WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR US TO BE PERFECT?

BIBLE READING: Matthew 5:43-48
KEY BIBLE VERSE: You are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect. (Matthew 5:48)

PERFECTION IS A GOAL TOWARD WHICH WE MOVE

How can we be perfect?

(1) In character. In this life we cannot be flawless, but we can aspire to be as much like Christ as possible.

(2) In holiness. Like the Pharisees, we are to separate ourself from the world’s sinful values. But unlike the Pharisees, we are to be devoted to God’s desires rather than our own and carry his love and mercy into the world.

(3) In maturity. We can’t achieve Christlike character and holy living all at once, but we must grow toward maturity and wholeness. Just as we expect different behavior from a baby, a child, a teenager, and an adult, so God expects different behavior from us, depending on our stage of spiritual development.

(4) In love. We can seek to love others as completely as God loves us.

BIBLE READING: Colossians 1:24-29
KEY BIBLE VERSE: Everywhere we go, we tell everyone about Christ. We warn them and teach them with all the wisdom God has given us, for we want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ. (Colossians 1:28)

PERFECTION IS GOD’S WORK IN US

The word perfect means mature or complete, not flawless. Paul wanted to see each believer mature spiritually. Like Paul, we must work wholeheartedly, like an athlete, but we should not strive in our strength alone. We have the power of his Spirit working in us. We can learn and grow daily, motivated by love and not by fear or pride, knowing that God gives the energy to become mature.

BIBLE READING: Jude 1:1-25
KEY BIBLE VERSE: Now, all glory to God, who is able to keep you from stumbling, and who will bring you into his glorious presence innocent of sin and with great joy. All glory to him, who alone is God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Yes, glory, majesty, power, and authority belong to him, in the beginning, now, and forevermore. Amen. (Jude 1:24-25)

PERFECTION WILL BE COMPLETED IN US WHEN WE SEE CHRIST

When we finally see Christ face to face, we will be “innocent of sin and with great joy.” When Christ appears, and we are given our new body, we will be like Christ (1 John 3:2). Coming into Christ’s presence will be more wonderful than we could ever imagine!

HOW IS GOD PERFECT?

• Deuteronomy 32:4 . . . He is the Rock; his work is perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is!
• Ecclesiastes 3:14 . . . I know that whatever God does is final. Nothing can be added to it or taken from it. God’s purpose in this is that people should fear him.
• Matthew 5:48 . . . You are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.
• Romans 11:33-36 . . . Oh, what a wonderful God we have! How great are his riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his methods! For who can know what the Lord is thinking? Who knows enough to be his counselor? And who could ever give him so much that he would have to pay it back?  For everything comes from him; everything exists by his power and is intended for his glory. To him be glory evermore. Amen.

GOD IS PERFECT IN HIS CHARACTER AND HIS NATURE

• 2 Samuel 22:31 . . . “As for God, his way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.”
• Psalm 18:30 . . . As for God, his way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.
• Romans 12:2 . . . Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.
• James 1:17 . . . Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God above, who created all heaven’s lights. Unlike them, he never changes or casts shifting shadows.

GOD IS PERFECT IN HIS WAY AND HIS PROVIDENCE

• Habakkuk 1:13 . . . You are perfectly just in this. But will you, who cannot allow sin in any form, stand idly by while they swallow us up? Should you be silent while the wicked destroy people who are more righteous than they?
• 2 Samuel 22:26-27 . . . “To the faithful you show yourself faithful; to those with integrity you show integrity. To the pure you show yourself pure, but to the wicked you show yourself hostile.”
• Job 4:17 . . . Can a mortal be just and upright before God? Can a person be pure before the Creator?
• 1 John 3:3 . . . All who believe this will keep themselves pure, just as Christ is pure.

GOD IS PERFECT IN HIS MORALITY

• Job 37:16 . . . Do you understand how he balances the clouds with wonderful perfection and skill?
• Psalm 139:4 . . . You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord.
• Isaiah 40:13-14 . . . Who is able to advise the Spirit of the Lord? Who knows enough to be his teacher or counselor? Has the Lord ever needed anyone’s advice? Does he need instruction about what is good or what is best?
• Hebrews 4:13 . . . Nothing in all creation can hide from him. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes. This is the God to whom we must explain all that we have done.

