Every true believer in Christ is accounted righteous before God. Our sins were imputed or accounted to Christ as our sacrifice for sin at the cross. We receive his righteousness by faith alone. There is only one way we can be righteous. It's by faith in Christ alone.
Righteousness accounted to every believer. "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21). Martin Luther called it the great exchange. Christ takes away every believer's sins and gives us his righteousness.
Righteousness is God's gift to us. Upon trusting in Christ, every believer receives righteousness given to us by our Savior and Lord. It is known as imputed righteousness. Through faith in Christ, believers are accounted righteous before God. It is never self-righteousness, but the righteousness of God in Christ.
God's righteousness is received by faith in Christ. The Christian life can never be based upon our self-righteousness, which is as filthy rags before God (Isaiah 64:6). To the contrary, we give up our self-righteousness, and become righteous before God in Christ alone. Only Jesus Christ can give us perfect righteousness before God. Simply stated, we are righteous in Christ alone.
