The Glorious Comma—From Do to Done

To fully grasp the “good news” of the Gospel, we first have to see the bad news.
Romans 3:23 says “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

From the very beginning, humanity was created to live in a perfect relationship with God. Adam and Eve walked with Him in the garden, but when they disobeyed God and sinned, everything broke. In that moment, they didn’t just make a mistake, they spiritually died. And ever since, every person has shared that same separation. 

We have all missed the mark. In our House, we say it like this: “Sin doesn’t make you a bad person, it makes you a spiritually dead person.” And dead people can do nothing to climb their way back to life.

Religion offers us a "get back" plan. It tells us to "do."

Do more. Try harder. Be better. 

Think of religion like a Stair Master machine: you may conclude your workout with 45 flights of stairs climbed, but you never really left the ground. The same is true in your own efforts, you are no closer to the perfection of God than when you started. 

That’s why the gospel is good news. 
Look again at Paul’s words in Romans 3:21-24.

“But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."

“But now” changes everything. 

 This righteousness is given, not earned, through faith in Jesus. When you look at the context of Romans, “believe” denotes putting your trust for salvation and right standing with God in the finished work of Jesus. It’s trusting that Jesus’ life, death, burial, and resurrection was enough to bring you from death to life and into a new relationship with God. 

One of the remarkable things about the Scripture we just read is that Romans 3:23 doesn't end with a period. Look at the glorious comma found in verse 24:

“, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

We couldn’t reach up to God, so He came down to us. Jesus did what we couldn’t do: He lived the perfect life, died the death our sin deserved, and rose again to bring us from death to life.

Here’s the truth: salvation isn’t about doing enough to earn God’s favor; it’s about believing in what Jesus has already done. When we put our trust in Him, we are justified, not because of our performance but because of His perfection. 

Justification means more than forgiveness; it means being made new, having our standing before God completely changed. We aren’t just sinners saved by grace; we are new creations, alive in Christ, clothed in His righteousness.

A life following Jesus isn’t about climbing our way back to “goodness,” it’s about resting in the finished work of Christ. We don’t strive for righteousness; we live from it.

Through the blood of Jesus, the ministry of condemnation is over. Shame, guilt, and striving no longer define who we are. God didn’t just cover our sin—He changed us from the inside out. 

That’s the whole gospel: Jesus didn’t come to make bad people better, He came to make dead people alive. And for everyone who puts their trust in Him, that’s exactly what He’s done.