One of the first steps to becoming
righteousness-conscious is to learn the
difference between having your sins forgiven,
and having your sins remitted. Remitted is a
word that should never be used in connection
with a believer because a man’s sin is remitted
only once.

When sin is remitted, at the moment of
salvation, the Word tells us we become “a
new creature: old things are passed away;
behold, all things are become new”
(2 Corinthians 5:17).

You see, the problem we had before we
were saved was not all those little individual
sins we committed. They were only the
symptoms. The problem was the condition
of our hearts. The problem was our sin
nature. No matter how hard we tried to be
good and act right, that nature kept us
imprisoned in sin.

But when we made Jesus the Lord of our
lives, our sin nature died and a righteous
nature was born in us. Sin no longer had
dominion over us. Righteousness set us free!

That kind of freedom wasn’t available to
people in Old Testament days. Back then,
before the blood of Jesus had been shed, there
was a “reckoned righteousness” with God,
gained through the blood of sacrificed bulls
and goats. Those sacrifices covered the individual
sins, but they didn’t change the hearts
of people. People kept on committing the
same sins every year because their nature was
still the nature of sin.

“For it is not possible that the blood of bulls
and of goats should take away sins” (Hebrews
10:4). But what the blood of bulls and goats
could not do, Jesus’ blood did. “This man, after
he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat
down on the right hand of God.... For by one
offering he hath perfected for ever them that are
sanctified” (verses 12, 14).

How long will Jesus’ sacrifice for sin last?
Forever. You are forever righteous through
the blood of Jesus.

I know you still miss it and sin sometimes.
But even when you do, it’s not the
same because your heart is different. God
doesn’t see you the same way He did before
you were born again.

Think of it this way. If you’re a parent,
you may know your child has done something
wrong, but as far as you’re concerned,
he’s still your child and he’s wonderful. He
may need to be corrected, but there’s nothing
wrong with him. You know he wants to
please you. He just needs more training so
he can learn to do things right.

Do your children fall out of good standing
with you just because they mess up?
Certainly not. It’s the same way in the family
of God. Once you’ve been born again, your
nature is changed. You don’t want to sin even
when you do sin.

And when you do sin, you have Someone
on your side. “...If any man sin, we have an
advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous”
(1 John 2:1). “If we confess our sins,
[God] is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”
(1 John 1:9).

While remission changes your nature,
forgiveness erases your mistakes. And that’s
the final word on sin. God has taken care of
the sin problem forever. When Jesus became
sin and put sin away, the sin problem became
a closed issue with God.

You can still sin if you choose. God won’t
stop you. The Holy Spirit will deal with you
if you’ll listen...but if you won’t, you can do
what you will. But you don’t have to sin. You
don’t have a sin nature anymore. You have
a righteous nature.

God “hath delivered us from the power of
darkness, and hath translated us into the
kingdom of his dear Son” (Colossians 1:13).
You’ve been translated out of one kingdom
and into another one.

People are so worried about the devil.
They’re fighting the devil and bombarding
the gates of hell all over the place. But I like
what one author wrote: “If you really understand
your righteousness in Christ and your
authority as a believer, you will pay no attention
to the devil. You’ll just go on and do
your job.”

Jesus said, “I beheld Satan as lightning fall
from heaven. Behold, I give unto you power
to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over
all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall
by any means hurt you” (Luke 10:18-19).

Satan has no authority over you unless
you give it to him. Jesus has stripped him of
all authority and placed it in your hands. As
He said in the Great Commission, “All power
is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go
ye therefore...” (Matthew 28:18-19).
That’s good news, Church! Let’s tell it!

Kenneth Copeland Ministries