Perfection not Perfectionism

"Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

To be perfect like God is impossible for humans. Jesus knows this even as he commands it and he makes us wonder what he might mean. Some suggest that perfection here refers to uprightness and sincerity of character. Others remind us that in the Old Testament, perfection is the same as maturity, but the simplest interpretation, that we must strive to live the law as completely and totally as possible, is the best.

Trying our best is always important, and is the mark of the great saints and biblical figures. Working only to be adequate Christians, or finding a way to wiggle out of the Gospel's most demanding challenges, is unacceptable. As Jesus reminds the rich young man, we must sell everything and follow him. There is no getting around this, but we should not interpret it narrowly. 

Selling everything means letting go of our attachment to what we believe we have earned and deserve. That many have worked hard is not the question, but when our "possessions" cause us not to see those in need with God's eyes, and ignore or reject their legitimate cries for help, we sin. We can only be "perfect" like God by responding to the broken with compassion and love

Put another way, what would most of us claim as our rightfully earned reward if we were born in poverty in the South Sudan or Zimbabwe? Would we be less in God's eyes if we struggled to eat, to protect our children and feed them? At the same time, the children of the poor must also live the Gospel perfectly by working to care about and respond to others unconditionally just as God cares for them in the middle of their poverty. God's perfection means finding the ground upon which rich and poor alike can work together to create a more just and peaceful world.

Today, pray to live the Gospel fully and transparently.

Have you known anyone who lived the Gospel perfectly?