“He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” — 2 Corinthians 5:21 (CSB)
When the
Wrapping Paper Falls Away
Christmas is a season of giving. Trees are trimmed,
stockings are stuffed, and stores bustle with the urgency of “finding the
perfect gift.” Yet beyond the lights and the ribbons lies the most undeserved
and unfathomable gift of all—God’s righteousness, wrapped not in paper but in
flesh.
In the center of this holy season, 2 Corinthians 5:21
resounds with deeper meaning than ever. It tells the story that every Christmas
carol hints at, every nativity scene represents, and every believer holds dear:
the story of Jesus becoming what we were so that we might become what we never
could be without Him.
Let us unwrap this verse together and discover the miracle
within.
The
Greatest Exchange in History
He Became
What He Was Not
“He made the one who did not know sin…”
This is where the wonder begins. Jesus Christ, sinless and
holy, perfect in every way, did not just touch our world—He entered into it.
Not as a king on a throne, but as a baby in a manger. The One who flung the
stars into space chose the vulnerability of human birth.
He knew no sin, not in thought, not in word, not in
action. He was not merely innocent; He was holiness personified. Yet Scripture
says He “became sin.”
He Took
on What Was Not His
“…to be sin for us…”
Here lies the heart of the gospel and the soul of Christmas.
Jesus was not a sinner, but He was treated as one. The innocent One bore the
penalty of the guilty. The manger led to the cross. The wood that cradled His
infant body foreshadowed the wood that would carry His crucified frame.
At Christmas, we celebrate not just that Jesus came,
but why He came. He came to take the weight of our brokenness, our rebellion,
our shame—and to do so in love.
The
Righteousness We Could Never Earn
That We
Might Become
“…so that in him we might become…”
This part of the verse brings it home. The sacrifice was not
random or abstract—it was deeply personal. Jesus did not come for
general humanity; He came for you, for me. Not just to forgive sin but to transform
sinners.
In Him—not through effort, not through religious
performance, not through good deeds—we become. This is not about
achieving a moral checklist. It is about receiving a spiritual identity.
The
Righteousness of God
“…the righteousness of God.”
The baby born in Bethlehem brought more than peace on earth—He
brought righteousness to broken people. He made a way for humanity to stand
before a holy God, not covered in shame, but clothed in Christ.
We do not just receive a new heart—we receive a new
position, a new standing. We are declared righteous. Not almost holy. Not
halfway acceptable. Fully, completely, eternally righteous.
And that is the scandalous beauty of Christmas grace.
What This
Means for Us at Christmastime
1. We Are
No Longer Defined by Our Past
The world often reminds us of what we lack, what we lost, or
what we failed to become. But Christmas is the reminder that in Christ, we
are no longer defined by what we did—we are defined by what Jesus did.
So many people dread the holidays because of regret, pain,
or grief. But 2 Corinthians 5:21 whispers another truth: your past is
not the final word—Jesus is.
Let this Christmas be the season where you stop rehearsing
your failures and start remembering His righteousness.
2. We Are
Free to Come Home
Jesus entered a world that had no room for Him. Yet He made
room for us in His righteousness.
This truth beckons us home—not just to a physical place of
comfort, but to the arms of our Savior. You do not have to earn your
place at the table. The invitation was sealed with His blood and wrapped in His
grace.
So come. Come weary, come wondering, come broken, come
searching. This righteousness is not for the perfect. It is for the
repentant.
3. We
Have Something Worth Celebrating
Christmas becomes even more glorious when we realize it is
not just about what happened in the past, but what still holds power in the
present.
The righteousness we have been given is not seasonal. It is
not on loan. It is ours in Christ—eternally.
This is why we sing. This is why we worship. This is why we
rejoice—not just for the birth of a baby, but for the birth of a new
identity in us because of that baby.
The
Manger and the Mission
A Mission
of Reconciliation
If you go back just one verse, 2 Corinthians 5:20 tells us:
“We are ambassadors for Christ... Be reconciled to God.”
Christmas does not end with comfort. It begins with a
calling. Because we have been made righteous, we are now representatives of
the Righteous One.
The shepherds told the good news. The wise men bowed in
worship. And now, we—those made right with God—carry the message of
reconciliation to others.
This means Christmas is not just a time to receive, but a
time to share. The joy you feel is not meant to stay in your living room.
It is meant to spill into your workplace, your neighborhood, your community.
You are not just celebrating Christ. You are carrying Him.
A Life
Marked by Love
To be the righteousness of God is to walk in a different
kind of love. Not a conditional, commercial love—but a self-giving,
sacrificial love. The kind of love that mirrors the heart of Christ.
This Christmas, who can you love with that kind of love?
Who needs to hear the good news?
Who needs to know they are not too far gone, not too messed up, not too late?
Be the ambassador of grace. Be the living witness of
righteousness. Let the gift you give be Jesus through you.
This
Christmas, Remember Who You Are
You are not forgotten.
You are not forsaken.
You are not who you used to be.
Because of Jesus, you are redeemed. Reconciled.
Righteous.
And all of this was made possible not by your goodness, but
by His grace. Not through your performance, but through His
perfection. Not by earning, but by receiving.
When you look at the lights, remember the Light of the world.
When you open gifts, remember the Gift who opened heaven.
When you sing carols, remember the cry from the manger that echoed into
eternity.
Let every moment of Christmas point you back to the miracle
of 2 Corinthians 5:21.
Final
Reflection: The Cradle and the Cross
As we gather around Christmas trees and nativity sets, let
us never forget that the story does not end in Bethlehem. It stretches to
Calvary and into our hearts. The One who knew no sin came near—not just to
dwell among us but to transform us from within.
This is the glory of Christmas: the holy became human,
the sinless became sin, the rejected became Redeemer, and the righteous One
made us righteous.
You are no longer just someone in need of grace.
You are the proof of grace.
And that, beloved, is worth celebrating—this season and
always.
A Prayer
for Christmas
Father,
Thank You for the gift of Jesus. Thank You that He who knew no sin became sin
for me, so that I might become Your righteousness. Let that truth soak deep
into my soul this Christmas. In all the noise and celebration, help me remember
the sacred exchange that changed everything. I receive Your love, Your
forgiveness, and the new identity You offer. Make me an ambassador of this good
news. Let my life be a reflection of Your glory—this Christmas and beyond.
In Jesus' Name, Amen.
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