Today’s 333 Devotional: “The Great Exchange”

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

We cannot fully understand the second part in how we have become the righteousness of God without understanding the first part, that is, Jesus who knew no sin became sin for us.

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us.” (2 Corinthians 5:21a)

It says that Jesus was made sin, not a sinner mind you, but sin itself so He could become that sin offering, that sacrifice for our sin. He paid the penalty due, as Paul says, “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23)

What this says is that Jesus was sinless to begin with. Jesus was perfectly holy and pure.

This reality of Jesus is expressed in Peter 1 Peter 2:22; “(Jesus) who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth;” and in Hebrews 7:26, it says He was “holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners.”

God dealt with Christ, not as though He were a sinner, but as though He were sin itself. Galatians 3:13 says that Christ was made “a curse for us,” and in Romans 8:3 as “being made in the likeness of sinful flesh.”

And so all our sins were transferred unto Him, and as He hung upon the cross He took upon Himself our sins the purpose of transferring His righteousness to us.

“So that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21b)

By identifying with Christ as believers we have been made sharers in His divine righteousness. Peter says that we have been made partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:3).

All who believe in Jesus have been made righteousness in the sight of God, that is, God now accepts us as righteous. But our righteousness is not in ourselves, rather our righteousness is in Christ, so we now have the righteousness of Christ.