Question: Will you please make some discussion on biblical Christian perfection?
Answer: The term “perfect” and the term “perfection” are used a number of times in the New Testament and in some instances mean or refer to different things. The context will determine its application and meaning. But in no instance does it refer to human perfection or a human being out beyond human error in judgment or being complete in knowledge. Peter said in II Peter 3:18, “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ….” This is clearly an open-ended statement. It suggests no termination. It is not said here to grow in grace and knowledge until you “know it all” and there is no more knowledge to be obtained, and until you have all the grace there is and there is no more grace to be obtained. The matter of Christian growth and development is a perpetual, continuous thing from the beginning of our salvation to the end of our life. If one ceases to grow at any time along the line, he will become stale and stagnant, and if persisted in, will lose his contact and relationship with God. But don’t ever try that out to see if it is so or not, for this is not the will of God concerning you. But it is the will of God that you be continually advancing into new territory and areas in your experience and relationship with God, being always fresh and vibrant, making the way of God attractive to your associates.
In Matthew 5:48 Jesus said, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” This statement of Jesus must be taken in context to get the proper meaning of it and the key word in it is “THEREFORE.” This word refers back to what has been said before. The thought begins back in verse 38 where Jesus begins to teach about our attitudes and dealings with our fellowmen. He said here that it had been said back under the law “…An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.” Now that was the standard under the law but Jesus taught a different standard than that. “…Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17.) He said to resist not evil but if they smite us on one cheek, turn the other also, if they sue us at the law and take away our coat, give them our cloak also, and if they compel us to go a mile, go two. In other words, see to it that we give full satisfaction to our adversaries regardless of the injustices involved. Verse 42 says, “Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.” Again the context must be strictly observed to get the proper meaning of this text. Jesus is certainly not teaching here promiscuous giving to every Tom, Dick and Harry. He is teaching that we should be willing to help our enemies if they are in need and not turn them away or discriminate against them because they have struck us in the face or have treated us unjustly but to render aid to them if they are in need as though they were our friends.
Then in verse 43 He referred again to the law standard of loving our neighbor and hating our enemy. The law permitted this but Jesus in the standard He taught said in verse 44, “…Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.” Then in verse 45 He makes known His own attitude toward all humankind and says, “…He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” It is in this respect that He says to us to be perfect even as He is perfect. Let us recognize that this instruction was given in connection with the thought of our dealing with and attitude toward all humankind (both friend and foe) and is accentuated by a declaration of His own attitude toward them all and this is the pattern for us to adopt in all of our dealings and attitudes toward everybody. Let us also realize that the One who gave us this command and set up this standard is the One who has all power in heaven and in earth and is abundantly able to supply us with sufficient grace and power to reach it. Let us not settle for anything less than this, but just humble our hearts and earnestly seek God for that measure of grace which will enable us to live to this standard.
Let it be remembered that though God has mercies and a package of blessings for all mankind in general, yet He has a special package of special blessings for His own people who love and serve Him. This is made clear throughout the Scriptures in God’s special dealings with them. He also teaches us to be this way. In Galatians 6:10 we read, “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, ESPECIALLY unto them who are of the household of faith.” We are to make a specialty of favor to the saints, but never to discriminate against an adversary who is in need just because he is an adversary.
In Hebrews 10:14 it says, “…He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.” In this text “PERFECT” means complete or finished. Man’s salvation has two parts. He is first saved (forgiven of all sins and trespasses when he properly repents of them), but that is only part of his salvation. That work of grace in the soul does not in any way affect that native depravity or sin nature which came upon us all from Adam. Repentance could not touch that because we were not responsible for it; hence, we would have no conviction of it or a godly sorrow concerning it. It is removed by the Holy Ghost with the blood of Jesus for our heart’s cleansing by the means of consecration and faith. Salvation is not completed without this experience. Therefore, receiving this sanctifying grace makes our salvation complete. Hence it is said we are perfected (completed or finished as pertains to our salvation). Perfection here does not mean we have reached the end of all spiritual growth and advancement in our spiritual lives. Far from it. We are just then prepared to launch forth on this venture and will be pursuing it the remainder of our lives.