GOD IS PERFECT IN HIS KNOWLEDGE

• 2 Timothy 3:16-17 . . . All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right. It is God’s way of preparing us in every way, fully equipped for every good thing God wants us to do.
• James 1:25 . . . If you keep looking steadily into God’s perfect law-the law that sets you free-and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.
• Psalm 19:7 . . . The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
• Psalm 12:6 . . . The Lord’s promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over.
• Proverbs 8:8-9 . . . My advice is wholesome and good. There is nothing crooked or twisted in it. My words are plain to anyone with understanding, clear to those who want to learn.
• Proverbs 30:5 . . . Every word of God proves true. He defends all who come to him for protection.

GOD IS PERFECT IN HIS WORD

• Hebrews 4:15 . . . This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same temptations we do, yet he did not sin.
• Hebrews 7:26 . . . He is the kind of high priest we need because he is holy and blameless, unstained by sin. He has now been set apart from sinners, and he has been given the highest place of honor in heaven.
• 1 Peter 1:18-19 . . . You know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver.  He paid for you with the precious lifeblood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.
• 1 Peter 2:22 . . . He never sinned, and he never deceived anyone.
• Hebrews 2:10 . . . It was only right that God-who made everything and for whom everything was made-should bring his many children into glory. Through the suffering of Jesus, God made him a perfect leader, one fit to bring them into their salvation.
• Hebrews 5:9 . . . In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him.  God’s complete excellence is revealed in human form in his son, Jesus, who is perfect and sinless.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE AREAS IN WHICH WE ARE TO STRIVE TO BE PERFECT?

• James 1:27 . . . Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles, and refuse to let the world corrupt us.
• 2 Peter 3:14 . . . While you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to live a pure and blameless life. And be at peace with God.
• 2 Corinthians 7:1 . . . Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete purity because we fear God.
• 2 Corinthians 2:15 . . . Our lives are a fragrance presented by Christ to God. But this fragrance is perceived differently by those being saved and by those perishing.  We should strive to be perfect in our holiness.
• Genesis 6:9 . . . This is the history of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless man living on earth at the time. He consistently followed God’s will and enjoyed a close relationship with him.
• 1 John 2:5 . . . Those who obey God’s word really do love him. That is the way to know whether or not we live in him.
• 1 Timothy 6:13-14 . . . I command . . . that you obey his commands with all purity. Then no one can find fault with you from now until our Lord Jesus Christ returns.
• Genesis 17:1 . . . When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; serve me faithfully and live a blameless life.”  We should strive to be perfect in our obedience.
• Matthew 5:48 . . . You are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.
• Colossians 3:14 . . . The most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony.
• 1 John 4:12, 18 . . . No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love has been brought to full expression through us . . . Such love has no fear because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of judgment, and this shows that his love has not been perfected in us.  We should strive to be perfect in our love.
• Isaiah 26:3 . . . You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, whose thoughts are fixed on you!
• Psalm 119:165 . . . Those who love your law have great peace and do not stumble.
• Philippians 4:4-7 . . . Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again-rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.  Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
  We should strive to be perfect in the way we pursue peace.

HOW DO WE MEET GOD’S EXPECTATIONS FOR US?

• Colossians 1:22 . . . Now he has brought you back as his friends. He has done this through his death on the cross in his own human body. As a result, he has brought you into the very presence of God, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.
• Hebrews 10:14 . . . By that one offering he perfected forever all those whom he is making holy.  We meet God’s expectations by accepting Christ as our Lord and Savior.
• Galatians 3:3 . . . Have you lost your senses? After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? We meet God’s expectations by daily living in the Spirit.
• 2 Timothy 3:16, 17 . . . All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right. It is God’s way of preparing us in every way, fully equipped for every good thing God wants us to do.  We meet God’s expectations by knowing him and his ways through his Word.
• Hebrews 6:1 . . . Let us stop going over the basics of Christianity again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start all over again with the importance of turning away from evil deeds and placing our faith in God.
• Ephesians 4:11-12 . . . He is the one who gave these gifts to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.  We meet God’s expectations by growing and ministering to others.

PROMISE FROM GOD:

• James 1:17 . . . Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God above, who created all heaven’s lights. Unlike them, he never changes or casts shifting shadows.

DOES GOD REALLY EXPECT US TO BE PERFECT?

