Word of Truth

How to Accept Your "Robe of Righteousness"

Written By

Pst Dr Nellie Shani | Founder, CEO

Published On

February 20, 2026

"I spent years trying to be a "good girl" for God. Here is why I stopped—and how understanding God's mercy changed my Christian walk forever."

IT is a difficult concept to wrap our minds around: We are not holy because of the righteous things we do.

For many of us, this contradicts everything we were taught as children. I grew up believing I was a "bad girl" when I did bad things and a "good girl" when I did good things. My acceptance was pegged entirely on my behavior. I spent my childhood performing for the people who mattered most, trying to earn a seat at the table of their approval.

The result? A life of constant frustration. No human has the capacity to live perfectly all the time. We are bound to fail, and when I carried this "performance mindset" into my Christian walk, I imagined God looking down in frustration, wondering why I couldn't just "get it right."

The Divine Exchange

The breakthrough comes when we realize that God doesn't see us through the lens of our mistakes. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, a divine exchange took place.

"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

It feels almost "scary" to imagine ourselves as righteous in God’s sight. We know our flaws too well. Yet, Romans 5:7-9 reminds us that God demonstrated His love while we were still sinners. He didn't wait for us to clean ourselves up; He stepped in while we were lost.

Can We Be Sinners and Righteous at the Same Time?

I recently asked a group of believers, "Who among you is holy?" There was hesitation. One woman refused to raise her hand, saying, "Because I am sinful." When I asked, "Who among us is NOT sinful?"—not a single hand went up.

This creates a holy paradox. The Bible is clear in 1 John 1:8-10: if we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves. So, how can we be dealing with sin and be righteous simultaneously?

Righteousness is a Position, Not an Act

We must understand that for the believer, righteousness is a position. It is the "robe" that Jesus clothes us with the moment we accept Him as Lord.

The Robe: Our standing before God. It is a gift of grace ($Titus 3:5$).
The Soil: Sin is what makes our robes dirty.
The Cleansing: We don't get a "new" robe every time we stumble; instead, we wash our robes through confession and repentance.

As Revelation 22:14 says, "Blessed are those who wash their robes." Our righteousness was bought at a high price. It is a costly garment, and while we cannot "earn" it, we are called to protect it.

A Call to Grace

If you are tired of the "performance treadmill," remember that the Lord invites you to settle the matter today. No matter how deep the stain, His grace is deeper.

"Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." — Isaiah 1:18

Prayer Points for Today

Repent of Self-Reliance: Ask the Lord to forgive you for trying to earn His acceptance through your own deeds. Acknowledge that you are accepted because of Jesus.
Seek Empowerment: Ask the Holy Spirit to help you walk in a way that keeps your robe clean and honors the sacrifice of Christ.
Give Thanks: Spend a moment thanking God for the mercy and grace that brought you salvation when you couldn't save yourself.

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Common Questions

Being born again secures your salvation—your sins are forgiven, and you belong to Christ. You don’t need deliverance to be saved.

However, even as a believer, you can still struggle with patterns, strongholds, or spiritual oppression from the past. Deliverance isn’t about salvation; it’s about applying Jesus’ freedom to those areas. If you experience ongoing struggles, prayer, renunciation, and pastoral support can help you walk fully in the liberty Christ has already won for you.
Breaking a generational curse, in a religious sense, is seen as a spiritual journey of repentance, faith, and deliberate action. It begins with acknowledging sin—both one’s own and, in some beliefs, the lingering effects of ancestors’ wrongdoing—and turning away from it through heartfelt repentance and prayer. This recognition is often accompanied by a conscious renunciation of the curse, verbally declaring that one no longer accepts the negative patterns or misfortunes that may have been passed down through the family line.

Faith plays a central role in this process. Believers rely on the power of God to intervene, heal, and restore, trusting that divine authority can break spiritual strongholds that have persisted for generations. Prayer, sometimes accompanied by fasting, Scripture reading, or intercession from spiritual leaders, is used to call on God’s guidance and protection.
When we receive salvation, our spirit is redeemed immediately. Our sins are forgiven, we are justified, and the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us (Ephesians 1:7; Romans 5:1; Ephesians 1:13–14). Salvation restores our relationship with God and secures eternal life.

