Christ Made Sin: Us Made the Righteousness of God

For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin 

in order that we might be made (that is, created) 

the righteousness of God in him. 

2 Corinthians 5.21

The Holy Spirit is careful to distinguish between the way Christ was made sin and the way we are made the righteousness of God in Him. Christ remained utterly unchanged in His Person, nature and character as He bore our sins in His body on the tree. The word translated “made” in the first instance reflects that for it signifies a change in form, not in essence. In fact, the word is often used to mean, “set forth as”. In 1 John 5.10 it is written that unbelievers, “have made God a liar.” Obviously John did not mean that unbelief actually causes God to be a liar. Rather, unbelief SAYS that God is a liar. Christ bore our sins in His body on the tree, yet, as He bore those sins, He was not made sinful by them. In fact, our Lord’s Person and nature were utterly unchanged by the events of Calvary. He suffered as the righteous One in place of unrighteous people. He was righteous before He went to the cross, remained righteous on the cross and arose the same righteous Person.

But, even though Christ’s person remained unchanged by the events of the cross, none of His people will remain unchanged by those same events. The result of Christ’s legal work goes far beyond a change in our legal status, and the word translated made in the second case suggests that. It is a different word than the one translated “made” in Christ’s case. In our case, the word often signifies a work of creation or a change so fundamental that something new has arisen. We get our word genetics and generate from this word. Christ’s endurance of our legal punishment for sin opened the door for the work of the Spirit of God who comes and actually changes what we are. This work is begun in regeneration or the New Birth.

Throughout the life of a believer he can say that the work is begun, but only begun. However, He can say that with the confidence that He who began that work will bring it to perfection on the day of Christ, when God raises our vile bodies to be like Christ’s glorious body and we, body and spirit, shall be like Him: completely righteous. Moreover, this righteousness shall not be like Adam’s righteousness which was the righteousness of Man and therefore subject to failure. This righteousness which the believer is created to be is nothing less than the righteousness of God and, therefore, is no more subject to failure than God, Himself, is subject to failure.

Grace Community Church

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