perfect?
26Apr08
What do these verses mean - is God literally asking us to live perfect lives?
2 Corinthians 13.11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
Genesis 17.1 The LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be perfect.
Matthew 5.48 Therefore be perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
is it a commandment or a promise?
well good question - all God’s commands are really promises. in terms of simple grammar, all 3 of these “be perfects” are in the imperative.
In my heart I’ve always believed the answer to this question to be yes, based simply on believing these verses. Now I’m being taken down a kind of rabit hole as I ponder this question, but i think its a good one.
Hebrews talks about Jesus as our high priest who made a perfect sacrifice. Then there’s this fascinating verse at 10:14 that says: For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy. That verse could probably be it’s own essay. Anyway,
Paul says that he hasn’t yet been made perfect, but he presses on to take hold of it.
And 2 Corinth 13:11 in some translations says “Aim for perfection”.
So it’s almost like God gives the command “Be Holy”, and then we say “Okay God, I place myself in Your process of holyfication”.
And then Hebrews says “We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.” Hebrews 12:2
Cool, thanks Paul!
So we take his advice, look at Jesus, and Jesus says:
If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
And then we go away sad?
I didn’t plan this out, i just started typing, but I’m not surprised it ended up at this verse. He spoke it to me at the start, and it’s what i need to hear. But how do you respond to this verse?
Ahhh…the rich young ruler wanted eternal life, which is Kingdom of God life - but he wasn’t willing to walk away from his own life. Jesus then said it was easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for the rich to enter the kingdom of God. When the disciples objected, Jesus told them things that were impossible with men are possible with God. Eternal life is miracle life: it is an ongoing demonstration of that which is impossible with men being made possible with God!
I’ve heard people freak out at taking the “be perfect” verses literally, because they say it’s totally impossible. Isn’t that really at the heart of the question?
Maybe saying “be perfect” is the same as saying “get saved”? Isn’t it noted in the bible that reaching perfection is impossible? Because, in Christ, our sins are forgiven and we are made perfect. Although, one being “made” perfect is completely different than one attempting to become perfect.
At the very least, it means that we should try to be perfect.
No offense, but trying to be perfect is soul-destroying work…
If perfect were totally impossible, then I don’t believe Jesus and the Father would have stated it as a commandment. He’s not purposely trying to frustrate us. I believe perfect is possible, the question is how exactly do we get there and what prevents us from getting there. Gal 2:20 comes to mind: I am dead, but now Christ is living His life in me. And now I live by Faith in the Son of God.
Those are some thoughts, but I’m even more interested in what you think about this question. How do we fulfill this command to be perfect? What has God taught you in this area?
Galatians 2.20 is so good. Christ in you knows how to live life perfect in the flesh. He’s proved that once and for all. Jesus knows how to live! 1 John 5.3-4 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.
I really believe that what makes all the difference is what happens in our spirits when we hear Father say “be perfect as I am perfect.” It’s like seeing Jesus walking on the water toward us. It’s like Father walking through the garden of Eden wanting to spend time with us. Yes there’s the impulse to hug the rail of the boat for dear life, and there may even be a momentary impulse to run and hide ashamed. But way stronger than that there’s an opportunity for faith to leap up in us and yell “just tell me to come to you!”
If your faith was truly hooked up with Jesus’ faith, do you think anything could prevent the life of Jesus from being on perfect display in you?
btw this is great that people are so willing to talk about this. it’s been one of the most brushed-under-the-rug subjects of our day. if seeking God’s kingdom & seeking his righteousness are our first priorities - then it’s awesome to see believers really going after that >>
It’s been good to talk about it because it’s been renewing hope, faith, and some perspective. Sometimes i need to be reminded of His promises about holiness, and just being reminded of them (thank you), combined with faith in them, does this work in me.
Holiness is not by trying to be holy (joy), it’s by believing these holy promises (rejoy). And that’s the beauty of God’s way, makes me joy and rejoy because it’s not up to my performance ability or lack of…God’s got a different way, praise Him*
I was reminded of this verse when i started to reply here; Peter:
Through these (His glory and goodness) he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. 2 Peter 1:4
And yes, I agree that the extent my faith hooks up with Jesus (Truth) is the extent His perfection is displayed in me. Holy Spirit please help us hook up fully.
That’s exactly it. How passionate can anyone be about an ideal that you try to catch up with but know you’ll never really be able to touch?
But the promise > If God’s words go out as promises to us, and just by taking hold of them we participate in God’s divine nature…that’s the life! That’s when you get to step out of the boat of human performance, human ability, human effort - and step over into the place of simple cooperation with God.
In very clear terms, it works like this: You hear God say “Be perfect just as I am perfect.” Option A is to respond with “OK, God you know I can’t really be perfect, but I’ll make it my goal to get closer and closer.” Option B is to say “Holy Spirit I yield to you - make my life look exactly like Jesus - make me perfect as you are.”
Option A sounds obedient, but it’s really just a polite way of telling God you’re not going to do what he’s asking. The only reason people choose Option A is because Option B requires you to believe a miracle will take place: that God will actually do through you what you could never do yourself…
We need to ask ourselves point blank what we want. Do we want something we can do that God didn’t really ask for? Or do we want miracle lives that will only operate in a place of total trust and dependence?
I’ve never heard it said that way before, but it’s really good to hear it now. This strongly resonates with something God planted inside long ago; it’s so refreshing to hear it in “very clear terms”. There’s a huge key here that many a brother would be encouraged and FREED with. Awesome.