I have come to appreciate quieter mornings.
There is so much competing for our attention the minute we wake up. I have always found that when I begin my day by connecting with the Lord first, everything else falls into its proper place. And so before the messages, notifications, and to-do lists start demanding my attention, I carve out some time to spend with His Word.
One of the things I have enjoyed incorporating into my morning quiet time routine is listening to a short podcast. I do this as I get ready for the day ahead. Lately, I've been listening to the podcast Things Unseen by Sinclair Ferguson.
If you're unfamiliar with him, Sinclair Ferguson is a Scottish pastor, theologian, and author known for his remarkable ability to explain profound biblical truths with both clarity and warmth. What I appreciate most about Things Unseen is that Ferguson doesn't simply teach doctrine; he helps listeners see how doctrine shapes everyday Christian living. The episodes are short, usually just a few minutes long, but packed with wisdom that lingers long after the podcast ends.
Recently, I listened to an episode titled "God Justifies the Ungodly," and it stayed with me long after I finished listening. Justification is one of those theological words that many Christians have heard but may struggle to explain. Ferguson described it simply as being "counted righteous in God's sight."
He made two important points. The first was that God justifies the ungodly. That statement can sound almost shocking. We naturally assume that God accepts people because they have become good enough, spiritual enough, or godly enough. Ferguson pointed out that as long as we think of ourselves as partly godly or just as godly as the next person, we will never truly understand the gospel. It is easy for us to slip into thinking that God accepts us because we are becoming more godly. We know we are saved by grace, yet we often find ourselves measuring our standing before God by our spiritual growth, our obedience, or how well we are doing compared to others.
But Ferguson reminded listeners that our justification is not based on our sanctification. In other words, God does not declare us righteous because we have become the kind of people who are worthy of justification. Rather, He justifies those who are ungodly and who come to Him in faith, trusting entirely in Christ's righteousness and not their own. Our joy and assurance as Christians rest not in how well we are doing, but in what Christ has already done for us.
We see this truth in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Luke 8:9-14). The Pharisee stood before God confident in his own righteousness. The tax collector cried out for mercy, knowing the sinful state of his heart. And that day, we know the tax collector went home justified.
As I listened, I realised how easily pride can disguise itself in respectable religious clothing. We may not be Pharisees, but we still find ourselves comparing our lives to others and feeling secretly reassured that we seem to be better than someone else. The gospel dismantles that way of thinking. God's declaration that we are righteous is not dependent on our spiritual achievements, years of Christian service, or moral track record. It is based entirely on the righteousness of Jesus Christ credited to us through faith.
The second point he made was that justification takes place at the very beginning of the Christian life. The moment a person trusts in Christ, God clothes them with Christ's perfect righteousness. And that righteousness is perfect. It is complete, final, and absolutely irreversible. To illustrate this, he asked listeners to imagine two Christians. One is a seventy-five-year-old woman who came to the Lord at age 15, faithfully followed Christ for 60 years, served on the mission field for 40 of those, and is admired by everyone who knows her. The other is a fifteen-year-old girl who became a Christian only three weeks ago.
Humanly speaking, we might assume the older believer has a greater standing before God. After all, she has decades of spiritual growth and faithful service behind her. Yet Ferguson reminded listeners that the older woman is no more justified than the young believer, and the young believer is no less justified than the older woman.
Why?
Because God accepts neither based on her own righteousness. Both stand before God clothed in the same perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ.
That illustration humbled me. So often, we measure spiritual maturity by comparison. We look at believers who seem wiser, more disciplined, more prayerful, or more fruitful than we are and wonder if God accepts them more than He accepts us. Or perhaps we think we are the "better" or "more spiritual" Christians, worthy of acceptance by God.
This podcast episode was a refreshing reminder that our standing before God does not fluctuate with our spiritual performance. While our sanctification—our growth in holiness—will vary throughout our lives, our justification remains constant because it rests entirely on Christ.
This truth is profoundly liberating. It doesn't make us careless about holiness, leading us to think that since God has already justified us, we can live as we please. Rather, it frees us to obey God, not to earn His acceptance but because, in Christ, He has already accepted us.
In a world that constantly evaluates us based on our achievements and performance, the doctrine of justification offers an altogether different message. It tells us that our standing before God is secure because it doesn't depend on us—on who we are or what we achieve. It depends entirely on Him.
What keeps me coming back to Things Unseen is that each episode consistently points me back to the heart of the gospel. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to fill the quiet moments of their day with something that points them to Christ. The episodes are brief yet rich in gospel truths that often stay with me throughout the day, giving me much to ponder and apply.
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