Become

“For our sake God made the one who knew no sin to be sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”  —- 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NRSVUE)

I am sure this is something you have noticed on your own. We don’t have to look far back in our lives to appreciate that we are not the same people we once were. Even in the span of a few years — sometimes even a few months — our attitudes shift. Ideas we once held tightly loosen their grip. Other convictions deepen and take root. We grow, we stretch, we soften, we learn. Whether we recognize it in the moment or only in hindsight, we are always in motion. We are, in a very real sense, becoming.

Paul’s words in today’s scripture speak directly into that reality. When he says that we “might become the righteousness of God,” he isn’t describing a static label or a spiritual status we simply receive and then carry around. He’s describing a transformation that begins with Christ’s self‑giving love and continues through the Spirit’s ongoing work in us. In Christ, something new is already true of us — we are reconciled, restored, brought into right relationship with God. But that new beginning also sets us on a path. We are being awakened and shaped into people who reflect God’s righteousness in the world.

This becoming is not about striving or proving ourselves. It is God’s grace at work — grace that pardons, and grace that transforms. Grace meets us where we are and gently draws us forward. Grace helps us release what no longer serves life and embrace what leads us deeper into love. Grace forms us, slowly and steadily, into the likeness of Christ — a likeness marked not only by love and righteousness, but by the deep and steady joy God desires for us. In this becoming, we are drawn into the fullness of joy that grows as we grow in Christ.

Today, as we recall the ways we have changed and the ways we are still being changed, may we trust that God is in that movement. Christ has begun a work in us, and the Spirit continues it. We are becoming — what John Wesley would call “moving on to perfection” — not by our own effort alone, but by the faithful love of the One who has already claimed us. And as we journey, we discover that joy is not an accessory to the Christian life, but one of its fruits — a sign that God’s transforming grace is alive in us.

Holy God, You who began a good work in us, continue to shape our hearts and lives. Help us to trust the grace that is already at work, drawing us into Your righteousness. Form us into people who reflect Your love, Your justice, and the deep joy of Your presence in all we do. Make us open to the becoming You desire for us, and guide our steps as we grow in Christ. Amen.

Grace & Peace,

Pastor Tim