Proverbs 10:11

11 The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.

The word righteous is probably not one that many of us would wish to use if describing ourselves. But how do we become righteous? The simple answer is that nothing on earth, and nothing we can do in our own strength will ever make us righteous. That’s the bad news. The good news is that God provided a way to achieve righteousness. He gave Jesus, His Son, who was/is righteous, but was prepared to give His life as a substitute for ours, i.e. he took our punishment. Although God knew that we could never achieve the righteousness He desires in us, His love for humanity is so great that He made a way. But it came at a price.

How can we repay the debt that each of us owes to God? One answer is contained in this verse. If we accept the gift of God’s grace, then we must be changed. Our lives must increasingly reflect the life of Jesus. Our friends and family should be able to see Jesus in us, and we should be able to see them through His eyes. And when we speak our mouths should become like a well. Our words should come from deep within that well and bring life to others. Our words should mark us as different. It should be easy to tell us apart from those who choose not to accept the gift of grace that God gave in Jesus. What comes out of their mouths tells a different story. The challenge for those who have received the gift of grace is to be easily distinguishable from those who have not.

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV)

This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” (Romans 1:17 NLT)