23/10/2011 - WE ARE URGED TO BE PERFECT

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Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Matthew 5:48

The Lord’s commands must always be obeyed. He would never ask us to be perfect if this were not possible. He who is smart and wants to win the battles of life must learn that over all God’s commandments weighs our obligation to achieve perfection just as Jesus did. He is perfect in everything: in His thoughts, speech, actions and love as well as in the fulfillment of His promises. The Lord never was and neither will He ever be imperfect.

Jesus said that we prove our love for Him by keeping His commandments (John 14:15-21), which is something we have to do with perfection. Therefore, we cannot act haphazardly and expect Him to fulfill what He promised, even though He loved us even before we loved Him (I John 4:19). So see if you have obeyed what the Lord commands; how you have acted in view of what He promises or when He rebukes some of your attitudes. Accepting the rebuke of the Lord and abandoning your wrongful ways are actions that should be done with all your heart and performed to perfection.

Judging by the accuracy of Jesus’ words we see that the way we do God\’s work matters a lot since He does not accept imperfections in the execution of the mission assigned to us. The man of God must be like those 300 men of Gideon who lapped the water as dogs (Judges 7:7). Only those who completely surrender to God\’s Spirit are approved for the Lord\’s battles. Therefore, examine yourself and see if you have made an effort to accomplish, with flying colors, the task given to you. If you have acted differently, you had better mend your ways by improving the way you act when doing God’s work.

According to the Lord our “yes” must be “yes” and our “no”, “no” for whatever is more than these is from the evil one (Matthew 5:37). This means that we should not participate in anything that comes from the enemy; instead, we should be like Jesus, who stated that the devil had nothing in Him (John 14:30). If Satan finds a breach in your life, no matter how small, he will clutch his claws in it and you will suffer greatly. Therefore, examine your thoughts, desires and wishes, and analyze your beliefs. If there\’s something evil, ask for forgiveness and correct your behavior. Man becomes a servant of the one he obeys.

We also learn through the Word that we must be imitators of Jesus (I Corinthians 11:1) because He wants us under His dominion, in perfection, doing His will just as He would do if He were in our place. So when you pray to claim something that the Scriptures promise, do not do so with a divided heart, but rather with all your strength, courage and willingness, with perfection.
He who acts on his own will not be successful and God is pleased with our success. Furthermore, if in some of our decisions or actions we are not perfect, we are not pleasing the Lord. He rejoices when He sees us acting like Him.

In Christ with love,

R. R. Soares