Jesus said to be PERFECT -- but how?
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In the sermon on the mount in Matthew 5:48, Jesus commands us to be perfect when he says, "You shall be perfect just as your father in heaven is perfect." We're supposed to be perfect just as God is perfect. Jeez, no pressure, right? But what does it mean to be perfect? What was Jesus actually saying here? Well, to start off, we have to define what perfection really is. Most of us use that word incorrectly.
We think it means being free from error or false. Now, that's true when you use perfect as a verb, as in, I'm trying to perfect my backhand in tennis. That means you want a flawless backhand. That kind of perfection would be daunting if that's what Jesus was saying there. Our immediate objection to that would be, "Easy for you to say, Jesus, you're sinless and powerful. I am neither of those things. How am I supposed to be flawless?"
But that's not what Jesus was saying that we have to be. He wasn't saying that we had to be sinless or flawless. No, the word he uses here is the Greek word telios, which means complete, mature, or whole. The reason that telios is translated as perfect in most Bibles is because of how the English word perfect when used as an adjective is actually defined. The Oxford dictionary defines the adjective perfect as having all the required or desirable elements, qualities or characteristics. As good as it is possible to be complete, mature or whole, right? As good as it is possible to be in any given situation.
What determines how good it's possible to be though? Well, for starters, your attitude going into a situation. Now, for some context on this, let's read the passage that ends with Jesus telling us to be perfect. It's Matthew 5:43-48.
You heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you, that you may be children of your father who is in heaven. For he makes his son to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Don't even the tax collectors do the same? If you only greet your friends, what more do you do than others? Don't even the tax collectors do the same?
Therefore, you shall be perfect just as your father in heaven is perfect. Jesus gives the command for us to be perfect after telling us to love our enemies and in doing so imitating God's love. Now, that sounds impossible until you understand the Greek word being translated love. here. It's agape. This isn't an emotional response like you would have to a family member or a friend that you dearly love. If Jesus was asking us to love our enemies in that way, in that emotional warm fuzzy way, that would be impossible.
But that's not what agape is. Agape is a decision. We're making the choice to do what's right, whether or not the target of our action deserves it. Jesus gives us God as an example here. God makes his son to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the just and the unjust. Have evil people earned the sun and the rain? No, they haven't.
But God gives it to them anyway because that's his nature. It's who he is. But God's not a pushover. That's not what this means. He's not giving the evil sun and rain out of some kind of misguided sense of everyone deserving his favor regardless of their behavior. So why does he do it? Well, Romans 2:4 tells us why.
The goodness of God leads you to repentance. God being good to those who haven't earned it is the primary thing that draws people to him and therefore to repentance, changing their behavior from evil to good. One of my favorite proverbs about this is Proverbs 25:21-22, which says, "If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat. If he is thirsty, give him water to drink. For you will heap coals of fire on his head, and Yahweh will reward you." These coals of fire are generally understood to be the heat that you feel in your face when it gets flushed with embarrassment or shame. Your enemy is your enemy for a reason.
They've wronged you in some way. And yet, when you see them in need, you help them out, which makes them feel awful about their behavior. That shame causes self-reflection, which is required to lead to repentance. Let me give you a personal example here. Years ago, there was a man in the congregation who didn't like me at all. I never understood why. He just didn't.
He would be rude when I would greet him, sometimes not responding at all. Once he got mad at me for something, I asked and he asked me if I wanted to step into the parking lot to take care of it. Now, my natural inclination was, of course, just to avoid this guy. He was clearly unhinged, some kind of whack job. I didn't want to have anything to do with him. I had never wronged him, as far as I was aware. Maybe it was our personalities.
Maybe they just didn't jive. Maybe I look like somebody that had wronged him in the past and I remind him of that person and it made him mad. I don't know. Who knows what it was. But despite my inclination to just avoid this guy, I decided to do the opposite. Our congregation was building a new church and this guy was heading the electrical department to run wire through the building. I volunteered to be his assistant because I had a background in circuitry and electronics.
Now, I volunteered not to him alone, but in front of the whole work crew. And since this guy had no legitimate reason to refuse my skilled help in front of everybody, he begrudgingly accepted. And for the next few days, I was nothing but kind and helpful to this guy. I'd get him water when he was hot and thirsty. I'd carry the heavy equipment for him. I was really young then, in my early 20s, and he was much older. I told jokes that he couldn't help but laugh at.
I killed him with kindness. To this day, I still have no idea why he didn't like me. But it didn't matter at that point because those coals of fire I heaped on him, they worked. From that point on, he was nothing but friendly to me. He would go out of his way to say hi and to chat before church. He ran a small engine repair shop and I brought him my lawnmower once to get a repair done and he refused to let me pay for it. I could have just avoided this guy.
Nobody would have blamed me for that. But I chose to follow Jesus instructions to love my enemy and imitate God's love for humanity. And it worked. It produced repentance and it made a good friend to boot. Does it make sense now why Jesus is telling us to love our enemies? Does it make sense why God does it to lead people to repentance? Jesus prayed in Matthew 6:10 for God's kingdom to come.
