The subject of perfection is closely related to Christ our righteousness. Your concept of perfection influences your understanding of Christ our righteousness; and conversely, your concept of Christ our righteousness will influence your understanding of perfection. Because there are so many misunderstandings about perfection, there are many misunderstandings of Christ our righteousness.
One of the major problems in discussing perfection is that it is much like discussing the soul. What do you mean by the word soul? In the Old Testament, only one Hebrew word for soul is translated into forty-three different English words.
The same thing is true of the idea of perfection. We must define what the word means. In the Bible, the reverse of the word soul is true. That is, in the King James Version, the two English words perfect and perfection are translated from many different Hebrew and Greek words. There are several cases where those many Hebrew and Greek words would be better translated into English words other than perfect or perfection.
For example, there are times when those many original language words would be more correctly translated as complete, finished, integrity, exactness, or any of several other English words and expressions. Therefore, when you read the words perfect and perfection in the King James Version, it may not mean perfect or perfection at all. So unfortunately, even the Bible adds to the confusion about perfection. Therefore, when you get into a discussion on the subject of perfection, you must ask, “What do you mean by perfection?” If you have not decided what you mean by it, then you are wandering around in the clouds somewhere.
There was a book published within our denomination some years ago titled Perfection. The book consists of several articles written by excellent Seventh-day Adventist scholars who present different views about the same subject. It is obvious that those who contributed to the book do not agree on the subject; but I think they agree more than we realize. Again, part of the problem is in defining what you mean by perfection.
One writer of that book wrote about absolute perfection, and by that he means the perfection of God. God the Father has never sinned. He does not have a sinful body, or sinful parents, or live in a sinful world. Does that make any difference? I think it does, don’t you? He never has sinned! Of course these things make a difference. What is it like to live all your life in a sinful body? It is different than what can be produced in something sinless. The Bible teaches that we have been born of sinful parents, and we live in a sinful environment, and we carry about a body that Paul called “our vile body” in Philippians 3:21. Our bodies are called “corruptible” in 1 Corinthians 15:53. It does not matter how much you have been converted, you still have a corruptible body. Therefore, perfection in this kind of body has some problems. We have all sinned; therefore, to some extent our past experience has impaired perfection, and even our concepts of it. Since God is absolutely perfect with no background or history of sin, then there may be a difference between absolute perfection and human perfection.
Some will point out that Jesus said, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Matthew 5:48. If absolute perfection is not possible, why did He say that? This is where we can be thankful that we have an inspired commentary. “He tells us to be perfect as He is, in the same manner.” MB 77. It does not say in the same degree or to the same extent. There is a difference between degree and manner. In the same manner means “like this,” or “in the same way.” What, then, did Jesus mean about us being perfect even as our heavenly Father is perfect? “As God is perfect in His sphere, so man is to be perfect in his sphere.” MM 112,113. God has a different sphere than we have. Ours is a limited one, and His is widespread.
Therefore, while we might not be able to be perfect in the same degree, we can be perfect in the same manner. This qualifies the meaning of perfection to some extent as it relates to man. You will think I am walking on both sides of the topic, but I defy you to read the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy without straddling the fence sometimes. You cannot discuss the whole topic well without looking at every side of it. We must be most careful what we say and think about perfection, but most people are not sufficiently careful. This is a more involved subject than we assume it to be.
It is difficult for beginners to understand maturity. This is not a criticism; but many have a difficult time with the elementary things of Christianity. Try to talk to a young child about a retirement plan. There is little comprehension of such a thing. And often we may be in the church a long time but be quite juvenile in our experience and knowledge. Therefore, perfection, which is full growth, or maturity, is a difficult thing. But both the Scripture and the Spirit of Prophecy are most explicit about perfection. The biggest question we have is: Is perfection possible to any extent?
The Bible provides several answers. “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection….” Hebrews 6:1. (The margin of my Bible says “full growth or maturity.”) “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ…” Hebrews 13:20,21. “I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them, as Thou hast loved Me.” John 17:23. “Whom we preach [meaning Christ], warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.” Colossians 1:28. “Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.” Philippians 3:15. “Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect.” 1 Corinthians 2:6. “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” Ephesians 4:13.
