You have a date with God.

It doesn’t matter who you are. It doesn’t matter if you are rich or poor, famous or living in obscurity. It does not matter whether you want to meet your Maker or not. You have an appointment set for you by the Almighty, and that appointment must be kept.

How will you stand before God on that great day when heaven and earth will be destroyed, when the elements will melt with intense heat, and when the living and the dead are summoned to appear before the judgment seat of Christ? How do you presume to enter the presence of the all-seeing God, who knows the darkest secrets of your heart? On that day when billions will be cast into the lake of fire to be tormented forever, how do you hope to gain entrance into eternal bliss?

You will appear before God in one of two ways. You will stand before him clothed in rags, tattered and filthy—rags that reek with the stench of guilt and are inadequate to cover the shame of your nakedness. Or you will stand before him clothed in beautiful garments of brilliant white, fragrant and lovely—a beautiful robe of righteousness that covers all guilt and hides all shame.

A verdict that declares us “not guilty”

“Justification” is the term Scripture uses to describe God’s action of declaring sinners righteous in his sight. Justification is God’s verdict that declares a sinner “not guilty” of his sin. By this verdict, God has declared you to be sin-free, beautiful, and righteous in his sight.

Justification is necessary because in your natural state you stand opposed to God, hostile to God, separated from God, and burdened with the guilt of your sin. For you to be acceptable in the eyes of God you must be guilt-free and righteous. Anything less renders you incapable of standing before a just and holy God, who demands perfection. Every sin must be removed, and all guilt must be absolved. In place of guilt there must be innocence. In place of sin there must be righteousness. Jesus said, “Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20). “Without holiness no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).

A verdict that changes our relationship with God