Matthew 5:48- “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
I recently wrote a blog for authors about how similar words—even synonyms—have slight differences in meaning.
After I finished writing, I thought about the words holy and perfect, which have long been linked together in my mind. God instructs us to be perfect, but since he knows that we are human and can never be perfect, I figure He must not consider these words to be synonymous.
I looked up holy in the dictionary: dedicated or consecrated to God or a religious purpose; sacred morally and spiritually excellent.
Next, perfect: having all the required or desirable elements, qualities, or characteristics; as good as it is possible to be; free from any flaw or defect in condition or quality; faultless; precisely accurate; exact.
I focused on the words “good as it is possible to be,” remembering that the Bible tells us that our own righteousness is like “filthy rags” in comparison to His righteousness AND that He promises to present believers faultless before the throne of God.
So, I determined that any perfection we might attain is due to the workings of the Holy Spirit within us. Not what we can do on our own.
I looked again at the definition of holy, realizing that we must dedicate ourselves to God and His purpose. It is the Holy Spirit who will do the work in making us perfect. (In God’s sight, of course! Remember, when He looks at us, He sees His perfect Son, our savior, Jesus Christ.)
So, there it is. I can only be holy—I can only be perfect—if I am willing to be changed for His purposes by the Holy Spirit.
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