1Pet 2:24 Who [Christ] Himself bore up our sins in His body on the tree, in order that we, having died to sins, might live to righteousness; by whose bruise you were healed. Roma 6:11 So also you, reckon yourselves to be dead to sin, but living to God in Christ Jesus. 6:13 Neither present your members as weapons of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as alive from the dead, and your members as weapons of righteousness to God.
[Part 3 of 3] Now we need to ask why Peter uses the expression “live to righteousness.” This is related to the fulfilling of God’s governmental requirements. Actually, God’s government requires just one thing–righteousness. This is the reason 2 Peter 3:13 says, “But according to His promise we are expecting new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.” In 1 Peter 2:23 we see that the Lord Jesus continually committed all to the One who judges righteously.
Then in verse 24 Peter indicates that we should live to righteousness. Peter’s concept here is governmental; righteousness is a matter of God’s government. We have been saved by our Savior to live a life that matches the righteous requirements of God’s government. God is righteous and His government is established upon righteousness. Psalm 89:14 says that righteousness is the foundation of God’s throne. Therefore, as God’s people living under His government, we must have a righteous life. We must live to righteousness.
But because in ourselves we are not able to live this kind of life, the Savior saves us to live a life of righteousness, a life that fulfills the righteous requirements of God’s government. It is important for us to realize that Christ our Savior has carried up all our sins onto the tree and died there for us. Now His death separates us from sins and enlivens us so that we may live to righteousness. Spontaneously, we are under God’s government and have no problem with His government because we live to righteousness.
Prayer Confession King of glory thank you for this truth. I am thankful for the free gift of righteousness. In righteousness I am established, I embrace it as my very nature and I live a righteous life that Christ has imputed upon me so that the life of God manifests through me in Jesus’ name, Amen.