“Therefore you shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48; all Scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible).

This is not the first time I have written about Matthew 5:48. Long-time readers of Darkened Glass Reflections first encountered my thoughts about this verse in 2012, and a recent “Words of Christ” devotional also touched on it. It is the sort of verse that can create a lot of trouble if we approach it with the wrong assumptions and biases.

Early in my Christian walk, when I would read everything I could find by 19th-century evangelist Charles G. Finney, I took “perfect” in this verse to mean “never does anything wrong, always succeeds, never fails, never sins.” It was a recipe for spiritual and emotional disaster. This degree of perfection would be akin to a Major League baseball player with a batting average of 1.000, a slugging percentage of 4.000 (every at-bat is a home run!), who never commits an error. Furthermore, this superstar is also a starting pitcher who has never walked a batter or allowed a hit, because he strikes out every batter he faces on three pitches.

There has never been a baseball player like that. There are a handful of multitalented players like Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani, who led his league in on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and home runs while being among the league’s leaders in batting average, while also being an excellent pitcher. Fans might say that “he can do it all.” He does not get on base all of the time, opposing teams score some runs against him when he pitches, but fans can call him a “complete player.”

We get a much more accurate and realistic definition of “perfection,” along with a more merciful and compassionate God when we look at it this way. God knows we will fail. He is not ready to smite us with a bolt of lightning the next time we make a mistake. He wants to see us grow, mature, and become more complete.

The Greek word for perfect, teleios, appears only two times in the Gospels; here and in Matthew 19:21 when He addressed the rich young ruler. In that verse, the New American Standard Bible translates teleios as “complete”:

“Jesus said to him, ‘If you want to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me’” (Matthew 19:21).

The rich young ruler had not asked Jesus how he could be perfect or complete. He had asked, “What good thing shall I do so that I may obtain eternal life?” (Matthew 19:16). He had obeyed the Ten Commandments, but he sensed he was still missing out. Jesus recognized his love of riches and urged him to confront that. Get rid of that idol and you will be a complete player in the kingdom of God.

Apparently, wealth was holding the rich young ruler back from complete devotion to God. Jesus’ instruction to the rich young ruler might not be His exact instruction for all of us. We might have different idols or spiritual strongholds, and Jesus will say, “Get rid of that and you will grow tremendously.” Wealth was holding the rich young ruler back from full devotion to God. Ask yourself, “What is the one thing that holds me back from serving God, doing His will, and being fully devoted to Him?” That is the idol you need to cast aside to pursue biblical perfection.

We should not think of perfection as an absolute state of flawlessness. We can pursue excellence. We can view perfection as a goal that we continue striving for throughout our lives: I walk with the Lord; I recognize a shortcoming in my faith and personal life; I confess it and repent from it; I have matured somewhat; and then the process repeats itself.

Perfection in this sense is being spiritually complete or whole—sort of like a spiritual Shohei Ohtani who excels in numerous roles and continually pursues greatness. A complete Christian is not just morally pure with high ethical standards, who goes to church every week, reads his Bible and prays every morning, serves in ministries at church, and tries to be kind to his neighbors. He seeks to be all of these things and whatever else God calls him to do or be, seeking divine wisdom to guide his life. When he stumbles or sins, he does not give up: he confesses, repents, and moves on because that is also part of being a “perfect” Christian.

I close with insight from Fr. Stephen Freeman, a priest in the Orthodox Church in America and prolific blogger/author. He wrote:

“The verse takes on a very different meaning, though, if teleios, is given a more proper translation. ‘Be whole, as your heavenly Father is whole.’ ‘Be complete…’ or most especially, ‘Be what your heavenly Father created you to be just as He is Who He is from eternity.’ The oppression lifts, and the good news radiates into our hearts” (in “The End of the Sacraments – The End of All Things” on his blog, Glory To God For All Things).

When we recognize “you shall be perfect” in this way, and as a summary of the entire Sermon on the Mount to this point and introduction to the teachings that follow, we find comfort, freedom, and an invitation to pursue greater things. God calls us to greater heights than we have experienced before. He also invites us to recognize Him as Lord of every area of our lives. Excellence, completion, maturity—perfection, in Jesus’ words—are within our reach as we love the Lord our God with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strength.

Loving God, we yield ourselves fully to You so that You can make us all that You created us to be. Mold us to reflect Your image and likeness. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have you any thoughts about this passage? Please share them in the comments box below.

Copyright © 2023 Michael E. Lynch. All rights reserved.