The question that has foxed the theologians for ages is the standard used by God to Judge Humanity. The matter can be made as complicated as one could imagine, but in essence, it is rather simple. When it comes down to this basic matter, God uses two standards: our response to Jesus’ offer of salvation, and His Law. Jesus was the embodiment of the Law of God. He lived out the goodness of the Law in perfect love and harmony. 

It is the rejection of the word of Jesus that condemns us in God’s judgment. Psalms 9:8 “And he shall judge the world in righteousness; he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness.” So, God will use His law to “judge the world in righteousness” 

Let us understand the import of Genesis 15:2-6: “And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?  3 And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed:  and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.   4 And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.   5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them:  and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.   6 And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.”  In the book of Genesis, it says that Abraham believed in the Lord, and God “accounted it to him for righteousness” Righteousness must include a belief in the Lord as the King of our life.

In Deuteronomy 6:25, Moses declares, “Then it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to observe all these commandments before the Lord our God, as He has commanded us” David also shares a link between righteousness and God’s law. Psalm 119:142 “Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth.” Psalm 119:172. “All Your commandments are righteousness” In Proverbs, King Solomon shares, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people” (Proverbs 14:34). Sin is the opposite of righteousness. It’s the breaking of God’s law. Since it is virtually impossible to keep the law, we are all therefore doomed to die. Jesus died on our behalf and paid the penalty. If we believe in Jesus and confess that He is Lord, then His righteousness will be imputed to us, and we shall receive the saving grace.

Instead of choosing God and His way, sometimes we choose what we think might gratify us more. Righteousness is what God wants to see in the lives of His children. God’s plan is for us to claim His grace. When we choose to have faith in our Lord, saviour, and walk in His ways, we are recipients of what is known as imputed righteousness, which in turn makes us eligible for His saving grace. To turn away from sins and choose His path of righteousness is what we are called to do. All this forms the basis of God’s judgment- to be eternally saved or eternally doomed.