The Spirit of Prophecy agrees with the Bible. “The Lord requires perfection from His redeemed family. He expects from us the perfection which Christ revealed in His humanity.” CG 477. “God requires perfection of His children.” COL 315. “If you make God your strength, you may, under the most discouraging circumstances, attain a height and breadth of Christian perfection which you hardly think it possible to reach.” 4T 567.
With all this, we should cease to say we do not believe in Christian perfection. God does believe in it for mankind. The problem is that we look at ourselves and wonder how this can be possible. Yet we are told that we can attain to Christian perfection even “under the most discouraging circumstances.” But only if you “make God your strength.” Some kind of perfection is not only possible, but is to be expected. There is great disagreement as to what kind of perfection this is talking about.
Sometimes you can understand a difficult concept like this by eliminating what it is not. What is it that perfection is not? Commenting about the false doctrine of holy flesh, Ellen White wrote: “The teaching given in regard to what is termed ‘holy flesh’ is an error. All may now obtain holy hearts, but it is not correct to claim in this life to have holy flesh….To those who have tried so hard to obtain by faith so-called holy flesh, I would say, You cannot obtain it. Not a soul of you has holy flesh now. No human being on earth has holy flesh. It is an impossibility….Let this phase of doctrine be carried a little further, and it will lead to the claim that its advocates cannot sin; that since they have holy flesh, their actions are all holy….The Scriptures teach us to seek for the sanctification to God of body, soul, and spirit. In this work we are to be laborers together with God. Much may be done to restore the moral image of God in man, to improve the physical, mental, and moral capabilities. Great changes can be made in the physical system by obeying the laws of God and bringing into the body nothing that defiles. And while we cannot claim perfection of the flesh, we may have Christian perfection of the soul. Through the sacrifice made in our behalf, sins may be perfectly forgiven. Our dependence is not in what man can do; it is in what God can do for man through Christ. When we surrender ourselves wholly to God, and fully believe, the blood of Christ cleanses from all sin. The conscience can be freed from condemnation. Through faith in His blood, all may be made perfect in Christ Jesus. Thank God that we are not dealing with impossibilities. We may claim sanctification. We may enjoy the favor of God.” 2SM 32.
Here the idea of holy flesh is eliminated. Yet far too many look at the flesh to see how holy the heart is. The Lord looks on the heart, not on the outside. The Jews were interested only in the externals, but Christ was interested in what is on the inside; and perfection is of the heart, not of the flesh. Heart perfection will definitely have an influence on the flesh, but we will never find perfection in the flesh. We will have these corrupt bodies until resurrection or until we are translated. There might be occasional misdeeds of the weak flesh, but we must not make excuses by using this quotation and saying, “Oh well, I cannot be perfect anyway. I will do anything I want to.” It does not say that. We cannot claim holy flesh, but we can have holy hearts that are rightly in tune with heaven. There should not be bondage to sin when the Son has made us free. An occasional misdeed is not bondage. That is just an encumbrance with these vile bodies that Paul calls the body of death. It seems to drag us down like a terrible weight. So we bear about in our bodies these types of problems.
What kind of perfection is perfection of the soul? How perfect can the soul be? What is a holy heart? Will it be as good as Adam’s before he sinned? “Human perfection failed in Eden, the paradise of bliss.” 5BC 1132. Sinless perfection in Adam and Eve failed when tempted. I am suggesting that you must have something better than they had. Is that too severe a thought?
Would we be well off if we had the perfection of the angels? The very next sentence in the above quotation says, “Angelic perfection failed in heaven.” We are talking about sinless beings with sinless bodies that had never seen sin; yet when tempted, one-third of the angels fell, and both of our first parents fell. Their perfection was not a sufficient protection or guarantee against temptation. If you become as perfect as Adam before his sin, or even the angels before they fell, will that assure God that you will not sin in heaven? Never! Your perfection is not a ticket to heaven.
