All of us will stand before God one day and give an account for our lives. We will either stand exposed in our own sin-stained righteousness or stand before God clothed in the perfect righteousness of Christ alone (Romans 10). Jesus said, "Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect." (Mat 5:48).
Does your righteousness measure up to the perfect standard of God's righteousness? His righteousness demands nothing less than perfection and anything less than perfect misses the mark by infinity.
“God is light and in Him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). God is Holy, and His eyes are too pure to look upon evil (Hab 1:13). The "slightest" sin against someone who is infinitely worthy of reverence and worship is not a "slight sin". It is an infinite offense.
Will the perfect judge let you off the hook because you're a "good person"? "There is none who does good, no, not one.” (Rom 3:12). God cannot lie, cheat or steal like we do. "The wicked are estranged from the womb; They go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies."(Psalm 58:3).
Have you kept His law perfectly in every thought, word and deed? “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.” (James 2:10).
"We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment" (Is 64:6). The unbelievers in Matthew 7:21-24 professed Him as Lord and appealed to their own good works before God's judgment seat and Christ declared, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
Man's sin-stained righteousness will never satisfy the wrath of God. Man is a law-breaker and the wrath of God abides on him. "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness" (Rom 1:18).
We must be clothed in the same righteousness and perfection that God Himself has, otherwise He will cast us into hell, which is a place of eternal conscious torment (Mark 9:48). Someone else who is perfect has to stand in our place. That perfect someone must be Jesus Christ.
The love of God was revealed when He sent His only Son into the world, who is perfect. (1 John 4:9). Christ took on flesh and became man (John 1:14).
He was made under the law to redeem those under the law (Gal. 4:4-5). He obeyed the law perfectly and completely in every thought, word, and deed (Heb. 7:26).
Jesus being fully God and fully man (Heb 2:5-18), exhausted His Father’s wrath and justice for the elect of God on the cross (Rom 3:25), and nothing can separate them from God’s love (Rom 8:31-39).
His substitutionary death satisfied the wrath of God to atone for His particular people (John 10:11). "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Cor. 5:21).
He was buried, and on the third day, was raised again gloriously and miraculously for the justification of sinners (Rom 4:25).
Christ's righteousness is the only righteousness acceptable by God (Rom 10:3-4). Believers now have a righteous standing before God because Christ, in the sinner's stead, bore all of their sins (past, present and future sins) in His body.
In this great exchange, His people are imputed with His perfect righteousness. The Father now declares the believer justified (Rom 5:9). He now sees the believer as He sees His Son. Through faith, the Father now accepts the redeemed sinner based on what Christ has done and on His account alone.
"and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith" (Phil 3:9).
Salvation is by God's unconditional grace alone, through the empty hands of faith alone, because of Christ's active and passive obedience alone (Eph 2:8-9). Man contributes absolutely nothing to the gospel. The will and works of man cannot merit salvation or earn God's favor (Rom. 9:16). Do you believe this? Jesus said to repent (turn away from sin) and believe in he gospel (Mark 1:15)