However, the curses or effects of sin in the world—sickness, generational patterns, fear, poverty, or emotional wounds—are not always broken automatically. The reason is that while our spirit is saved, our body, mind, and circumstances still exist in a fallen world under the consequences of sin (Romans 8:20–22).
If you struggle with something but generally overcome it, it is not necessarily a spirit. The Bible shows that even faithful believers wrestle with sin and weakness—Paul himself admitted in Romans 7:15–20 that he struggled to do what was right even as he desired to obey God. A true “spirit” or demonic stronghold is usually characterized by persistent, overpowering opposition that cannot be resisted through prayer, Scripture, and obedience.

If you are able to resist, repent, and grow despite the struggle, it is more likely an area God is using to refine your character and strengthen your faith. Struggles can reveal patterns in our lives that need God’s grace, teaching us dependence on Him, humility, and perseverance. Victory is not about perfection; it is about continuing to walk in obedience, relying on God’s Word, and trusting His Spirit to lead you forward.
Yes, according to Scripture, the human spirit can be influenced, but it’s important to be precise about what that means. The Bible teaches that we are spirit, soul, and body (1 Thessalonians 5:23). The “spirit man” is the part of us that connects with God, discerns spiritual truths, and communes with Him (John 4:24; Romans 8:16).

A demonic spirit cannot possess the spirit of a born-again believer because the Holy Spirit indwells them (1 Corinthians 6:19; 1 John 4:4). The Spirit of God protects and fills the spirit man, so it cannot be taken over. However, the spirit man can be influenced or oppressed by external spiritual forces if there is neglect, unrepented sin, or agreement with lies, which can affect our thoughts, emotions, and will.

Satan and his spirits can tempt, deceive, and oppress, but they cannot inhabit the spirit of someone truly born again. That’s why Scripture emphasizes guarding your heart and mind, staying in God’s Word, and walking in obedience—this keeps your spirit man aligned with God and resistant to attack (Ephesians 6:10–18; James 4:7).
consequences of sin, wrongdoing, or negative behavior can extend beyond an individual and affect their descendants. In this context, a generational curse is not merely about inherited traits or family patterns in a psychological sense, but rather a spiritual or moral consequence passed down through family lines.

For example, the Bible mentions in several passages, such as Exodus 20:5 and Numbers 14:18, that the sins of the parents can affect their children “to the third and fourth generation.” This is often interpreted to mean that unrepented sin or disobedience to God can create spiritual or circumstantial burdens like poverty, addiction, illness, or relational strife that may continue to manifest in subsequent generations.

Religious teachings often emphasize that generational curses are not inevitable. Through repentance, prayer, faith, and obedience to God, it is believed that individuals can break these curses and restore spiritual blessings to themselves and their descendants. In Christian practice, this might involve confession, seeking deliverance through prayer, or living a life aligned with God’s commandments to end the cycle of negative spiritual influence.
Feeling anger is not automatically a “spirit.” Anger is a natural emotion that God Himself expresses in certain circumstances (Exodus 32:10; Psalm 7:11). What matters is how you handle it. If you feel angry but do not act in sin, controlling your words, thoughts, and actions, this is not a demonic spirit—it is a natural human response being managed in obedience to God.

A spirit of anger in Scripture refers to a persistent, controlling, or destructive force that dominates a person’s behavior (Ephesians 4:26–27 warns against letting anger give the devil a foothold). If your anger arises but you remain calm, forgive, and do not allow it to control you, it is simply an emotion, not a spirit.
When faced with temptation, there are times to run and times to resist, and Scripture gives clear guidance.

You run from sin when it is dangerous, seductive, or beyond your natural ability to resist. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:18, “Flee fornication.” You remove yourself from the source of temptation—whether it’s a place, a person, or an opportunity—because staying there puts your soul at risk. Running is not cowardice; it is obedience and wisdom.

You resist when you are confronted with pressure or attack that you can face through God’s power. James 4:7 says, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Resisting means standing firm in faith, speaking Scripture, and relying on the Holy Spirit. This is active confrontation, not passive endurance.

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