And God's kingdom coming requires people to change and produce the fruit of the spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control rather than the deeds of the flesh. But now, let's be real. I didn't go into that situation to this guy with a warm fuzzy feeling towards him. He got on my last nerve with his unwarranted behavior. My action was a decision. That's agape love. It's principled.
You're doing it because it's the right thing to do. God is love, and we're commanded to love our enemy enemies in the same way he loves them. It's a principled choice. That choice paid off in this instance. I changed a heart and made a friend. That's great, but that doesn't always happen. Some people don't respond to the kindness.
Some people don't repent, at least not right away. Sometimes you'll show love to your enemy, but they will remain your enemy. But here's the thing. Being perfect, tells complete and mature. That's not determined by their response to the agape love that you show. You were perfect in the moment whether or not they chose to be perfect in return. You're imitating God, following Jesus' command, and working to spread God's kingdom on earth.
You did what you were supposed to do. Now, that reminds me of a joke. A man was speeding down the highway in among a bunch of other cars going way over the speed limit. When he was pulled over by a police officer, the guy was furious. There were a dozen other people speeding. He tells the cop, "Why didn't you stop one of them?" To which the cop says, "You ever been fishing?"
The man, confused, admits that he has. To which the cop asks, "You ever catch all the fish?" We're not going to catch all the fish. Agape is the best possible bait to lure people to repentance and a better way of life, but you're not going to catch everybody. Just like a fish needs to be hungry in order to bite, the person needs to be hungry for change. A lot of people recognize their need for change, but until the coals of fire come, they lack the motivation or the self-reflection that it requires. But some people have no desire to change at all.
At least not yet. The best thing you can do is imitate your heavenly father and let him handle the rest. Jesus is of course our perfect example in this regard. Because even Jesus being the flawless, sinless person who could cure disease, raise the dead, and teach in a way that astonished people, even he didn't catch all the fish. Let me read a passage in Luke chapter 17. It's a great case study about this. As he Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem, he was passing along the borders of Samaria and Galilee.
As he entered into a certain village, 10 men who were lepers met him who stood at a distance. They lifted up their voices, saying, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us." When he saw them, he said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." As they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice. He fell on his face at Jesus' feet, giving him thanks, and he was a Samaritan. Jesus answered, "Weren't the 10 cleansed?
But where are the nine? Were there none found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Get up and go your way. Your faith has healed you." 10 lepers Jesus cured. 10. Now, for some background, think about just how bad leprosy was back then.
It caused discolored patches on the skin, lesions, sores, and scabs. The person loses sensation in affected areas, and in severe cases, you might lose fingers or toes, and have nerve damage. The social effects were also terrible. You were declared unclean under the law, forced to live outside the community and had to call out unclean, unclean anytime you were near people. You couldn't have physical contact with anyone, including family or friends. It was social death. You were cut off from worship, from work, from family life, and from the community.
It also meant economic ruin because you couldn't earn a living under those circumstances. To add insult to injury, many people at the time believed that leprosy was punishment for sin. So they thought it was your own fault and had little sympathy for you. That is what Jesus cured the 10 lepers of. He gave them their life, their entire world back. But how many came back to thank him? Only one.
And it wasn't a Jew. It was a Samaritan. someone that at the time was considered to be involved in false worship. Did Jesus condemn the other nine? Did he say he wished he hadn't cured them? No. But he did compliment the Samaritans saying, "Your faith has healed you."
It was perfect tellios, complete, mature, whole. So if you think your agape love is going to catch all the fish, I hate to break it to you, but it won't. And that's okay. Jesus didn't catch all the fish either, despite being the example we were left to follow. According to 1 Peter 2:21, Jesus noticed and felt the ingratitude of the others. He didn't ignore it. He asked the one, "Where are the nine?"
But he didn't regret what he'd done because he was imitating his heavenly father. You'll notice and sometimes be stung by the lack of gratitude some people will show you as well. But choose the right action and imitate your father just like Jesus did. Many people will respond though just like they responded to Jesus. And that changed the world. He started off with a dozen apostles, then a growing body of disciples and eventually a church that has expanded into billions of believers all over the world. One day, as Revelation promises, new Jerusalem will come down.
Heaven coming to earth as Jesus taught us to pray for and every knee will bend to him. Every knee, not just billions, but everyone. Consistent small steps lead to miles long journeys. And everyone who responds is another asset for spreading the kingdom of God and making the world a better place. What it comes down to is a choice. In every situation where you make the decision to show love rather than hate, kindness rather than rejection, generosity rather than stinginess, you're reflecting God's love in the world. God is love according to 1 John 4:8.
Every action he takes emanates from that love. Our goal is to do the same. Make the choice to show agape love whenever possible.
This does not mean that we're a doormat for other people just like God is. Jesus healed the 10 lepers. Yeah. But he also made a whip out of ropes, overturned tables, and drove the money changers out of the temple in John chapter 2. He had harsh words for the Pharisees, calling them a brood of vipers and whitewashed tombs. God sent unrepentant Israel into exile and Babylon and allowed them to be conquered due to their refusal to change their wicked ways.
