“…and that man
was perfect and upright” (Job 1:1).
Once upon
a time in the South an old person told me, “You’ll shoot higher if you aim at
the moon than if you aim at the barn.” The lesson was to aim high and not
settle for just hitting something. But perfection? The patriarch Job was not
sinless, but he was a complete man and upright in God’s sight.
Is sinless
perfection even possible? Sure. The Father, His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and
the Holy Spirit is sinless perfection. But that’s not what we mean when we ask
the question, is it?
Do we believe
in sinless perfection as a possibility for us regular people? Well, yes. Just
not yet. There are, doubtless, some who think that they might be capable of
living for long stretches of time without sinning. I once heard of a fellow who
claimed that he had not sinned in fourteen years. But, for that to be true, one
would have to craft a nuanced, unbiblical definition of sin—a definition that
did not include errant, stray, and momentary evil thoughts (e.g. Matthew 5:28);
neither could it include neglect of doing known
good, any quite within one’s reach to perform (James 4:17).
Sinless
perfection is where all of God’s beloved people are headed. The Golden Chain of Redemption (Romans
8:29-30) tells us that those whom God foreknew (loved from eternity past) are
certain to be glorified, that is, ultimately and completely sanctified.
Everything in the passage is soaringly related as though even the future
elements have already happened—it is that sure. In our glorified state, we who
are redeemed by Christ will be sinless and perfected in righteousness.
Glorification,
our arrival at sinless perfection, will not preclude our making further
progress. Even in our glorified state, we who savingly know Jesus will
continually progress and grow and serve and live with ever-increasing purpose. Eternity
for us will not only be endless time,
but endless progress, as well. No
sitting around on puffy clouds, strumming harps forever. We will live to God’s
glory by doing great, meaningful, significant things in that age that will know
no end.
Would
Jesus actually command us to do what we have not sufficient power to obey, at
least, not fully? Some would say that such a command would be nothing short of
cruel taunting, serving only to frustrate those who might make the attempt. But,
is that a true representation or does it just sound good?
Do parents
ever command their children to do things beyond their present ability? Do
mothers ever require behavior of their young daughters that is customary only
in older children? Do caring fathers ever assign too-difficult tasks to their
sons, tasks their sons cannot yet acceptably
perform? Very often, indeed! It is all part of training and challenging and
preparing them for the future responsibilities and challenges that lie ahead—as
someone has said, “Success is a sorry teacher.” Mothers and fathers understand
that their sons and daughters need to be challenged. Do we believe our Father
knows less?
Requirements beyond our present ability may
serve to grow and stretch and test us against an ideal, the very ideal we
should aspire to. Is not our Father in heaven preparing us for a forever life with Him (the very Ideal to which we aspire)? There, sinless perfection
will be the never-breached norm. So even now he says to His people, “Be ye holy; for
I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16); Jesus says, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your
Father which is in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).
Are these commands
given only to shame and frustrate us? Not at all. They are given to challenge
and grow us—to prepare us for “the age to come,” that other world where sin
will be no more!–TSA
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