I used to teach flying in the Second World War, and I had a student named Vince who did everything perfectly. It seemed as though the other five students in that group would never learn to fly. Even after being shown a maneuver twenty times, those other students could not get it right. But Vince learned the first time how to do everything. This was my first batch of students, and I used to discuss Vince with the other instructors. They told me I should be very careful with that fellow, and that something terrible was liable to happen, even though it seemed that he did everything flawlessly. He did things so perfectly that I used to bump the stick with my hand when he was coming in for a landing to confuse him so he would have to go around and try again.
When my students finished my portion of their training, they all left and went to another school about two hundred miles away. After about six weeks we got news back from that school about one of my students. The runway was built so that there was about three feet of concrete sitting above the ground. The goal was to land within the first fifty feet of the end of the runway, so they had a long way to slow down in case they lost their brakes. The only one who seemed to be able to do that was Vince. But one day Vince came in to land and his plane was just slightly low, and he hit the wheels on the edge of the runway, and the wheels folded back and he went sliding down the runway on the belly of the airplane. All the rest of those fellows who had such a hard time doing things the right way never had an accident. The perfect one had the only accident. The imperfect ones had no accidents.
Who will be saved and go to heaven? You see, we do not have this figured out quite right yet. Do we? Heaven was not a safe place because many of the angels, with all their perfection, sinned. The same is true of Adam and Eve in their perfection. I don’t care how perfect you become in your sinlessness, your perfection will not save you.
I want to go back to the previous quote (5BC 1132) and give you the entire context of the quotation. “The death of Christ upon the cross made sure the destruction of him who has the power of death, who was the originator of sin. When Satan is destroyed, there will be none to tempt to evil; the atonement will never need to be repeated; and there will be no danger of another rebellion in the universe of God. That which alone can effectually restrain from sin in this world of darkness, will prevent sin in heaven. The significance of the death of Christ will be seen by saints and angels. Fallen men could not have a home in the paradise of God without the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Shall we not then exalt the cross of Christ? The angels [who have never sinned] ascribe honor and glory to Christ, for even they are not secure except by looking to the sufferings of the Son of God. It is through the efficacy of the cross that the angels of heaven are guarded from apostasy. Without the cross they would be no more secure against evil than were the angels before the fall of Satan. Angelic perfection failed in heaven. Human perfection failed in Eden, the paradise of bliss. All who wish for security in earth or heaven must look to the Lamb of God. The plan of salvation, making manifest the love and justice of God, provides an eternal safeguard against defection in unfallen worlds, as well as among those who shall be redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Our only hope is perfect trust in the blood of Him who can save to the uttermost all who come unto God by Him. The death of Christ on the cross of Calvary is our only hope in this world, and will be our theme in the world to come. Oh, we do not comprehend the value of the atonement!”
Any type of perfection that we have, or the unfallen beings on other worlds have, or the unfallen angels have, would not protect us from future sin. There is only one thing that protects us from sin and guarantees against future sin in the face of any temptation, and that is the cross of Christ.
How does the cross guarantee against future sin? First of all, the cross of Christ is one of the most unique types of righteousness, or obedience, that is found any place in the Scriptures. There is not one other act like it. “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of One shall many be made righteous.” Romans 5:19. We understand that the death of Christ on the cross is that one act of perfect obedience, or righteousness. There is no righteousness like the death of Jesus. There is no perfection quite like the death of Christ. It is a different kind of perfection that we do not commonly think about.
The submission that was required at Calvary is most unusual. This is seen in the experience of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. “And He went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me: nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt….He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if this cup may not pass away from Me, except I drink it, Thy will be done….And He left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.” Matthew 26:39, 42, 44.
The Father tried to give Him the cup of our sins, and Christ prayed that this cup would pass from Him. But note in verse 39 that Jesus prayed, “nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt.” You must dwell on what was going on there. If Jesus took the cup of our sins, He would be separated from the One who had eternally loved Him. If He obeyed His Father, He would be separated from His Father; and He feared that separation would be eternal. By obeying His Father, He would have to leave His Father. If He loved us, He would take the cup. If He loved His Father, He would not take it. This was a terrible enigma for Him. And the only thing that carried Him through was that He knew that His Father could be trusted. He loved His Father, and He knew His Father loved Him, and so He always prayed that His Father’s will would be done.
