12/04/2024

Read: Galatians 5:5 - For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.

Reflect: We’ve spoken at length about the foundation of our hope in the Lord. But what is it that we are hoping for? Through the Holy Spirit, we are eagerly waiting and hoping for the righteousness that can only come through Jesus. And because of Jesus, we are already righteous in the eyes of the Lord. Which means here, Paul is speaking of the full culmination of our practical righteousness. Not only a righteous standing, but a righteous being. The day is coming when all our deeds and thoughts will be righteous at every moment because the Holy Spirit has finished His work of sanctification and we are free from the body of death. And this hope comes not by our own works or character, but by faith in the person of Jesus Christ. What a glorious hope for righteousness!

Respond: As you spend time with the Lord, ask that His Holy Spirit continues the work of righteousness in you. Meditate on what it looks like to “eagerly wait” for the hope of righteousness. Confess your struggles and shortcomings, acknowledge “there are none righteous” apart from His grace, and thank Him for the gift of righteousness through Jesus.