Romans 3:23-24 - For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

This passage from Romans addresses the universal problem of sin and our inability to attain righteousness on our own. Paul acknowledges that all people have sinned and fallen short of God's perfect standard. No one is capable of meeting God's high demands of holiness through their own efforts or works of the law. However, the good news is that we can be justified, or made righteous, through God's grace alone. This is only possible because of what Jesus accomplished through his redemptive work on the cross. By placing our faith in Christ, his righteousness is credited to our account and we are freely acquitted of sin and its penalty before God.

It is sobering to reflect on just how far short each of us falls in comparison to God's perfect holiness. None of us measures up to his glorious standard of righteousness. Left to ourselves, we would have no hope of ever attaining salvation or entering into God's holy presence. But the amazing grace and mercy of God is shown in sending his Son to pay the penalty for our sins through his atoning sacrifice. Jesus lived the perfect life that we could never live, and died the death we deserved to die in order to satisfy God's just wrath against sin. By faith in Christ, God sees us clothed in his righteousness rather than in our own filthy rags of unrighteousness. This is the only way any of us can be made right with God - not through our own works or efforts, but solely through placing our trust in what Jesus did for us on the cross. While the reality of our sin should humble us, the good news of God's grace through faith in Christ should encourage us and fill us with hope.

Heavenly Father, we praise you for your amazing grace and mercy shown to us in Jesus. Thank you for not giving us what we deserve because of our sin, but for sending your Son to pay the debt we could never pay. Help us to never take your gift of salvation for granted, but to treasure it each day. May we live in light of your grace by seeking to honor you with our lives. Fill us with gratitude for all that you've done and continue to transform us more and more into your likeness through your Spirit. We ask this in Jesus' name, Amen.