Attaining Perfection?

Have you ever been told that practice makes perfect? My mom used that phrase to encourage me to do everything from practicing music to making my bed. I did improve and can still make some pretty tight "hospital corners" when I put a sheet on a bed. But, perfection? Not really. It seems the simple phrase, if taken literally, can leave us a bit discouraged knowing it can never be achieved. Even if we get all the notes right when playing the concerto it will be less than perfect to someone else who plays the piece. I would have to say my mother's expectation for perfection was really just a hope that I would keep trying to get better. That is fine for mom, but what do we do with God's expectations?

No less than seven times does God command His followers to "be perfect". Beyond that God commands us to "be holy" at least forty times. Are these realistic expectations? Does God mean this or is He like my mom and just wants me to try to be better? Matthew 5:48, "Therefore, you are to be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect" seems pretty straight forward. Be perfect in the same way that God is perfect. I am human, broken, a sinner, way less than perfect. It is true, I am clothed in Christ's righteousness and hold a position in glory because of Him. However, in the context of Matthew 5 the Lord is speaking about real life "now" sort of behavior, not in the sweet by and by. Is God making a demand we can never achieve?

It does not seem fair or like God to place us in a position where failure is the guaranteed result. So how do we achieve perfection or to become holy as He is holy?  Perhaps looking at the words in Hebrew and Greek can help.Both in Hebrew and in Greek the word holy means to be separated, or dedicated to the service of the Lord. everything from a building, to utensils, to animals, to first born sons, and God's people. Work can also be holy, any task dedicated to the Lord can be a holy endeavor. God calling us to be holy is simply to separate ourselves to Him, His work, and to obedience to His Word. Most of us can grasp that concept and can strive to be dedicated or separated unto the Lord. The command for us to be holy is not unattainable when we look at holiness from this perspective.

Perfection from the Hebrew tamiym means to be without blemish, complete,entire, truth and integrity. The Greek teleios likewise means complete, flawless, full compliance to a standard of, to come to completion. A bit more challenging to be flawless or without blemish. Being in full compliance of a standard at least gives us a way to measure, if we know what the standard is. Based on knowing the right standard it can also be said that perfect carries with it the idea of always making the right choices. God is perfect because He always makes the right choices. However, He may not always make the same choice. It is not that God is contradictory; it is that He always knows and make the right choice. Some choices reflect His mercy; others reflect His justice. Whatever decision God makes, it is always the right decision. He is perfect in all of His ways.

Perfection rests in our ability to make right choices based on the Word of God. Obedience is a matter of whether the choices we make are in agreement with God's standard. The standard we find in His word. We will never come to a point where we always make the right choice or always abide in His word flawlessly. However, there is hope. You and I have the ability to obey. You and I have the ability to know what God's standard is. The excuse of, "Hey, nobody is perfect," really is an excuse. If we spent more time learning what God's standards are, and striving to walk in them, maybe perfection would not seem so far removed from reality. The Apostle John's encouragement to us is this, "For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome" (1 John 5:3). 

God's commandments are not impossible to bear. They are not beyond our capability. They just seem hard to follow consistently. From the world's perspective we are imperfect and lack holiness. However, from God's perspective we really are separated for His service. We really are those dedicated by Him for His use. Our acts of obedience to God's standard is pleasing to Him and perfection is just a decision away. We can take comfort with those in Philippi, "being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). The word comes from the same root as teleios, to bring to completion or perfection. Perfection is on the way. Even now it can be our experience. We just need to learn God's standard and put it into our daily lives. Paul tells us to not get discouraged, don't give up. Messiah began a good work in you and He will keep working on you until you get it right. We may never be flawless in this life yet making right choices is more reasonable than you may think. Being known as a person of integrity is an attainable goal. It just take practice. Hmmm. Maybe my mom was right after all.