Sometimes showing love means setting a boundary or delivering a hard truth or letting someone face the consequences of their behavior. A parent that lets a child get away with everything isn't showing love. They're setting that child up for failure in the world when they go out in later life. It's like enabling an addict. It's harm disguised as kindness. The key is in our motivation. Are we acting out of agape, seeking the person's good or protecting others from harmful behavior?
Or are we acting out of anger or revenge or our own convenience? Tough love flows from the same place as tender love, our decision to do what's best even when it's hard. So, what does all this look like on a Monday morning? How can you imitate God by being perfect and showing agape love in your day-to-day life? Well, first you have to identify your enemy. It could be a hostile coworker or a difficult family member. It could be a neighbor you've had a dispute with or someone who wronged you.
Try and perform one act of agape this week. You don't have to have warm fuzzy feelings about it, and you won't, in fact, but you have to recognize what choice you can make that has a shot at bringing that person around to change or healing the situation. Start small. Don't try to fix a 20-year feud with one act of kindness. Just say a kind word to someone who isn't kind to you. Help somebody with something small, even if they never help you. Choose not to gossip about somebody you really don't like, even though your beef with them is real and legitimate.
And by all means, pray for that person. Jesus commanded us to pray for our enemies in Matthew 5:44. He went so far as to pray for those who put him to death. And Steven did the same when being stoned for his bold faith. God hears your prayers and will bless your actions even if that blessing doesn't result in your enemy changing toward you. Now I know how we can be. Our human nature tells us it's pointless.
They are not going to change. It's been way too long. There's too much bad blood. Why bother only to be rejected? Here's why. First, because it transforms you. You become more and more like Christ.
mortellios, mature, whole, complete. Second, because it spreads the kingdom. Every act of agape love creates a small outpost of God's kingdom on earth wherever you you leave it. Even if the target of your love doesn't respond, other people around you who see what you did might respond. Maybe they ask you why you would show kindness to an enemy and it gives you a chance to spread the gospel to them. Faith the size of a mustard seed can move a mountain, said Jesus. So spread those seeds everywhere you can.
Third, because it brings joy, knowing you did the right thing, knowing God smiles on your actions, giving you a deep sense of satisfaction regardless of the outcome. And finally, because it demonstrates obedience to Christ, our savior and king. Jesus commanded it, and his commands can only result in our flourishing. So keep doing the right thing and you'll get good results. Remember Jesus' parable of the farmer sewing seed in Matthew 13. Behold, a farmer went out to sew. As he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and devoured them.
Others fell on rocky ground where they didn't have much soil, and immediately they sprang up because they had no depth of earth. When the sun had risen, they were scorched. Because they had no root, they withered away. Others fell among thorns. The thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on good soil and yielded fruit. Some 100 times as much, some 60, and some 30.
He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Yes, some of your axe will fall on rocky ground or will be scorched and wither or fall among thorns and be choked. But when that seed hits good soil, it produces abundantly more than what was lost to the unfruitful ground. This week, you'll face situations where agape love is the hard choice. Some jerk is going to cut you off in traffic. A co-orker is going to try and take credit for what you did. A family member will say that thing they know is going to push your buttons.
When those things happen, remember, your goal isn't to be flawless. You're going to be upset, but you're choosing Telios to be complete, mature, whole, reflecting God's love rather than your own anger. That's perfection. That's what Jesus is calling us to. And with his help and the help of the spirit, you can do it and produce an abundance from the good soil that's out there begging for seed and harvest. Let this be our prayer. Aba, Father, thank you for your perfect love.
A love that shines on both the righteous and the unrighteous that pursues us even when we're running away from you. Your love isn't earned. It flows from who you are. Help us to be like you. Give us the courage to love our enemies, not with warm feelings we can't control, but with deliberate choices we can make. When someone wrongs us, remind us of how we've been forgiven. When kindness seems pointless, help us trust that you're working even when we can't see the fruit.
We confess that loving enemies feels impossible on our own. But your spirit lives in us. Empower us to make one choice today, one act of agape love towards someone difficult. Transform our hearts as we take these steps of obedience. Make us Telios, complete, mature, whole, reflecting your character in a broken world. May our love point others to you, the source of all love. In Jesus' name, who loved us while we were still your enemies.
Amen. I wanted to take a moment to tell you about my book, The Broken Mirror: Rediscovering Our True Nature in Christ. Readers call it a fantastic book where you will feel yourself discovering your identity in Christ. One reviewer praised it as five-star material for the spiritual mystic or group Bible study. It's time to escape legalism and shame. Discover you're already God's beloved child with divine nature flowing through you with what reviewers describe as excellent writing style and elegant pros like a campfire discussion with a knowledgeable and gifted recon tour. Journey from Genesis to Revelation, uncovering your true identity.
This book shows how to access God's peace, wisdom, and strength from within. Your struggles become opportunities for divine light to shine through. Available in hard coverver, paperback, Kindle, and audio book. The link to the book is in the video description. May God bless your journey along his path for you. [Music]
