Righteous by Faith

A core component of the Gospel message is the righteousness of God—which essentially means that God acts rightly toward humanity.

Romans 1:17 introduces this theme that Paul, the writer of Romans, covers in the rest of his letter. For Paul, this verse is the premise for the arguments that he will make in the following chapters.

Paul says in Romans 3:23 that all of us have turned our back on God, and that sin is what separates us from Him.

Since God is righteous and holy, and we are not, we couldn’t approach God on our own. There needed to be a solution to bridge the impossible gap between us. But then, God sent Jesus in our place to be that bridge. This way, Jesus could make a way for us to have a relationship with Him again, and God would still be righteous.

That's why Paul says God’s righteousness is revealed through the Gospel. But he clarifies that it comes through faith. Paul says, “The righteous will live by faith” (Romans 1:17). Righteous living, or living our ...