In Colossians 1:28 we read, “Whom (Christ) we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man PERFECT in Christ Jesus.” Again, “perfect” here refers to their being complete, entire, finished in their Christian experience. Paul said again in Ephesians 4:15, “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.” The objective of the Apostle Paul in all of this preaching and teaching was to nourish them up in every principle of truth, in all the ways of truth and righteousness, that he could present all his converts perfect, complete, entire, a finished product in the grace of God in Christ. He said in Colossians 2:10, “And ye are complete in him,…” This is the meaning of the term “perfect” in this text.
You will note that not one of the texts I have used in this lesson had any reference to being perfect human beings beyond making mistakes or erring in judgment. Some people, not having understood this, have judged and condemned themselves in regard to some innocent mistakes they made and the enemy has taken advantage of them to impose upon them a spirit of accusation. Also, some who have not understood what Christian perfection is, have broken off fellowship with them when they should not have. Let us allow ourselves and all other saints to be human and live their lives freely and not under critical, prying eyes; and let us have charity and patience with them in their mistakes considering ourselves to be human also.
In Hebrews 5:9 we read, “And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him.” We see here that Jesus’ being made perfect was all-important to our salvation. But what did this involve and how was it accomplished? Hebrews 2:10 says, “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” I acknowledge frankly that for many years I was not able to comprehend the idea of Jesus being made perfect. The reason was because I always thought of Jesus as being perfect. Now here comes God’s Word talking about Him being “made perfect” through suffering. Actually, He was morally and spiritually perfect from time immemorial. Only after He had personally encountered every temptation and suffering in His flesh and lived His life on the same plane that we have to live ours could He be able to lead us to glory.
Hebrews 5:8 says, “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered.” I never got the full import of this, either, until one day this week while meditating on a message that Bro. Keith Fuller had brought in our Assembly Meeting on the sufferings of Jesus. There is no such thing as suffering in heaven where Jesus was until He left there and came here on a mission of redemption. Then when He took on Himself the seed of Abraham and was clothed in human flesh and lived as one of us, He had to learn to take orders and obey. Philippians 2:8 says that Jesus humbled Himself and became obedient unto death. Luke 13:23-33 makes it clear that His death was His perfection. Verse 33 says, “Nevertheless I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.” This is a clear reference to His death at Jerusalem and “the day following” tomorrow would be the third day. Verse 32 says that on the third day He would be perfected. This confirms that His death was His perfection. Also, Hebrews 2:18 says, “For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.”
Then we have this concerning the perfection of Jesus: Jesus learned obedience through the things which He suffered (Hebrews 5:8), and it was through suffering that He was made perfect. (Hebrews 5:8-9 and Hebrews 2:10.) Therefore, when Jesus had faithfully obeyed His Father in submitting Himself unto every kind of suffering and temptation that humankind could possibly encounter in life and had overcome it all to the final and even His death; and came out in the end with a perfect score offering Himself without spot to God, He was then completely, thoroughly, entirely, and totally qualified to be a perfect captain of our salvation to lead us to glory. This is what the term “perfect” means in regard to Christ being the captain of our salvation; completely, thoroughly, totally, entirely qualified and able to do this and lead us to glory. It has no reference to perfecting Him morally, spiritually, intellectually, or in any of His divine attributes.
Now I will consider Paul’s references to “perfect” in the third chapter of Philippians. In Philippians 3:12 he says, “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect:…” Connected to verse 11, this would seem to be a reference to the resurrection of the dead as attaining and being made perfect. But I feel certain, by the general tenor or Paul’s writing in all his epistles, that Paul had a clear vision of greater and greater accomplishments in his spiritual life and Christian experience and He was striving for and reaching out for deeper depths, higher heights, longer lengths, and broader breadths in the things of God. This being true, he could never reckon himself to be perfect so long as he could envision greater depths and heights out ahead.
