"Imputed"

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

You may have heard the term imputed righteousness. These words are frequently described rather than used in many churches, but they are so very important to us as Christians.  I think in today’s verse, Paul described imputed righteousness perfectly. Christ was made to be sin who knew no sin, and while remaining sinless, he bore our sins, giving us as a gift His righteousness in its place.

Imputed is defined as a transitive verb: “to lay the responsibility or blame for (something) often falsely or unjustly.” 1 From an accounting origin, it means in Latin, “to apply to one’s account.” Expenses are debited, and income is credited.

In reality, we benefit from a double imputation, exactly as Paul described. First, because we are unable to make ourselves righteous before God, and because paying for our own sins means eternal death, Christ, who was sinless, carried our sins. Our sins were imputed to Him. The responsibility or blame for our sins is put upon Christ.

Secondly, so we could be made righteous and justified before God, “justified” meaning made right, cleansed of sin, the righteousness of Christ was gifted to us. The righteousness of Christ was “applied to our account” before God, allowing us to be reconciled to Him in a living relationship. This is double imputation.

While this seems simple, it is the heart of the gospel. In this double imputation dwells many important Christian doctrines. Only a human could pay for human sin. This double imputation tells us of the need for Christ’s incarnation. As 100% human and 100% God, Jesus was able to bear our sins in His human form. The need for Christ to come on this rescue mission is because we are totally depraved and cannot save ourselves. This is why the righteousness of Christ is given to us as a gift, because we, on our own, can never be righteous before God. This is contrary to what works-righteousness religions teach, giving false hope to their believers. This double imputation also brings to light the doctrine of penal substitutionary atonement. Without Christ bearing our sins, which were not His own, atonement for our sins would not be possible.

We need only look back at the sacrificial system in the Old Testament to see that people could only cover their sins through blood sacrifice. The sins of the Old Testament Jews were never truly atoned for by the sacrifices. Thankfully, God had a plan in sending His only begotten Son into creation to bear the sins of humanity. Those of us who have placed our faith in Christ received His imputed righteousness and have found everlasting life in the Blood of the Lamb of God.

Where are you with Jesus? Is He your treasure, and have you received His gift of righteousness and redemption? Seek everlasting life in Christ Jesus.

Grace and Peace!

1 https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/impute. Accessed 03/17/2026