us— giving us a new measuring stick (faith in Him).