So I am reckoning this reference to “perfect” in verse 12 to involve this idea even though it might be a direct reference to his resurrection. However, he said in verse 15, “Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded:…” Here is a reference to some who are perfect. I am picking up the thought here that Christian perfection is a progressive thing. He declared himself to not be perfect but he also said, “Let us (you and I) therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded:…” This is equivalent to saying, “I do not claim to be perfect, but I am perfect.” “Ah, come on,” you say. “You are talking in riddles now.” Well, so be it; that’s just the way it is. Let me illustrate with a student in school. Take, for example, a small child in the first grade. He will learn little one, two, and three-letter words, and 1+1, 2+2, and 3+3 problems, etc. If, at the end of the year, he can spell all those little words and work all those little problems correctly, that is perfect for him in the first grade. But it would not be perfect for a student in college. He is supposed to know more than that. All the way up from the first grade to college he can be perfect all the time; year after year, grade after grade; but never be perfect for the grade ahead of him at any time. It is this way in the Christian life. A brand-new convert (a babe in Christ) may have completely satisfied God and be up-to-date with Him and be perfect in his relationship with Him, but that would not at all be perfect for the person who has been saved for ten or fifteen years. He is supposed to understand more about God and know more truth than that new convert.
The Christian life is a continual and perpetual growth and development. In II Peter 3:18, we are admonished to “…grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ….” We may be perfect before God but to maintain that state of perfection, we must be walking in the light, measuring up to the truth, and continually climbing up to higher and higher levels of divine grace. What is perfect for you now may not be perfect a year from now, and certainly will not be if you maintain a normal pace of growth in grace.
Philippians 3:15 says that all who are perfect should be “thus minded:…” “Thus minded” would refer to something said before, and actually is a foundation for everything said from verse 1 clear to the 15th verse. This would include having a mind to worship God in the spirit and having no confidence in the flesh (verse 3); counting the things which are gain to us in the things of the world and of the flesh as loss for Christ (verse 7); counting all things as loss and of no value in order to win Christ and counting the knowledge of Christ as a very excellent thing (verse 8); being found in Christ and having the righteousness of God in our lives through the faith of Christ and not having our own righteousness (verse 9); seeking to know Jesus Christ and the fellowship of His sufferings and being conformed unto His death (verse 10); seeking and desiring to attain unto the resurrection of the righteous (verse 11); having a recognition of not having yet attained and not yet being perfect, but steadfastly pursuing those things (verse 12); and having a tendency of heart and disposition of mind to forget the things behind and reach forth unto those things which are before and to press on to the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ (verses 13 and 14). All of this is involved in the mind of the perfect Christian.
After all, Christian perfection is not a matter of being “right on target” every time in all of our choices, decisions, judgments, and understanding, but it is a state, condition and attitude of the heart toward God; having the right motives and purposes in everything we do, even though we may fail sometimes in our methods of doing them. God’s Word says in II Chronicles 16:9, “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him….” I Samuel 16:7 says, “…The Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” Oh, how often we err in our judgments of one another because we look on the outward appearance and after the seeing of the eye and the hearing of the ear we fail to discern the motive and purpose in the heart of the person who was trying to do something good and failed in the proper method of doing it. This is a stark tragedy, but is often repeated. God help us!
phesians 4:13 speaks of us all coming to a perfect man. The margin here says, “to age.” The meaning of “perfect” in this place is to grow up, or come to age or maturity in our Christian experience. The same thought is set forth in I Corinthians 14:20, where it says, “…In malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.” The margin here says “perfect” instead of “men” in the text (grown up, fully developed people spiritually).
I trust you will consider what I say and the Lord give you understanding in all things. Let us all quit looking for the perfect human who is “right on target” every time and never makes a mistake. You will never find him. There is no such person. Let us allow our brethren to be human and forgive them for their human errors and innocent mistakes, and let us go on striving for the faith of the gospel.
