God is Good!

Give this a try. Sit in a chair, and then try to sit in the chair. I know it sounds a bit silly because you are already sitting in the chair. Once you are in the chair, you cannot get into it any more than you already are. The same idea applies to Christ and His righteousness. Jesus has made us right with God through His sacrifice and we cannot do anything to make ourselves more righteous than He has made us. Our behavior can improve, but not until we fully accept our righteousness through Jesus. Jesus puts us in the seat of righteousness and we need to learn to relax and stop trying to be what we already are. No amount of right actions can ever make us right with God apart from Christ. Affirming this, the apostle Paul prayed that he would be found and known as being in Christ, having no righteousness of his own, but only that right standing that comes through faith in Christ. Philippians 3:9 When we truly understand that we cannot do anything to make ourselves righteous and that we do not have to prove anything to God, we are able to rest in the gift of righteousness Jesus gives to us and that will make us bold in our petitions and confident in God's desire to answer us. I know that God does not hear or answer my prayers because I am good; He hears and answers because He is good! Keep the Faith Elder Bert Hebrews 11:6