Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
This scripture has been on my mind lately, primarily due to its very challenging call. Does God really call us to be perfect? Are we really capable of reaching a state of existence without blemish? Certainly, there are some who think this possibility exists; they are the same ones who are always right in an argument and never feel the need to apologize for their mistakes (mainly because they don’t think they have made any mistakes). This verse, if taken in that context, actually reinforces the old stereotype of the self-righteous Christian, who thinks they are better than everyone else! But the truth is, this verse has very little to do with our concept of perfection.
In English, our term for perfection essentially means being without fault or blemish, which, again, is an impossible task for a human being to achieve. Paul writes in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” So how can we achieve the Father’s perfection if we also all fall short of His glory? This seems like a catch-22, a misquotation, dare I say....a contradiction.
