Matthew 5:48
You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
What is your standard of morality? How do you determine what is good? Who establishes the moral compass in your life? Where do you discover the best moral practices for your life? Why is morality even important?
We live in a time of vast knowledge and accomplishments. Today’s enterprises make past historical periods obsolete. Whether science, technology, agriculture, construction, medicine, education, or commerce, every field of study has made an immense contribution to the human experience. Yet people still cannot get along with each other. Nations still go to war with other countries. Couples who yesterday could not live without each other, now hate and despise one another. And even family members and next-door neighbors rarely speak with those closes to them.
Generally speaking, as a people, we are highly knowledgeable of the material world around us. But at the same time, we are spiritually blind and depressed. We are the outcome of our own doing but blame others around us for our problems. We willingly accept the lies thrown our way because they make us feel in control and important. Instead of accepting a universal standard which works for all sides, we rather fight for our “rights” as we determine what those “rights” are. Justice is subjective to our ideal. There is no objective criteria everyone can agree too.
Enter Jesus.
When HE arrived on the scene the Roman empire was in power. Beside the Jewish community, the religious establishments included Caesar as lord, houses of sexual worship, and many other gods for your choosing. Entertainment included large crowds gathered to watch lions slaughter humans, and athletes fighting each other to the death. A world where the strong devoured the weak.
Under such a domain Jesus came along and began to preach the good news of the kingdom of God. His teaching was revolutionary for the people and culture of the time. The same is still true today.
When HE set the goal of moral perfection based on HIS heavenly Father as the objective standard of measurement, HE blew apart the minds of his listeners. They were satisfied with their self-righteous attitude keeping the Law given to Moses. Jesus not only emphasized the behavior aspects but also raised the bar to include one’s attitude and mental thought. Who could live up to such a standard?
Jesus’ set the bar very high for his disciples: Perfection as measured by God Himself.
Impossible, you say?
Do you think Jesus would expect something from his students that they couldn’t achieve?
The bar is high because God’s purpose for you and I is higher than we can imagine.
God’s macro-objective is to raise a family who will join HIM in his work of governing a universe. He expects HIS children to imitate HIM throughout the world. And HE always provides the means and resources for HIS people to abide and fulfill HIS desires.
For those who accept HIS vision and purpose, HE provides HIS Spirit and strength to live within you. As we submit to HIS authority, yielding our carnal desires to HIS divine nature, HE leads us toward a fuller life patterned after Jesus Christ.
Our goal is to become perfect in relationships with HIM and all those around us. HE becomes our universal standard of perfection. We model our life around (Eph 5:1) HIM. When others join HIM in the same quest, the world becomes more reflective of HIS attributes and less prone to chaos, confusion, and evil.
We cannot become perfect unless HIS perfection lives in us. HE is the goodness we seek and yearn after. When HE is allowed to live HIS life in us and through us, we will then see the road to perfection become real. Until then, we are fooling ourselves and destructively playing god in his place.
Rooting For You in Christ!
Dr. Mike
Encourager, Faith-Integrator, Scribbler
Available for Your Devotional Study:
- Stay Free…Avoid Worldly Traps
- Overflowing Prayers Rooted in Jesus Christ v1 & v2
- Dancing With God: Life-Giving Theology Explained
- Great Business Emulates a Good God
- Simply The Messenger
- Unequally Married
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