Romans 5:17 NASB95
For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.
Let’s first define and describe the words righteous and righteousness.
The word “righteous” simply means “to be right,” but not in the sense of “thinking you are always right,” but in the sense of being “inherently whole-inherent rightness.” It carries the idea of your nature being inherently right/ godly, or for your nature to be inherently good/godly. Righteous is about being, and righteousness is about living. Righteousness is to act Godly – to exhibit His nature – to walk in His ways. To be fully and properly functional from God’s perspective would be another way of thinking about righteousness. Fallen mankind is neither whole or able to exhibit wholeness in attitude or actions (by the way, sincere Christians who are still trying to be righteous for God in their own strength are also unable to exhibit the wholeness of God). That is why the Old Testament says that our righteousness – our intent in exhibiting wholeness – is just a filthy rag because we can do it. It’s just not in us because of the reign of sin. God’s solution to our brokenness/unrighteousness is to graft us into the person of Jesus so that His righteous nature – wholeness – becomes our nature, so that naturally (supernaturally) we are able to exhibit the rightness of God through Christ. Righteousness is not something we strive for. Righteousness is a person that we are in union with as a free gift. “But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and holiness, and redemption.” 1 Corinthians 1:31. Notice that righteousness is a WHO and not a WHAT. We obviously want to grow in our being consistent in our manifestation of the righteousness/wholeness of Christ, but we are not trying to get there. Instead, we are learning to live from there. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin (take on our brokenness) on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” It is an amazing thought; you and I are partakers of the divine nature – the wholeness of God – because we are in Christ. Therefore, as we continually by faith seize the free gift of righteousness moment by moment – the free gift of the rightness of Jesus – we will reign in life through Him instead of being defeated in life, controlled by our brokenness and lack of wholeness.