Today’s Focal Passage: Romans 3:21-26
21 But now, apart from the law, God's righteousness has been revealed —attested by the Law and the Prophets 22 —that is, God's righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ, to all who believe, since there is no distinction. 23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. 24 They are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Him as a propitiation through faith in His blood, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His restraint God passed over the sins previously committed. 26 He presented Him to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be righteous and declare righteous the one who has faith in Jesus.
Brokedown Palace
In the 1999 film Brokedown Palace two young women, Alice and Darlene, find themselves imprisoned in Thailand after being tricked and arrested for smuggling drugs.
The film’s conclusion involves both girls being sentenced to 48 years until Alice begs the court the let her friend Darlene go. Alice promises to serve both sentences. The court agrees and the movie ends with Alice left to serve the rest of her life in a foreign prison while Darlene goes free. It’s an incredibly moving scene where one friend makes atonement for another.
In Brokedown Palace, Alice was not completely innocent. She was the reason Darlene found herself in such circumstances to begin with. The story of atonement in this film is really Alice taking responsibility for the friend she hurt. While Alice was hardly a good girl, both girls were innocent of the smuggling crime. Alice stepped up to pay the price in order to free her friend.
As believers, the story is different. Jesus was not a guilty friend who comes to our rescue because of His own conscience. He is the sinless Savior who offers His life as ransom for ours. He is the propitiation, the atonement, for our sins; the reason we go free. God did this so we could be made righteous and so we could declare Him who saved us righteous.
Righteousness is what we desperately need but can’t create on our own. Christ instead offers us His. He accepted punishment and death so that we might live. Is there anything so moving?
o What does it mean for you to trade prison clothes for a life that’s free?
o What does it mean for you to take on the righteousness of Jesus?
o How can you both live as righteous and declare Him righteous today?
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