With all of the ramifications of this problem, to pray “not as I will, but as Thou wilt” is a most unusual submission. In other words, He would accept the separation, which He knew to be the Father’s will, because the Father said so. And all the complications that seemed to enter His mind of eternal separation from His Father, in all the heartbreak that separation would bring Him, He submitted to the wishes of His Father. Have you ever seen such obedience? This submission, this yielding, this trust, this self-distrust almost seems to go beyond obedience. The One who was perfect in humanity so totally distrusted Himself that He would not follow His own logic or His own thinking. He simply submitted to whatever His Father willed. The cross of Calvary stands all by itself as the epitome of perfection and righteousness. This is a different kind of perfection. It is obedience, and obedience is righteousness. I suppose the best way to describe it is the selfdenial and the total confidence of relying on someone else who is trustworthy.
This type of perfection is different. I would like to suggest that the whole Bible is filled with this, but we do not often see it. Christ presented the law in Matthew 22 where He talked about supreme love for God. This love toward God, according to Deuteronomy 6:5, is to be “with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” This is total love for God. If all the heart and soul and might were wrapped up in love for God, what else would you love? He is an all-consuming affection. There is no room for self-love. God takes over all my plans, all my ideas, all my interests, all my thoughts. This is supreme love for God.
Also in Matthew 22, Jesus went on to talk about loving our neighbors as ourselves. What kind of love is this? “In the light from Calvary it will be seen that the law of self-renouncing love is the law of life for earth and heaven; that the love which ‘seeketh not her own’ has its source in the heart of God.” DA 20. This self-renouncing, self-sacrificing love is the kind of love that Jesus had. And as we have stated so many times, “love is the fulfilling of the law.” Romans 13:10. And the fulfilling of the law is righteousness and perfection.
Christian perfection is not an egocentric perfection. It is not looking to see how I am doing. It is what I am doing for others, and what do I think about them. And neither is it doing for others because I want to become perfect. It is doing for others because I love them and forget myself. This is found in many places in the Bible. “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” Philippians 2:6-8. In verses 4 and 5, it says, “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” Do not worry about yourself and what you have, but be concerned about others and their needs. In the life of Jesus, this supreme love for God and consuming interest in the needs of others took over and guided Him in every step of life. He loves you and me so much so that He would even accept separation from His Father. That type of self-surrender, of yielding and submissiveness, is truly the perfection of Christ. This is the kind of perfection that we ought to look at.
Jesus said, “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” Matthew 16:24. It is on the cross that we die to self. I would like to suggest that Christ is talking about Christian perfection in that verse. Deny yourself. We forget self, and take up our cross, for we die on the cross we carry. Self is forgotten, and we follow Jesus every step of the way. He leads, He guides, and I do His will. He is the only safeguard against sin.
“Kneeling at the cross, he [the sinner] has reached the highest place to which man can attain.” 5BC 1133. We have visions and dreams that are way beyond the cross, but kneeling at the cross is in reality the highest place that we can ever attain. There is no higher place than to be on our knees, looking up and worshipping that marvelous One who sacrificed to such an extent.
We look to understand what our hands are doing to see if they are doing things as perfectly as we think they ought to. We look at what our eyes see and our ears listen to and our tongues taste to see if we are perfect enough. The Lord is telling us to look instead at the heart. Who has your heart? Who controls your thoughts? Who rules your life? Who dominates you? Are you gladly submissive to Him? Do you delight to do His law? Do you distrust self so totally that you must have Christ to lead you every step of the way?
It is that total distrust of self, that total confidence in God, and that total surrender to Him that is perfection. And there is a unique thing about this kind of perfection. It is easy for the worst sinners, and it is difficult for the best sinners. The bad sinners do not trust themselves because they know how weak they are, and they have been bad for so long. They have never been able to rise above bad sins. They have always been a failure. How desperately they need help, and so they gladly submit to the One who can help them. The good sinners, the ones who are proud of their goodness and doing quite well, externally, are the ones who do not need much help, and it is difficult for them to submit to someone else. They think more highly of themselves than they ought. Therefore, they do not submit. They say, “Let me try.” And the Lord asks, “When will you discover that all your trying is nothing but failures?” He is waiting for us to learn that only in Christ can I accomplish anything. Even our best deeds are tainted with self, and yet we call our good works and our attempts at obedience righteousness.
