I woke up early this morning with this thought rolling around in my mind and heart: I’ve been justified!

What does that mean?
Websters defines “justified” as “to judge, regard, or treat as righteous and worthy of salvation.”

Given this definition, how in the world could I be deemed justified?
Nothing in myself was worthy of salvation. Nothing!
I was a wicked sinner who hated the things of God, the people of God, and the Word of God.
Even as a child sitting on a church pew, my heart hated God.
He was everything that was righteous and holy, and I was unrighteous and unholy.
There was no way that I could justify myself in His eyes…no way that I could be good enough or work hard enough to be justified before God.
In and of myself, I was completely hopeless and helpless to change my situation…

But God.

Don’t you just love those words?!
The doctors said, “You’ll never make it. There’s no hope.” But God…
Every which way you looked was blocked. There seemed to be no way out. But God…
The weight of the world was on your shoulders. You couldn’t take any more. But God…
Surely you’d never make it out of that storm. The winds were too strong. The waves were too high. But God…
There was absolutely no hope of salvation. No hope of pleasing God. No hope of Heaven at the end of the way. No hope whatsoever. But God.

What a blessed interjection! Those two words can change everything!
The hopeless become hopeful.
The impossible becomes possible.
The dead become living.
The lost become saved.
The haters of Christ become lovers of Christ.
The unrighteous become righteous.
The unholy become holy.
Sinners become saints.

“Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11 KJV)

Did you see that?

“And such were some of you:”
That was me! I was in that crowd. But that isn’t the end of the story!

“but ye are washed,” (wash: to clean by rubbing or dipping in liquid)
The precious blood of Jesus Christ has washed and cleansed me from my sins! Those stains that wouldn’t come off no matter how hard I scrubbed were removed by the application of Jesus’ blood. Oh, precious is the flow that makes me white as snow! No other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus!

“but ye are sanctified,” (sanctify: to set apart for a sacred purpose)
As a child of God, I have been set apart from this world. I’m no longer a servant to sin, but a servant to Jesus Christ. When He purchased me with His own blood and redeemed me unto Himself, He made me a new creature. Old things are passed away! All things are become new!

“but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”
There it is!! I am “judged, regarded, and treated as righteous and worthy of salvation,” not because of what I’ve done, but “in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God!”
It’s all because of what Christ has done!

All of my sin that was constantly hanging over my head, sin that couldn’t be ignored or swept under the rug, sin that required the penalty of death was paid for on Calvary.
All my sins are gone!
Jesus Christ took the death that I deserved, and in return, He has made me justified.

He gave me life for death.
Heaven for hell.
Righteousness for unrighteousness.
Robes of white for rags of sin.

I’ve been justified!