• Job 1:1 . . . There was a man named Job who lived in the land of Uz. He was blameless, a man of complete integrity. He feared God and stayed away from evil.
• 2 Corinthians 7:1 . . . We have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete purity because we fear God.  As we come to know and respect who God is, we are encouraged to aim for the purity of his character in our own daily choices. To be like God, who is perfect, is the goal. But as humans, we must recognize that at our best we will fall far short of perfection. God knows that.
• Philippians 3:12 . . . I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection! But I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved me for and wants me to be.
• Ephesians 4:13 . . . Until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full stature of Christ.  Our perfection is not a flawless imitation of God, but rather a discernible process of godly maturation. We look at our perfection as the “half full glass” rather than the “half empty glass.” Godliness is becoming more like him, even while falling far short of him. Becoming more like him is the “half full glass.” Falling far short, as humans, is the “half empty glass.” We are humans, not God, so we cannot be perfect as he is perfect. Perfection is a process, so if we do not strive for it, our lives will become more and more empty.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE DANGERS OF PERFECTIONISM?

• Ecclesiastes 7:20 . . . There is not a single person in all the earth who is always good and never sins.
• Romans 3:23 . . . All have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard.  Perfectionism, defined as the absence of the presence of sin, is impossible for us to attain in our earthly human lives. Perfectionism strives for 100%, and anything less is failure. Realism starts with 0% and any measure of godliness is to the good. Perfectionism sets hopeless goals and therefore breeds hopelessness as we fail to reach them.
• Ezekiel 28:12 . . . “Son of man, weep for the king of Tyre. Give him this message from the Sovereign Lord: You were the perfection of wisdom and beauty.”  “Perfection” is not a protection from sin. All have sinned, even the most godly people on earth, for they are still sinful people. But some are better role models of godliness than others.
• Psalm 119:96 . . . Even perfection has its limits, but your commands have no limit.  Perfection has its limits. The most perfect person on earth is still human, not perfect like God.
• Philippians 3:6 . . . Zealous? Yes, in fact, I harshly persecuted the church. And I obeyed the Jewish law so carefully that I was never accused of any fault.  Perfectionism can be misdirected. Even a desire to be godly has set some Christians against other Christians, perhaps even more godly than they! Perfectionism can cause us to strive for religious goals at the expense of godly goals, as with Paul before he became a Christian.
• Ezekiel 16:14 . . . Your fame soon spread throughout the world on account of your beauty, because the splendor I bestowed on you perfected your beauty, says the Sovereign Lord.  False perfection can lead to misplaced trust and idolatry. A sense of perfection can delude us to think we are better than we are. We should take a better look at us through God’s eyes.
• Ecclesiastes 11:4 . . . If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done.  Waiting for perfection can lead to procrastination. We will never be truly perfect, so we will always be waiting.

HOW SHOULD WE RESPOND TO OUR OWN IMPERFECTIONS?

• 2 Corinthians 7:1 . . . Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete purity because we fear God.
• 1 John 1:8-10 . . . If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.
• Romans 6:12-14 . . . Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to its lustful desires. Do not let any part of your body become a tool of wickedness, to be used for sinning. Instead, give yourselves completely to God since you have been given new life. And use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you are no longer subject to the law, which enslaves you to sin. Instead, you are free by God’s grace.  Our goal should be to turn from evil and follow the Lord God wholeheartedly in every aspect of our lives. Because we are in a growth process, we will not make consistently perfect choices. When we do sin, we are to confess our sin and accept his forgiveness. While sin will inevitably be present in our earthly human existence, we are not to be dominated by sin. God’s desire is for us to mature in the freedom of his grace.

HOW SHOULD WE RESPOND TO OTHERS’ IMPERFECTIONS?

• Matthew 7:1-5 . . . Stop judging others, and you will not be judged. For others will treat you as you treat them. Whatever measure you use in judging others, it will be used to measure how you are judged. And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying, ‘Friend, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log from your own eye; then perhaps you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.
• 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 . . . Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged.
• Proverbs 10:12 . . . Hatred stirs up quarrels, but love covers all offenses.
• Colossians 3:13-15 . . . You must make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are all called to live in peace. And always be thankful.
• 1 Peter 3:8 . . . Finally, all of you should be of one mind, full of sympathy toward each other, loving one another with tender hearts and humble minds.
• Philippians 2:2-3 . . . Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one heart and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t live to make a good impression on others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourself.  We should not respond with critical judgment, but with love, forgiveness and humility.

PROMISE FROM GOD:

• Romans 3:23-24 . . . All have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet now God in his gracious kindness declares us not guilty. He has done this through Christ Jesus, who has freed us by taking away our sins.

Please stay tuned for more.