When we submit to Jesus and He rules the life, life will be different. Jesus said that the greatest in His kingdom would be the ones who serve others. One of the finest parables on perfection is where Jesus talked with the rich young ruler. “Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow Me.” Matthew 19:21. In other words, Jesus was saying if you really want to be perfect, deny yourself, not to obtain perfection, but because you love those poor people, and you want to see them fed and clothed. If you will be perfect, forget yourself. Then follow Him and He will show you what to do. Self-denial is the road to great success in the spiritual life.
Ellen White discussed how the Jews failed in achieving righteousness and perfection. “Now He points out to them the character of the righteousness that all who enter heaven will possess. Throughout the Sermon on the Mount He describes its fruits, and now in one sentence He points out its source and its nature: Be perfect as God is perfect. The law is but a transcript of the character of God. Behold in your heavenly Father a perfect manifestation of the principles which are the foundation of His government. God is love. Like rays of light from the sun, love and light and joy flow out from Him to all His creatures. It is His nature to give. His very life is the outflow of unselfish love….He tells us to be perfect as He is, in the same manner. We are to be centers of light and blessing to our little circle, even as He is to the universe. We have nothing of ourselves, but the light of His love shines upon us, and we are to reflect its brightness. ‘In His borrowed goodness good,’ we may be perfect in our sphere, even as God is perfect in His.” MB 77.
Our sphere is that little neighborhood where we live, the office where we work, or the classroom, or the dormitory. That is your sphere. In that sphere we are to shed light and blessing on all around us. We can only give it as we receive it. We are told that when we give, “it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” Luke 6:38. The great givers are always great receivers. The small givers only get a small bit back. The channel of blessing becomes bigger as our hearts love people more and more.
How big a giver can God make you? I am not talking about money, for money is often meaningless in many ways. I am talking about encouragement, or a loaf of bread, or watching the neighbor’s children, or the prayer at the bedside of someone who is sick, and visiting the dear lady in the rest home who has not had a visitor in two months. I am talking about all the common, ordinary things of life where we forget ourselves and go out to bless other people. All day long the Lord was doing this. And at night He filled back up the reservoir. Always, every day, serving mankind, forgetting Himself that others might be blessed.
I would suggest that the life of service, of total self-forgetfulness out of a great love for others, always lightening their load and always blessing them, has more to do with perfection than any other thing I know of. This life of service has a closer connection with the cross than any other type of activity. Distrust of self, and total confidence in God, makes us safe in heaven for eternity. The cross teaches that lesson. If Christ would not trust Himself under those circumstances, but only His Father, when can you trust yourself? Total trust in Christ is perfection.
How perfect can He make you? At one time the Lord promised Moses He would give the children of Israel flesh to eat until it came out of their nostrils. Moses reasoned with God by saying, “The people, among whom I am, are six hundred thousand footmen; and Thou hast said, I will give them flesh, that they may eat a whole month. Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them, to suffice them? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to suffice them?” Numbers 11:21,22. In verse 23, the Lord rebuked Moses and said, “Is the Lord’s hand waxed short?” Is God so weak that He cannot do what He promises to do? He said He would rain so many birds down from heaven that they would be all over the place. Did He do it? Yes, He did. What will He do with a human being who submits to Him totally? I can only imagine. If God can make out of dust a human being as complicated as you are, what kind of person can He make you? The Bible says, “Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.” Ephesians 3:20. Never limit what God wants to do in man.
In that glorious kingdom above, when we gather there on the sea of glass, we will all be amazed at the others who are there; and we will stand there marveling at what God has done with weak human beings. None will take the praise to themselves. All the praise will be to Him.
May God help you this day to recognize that we can do nothing of ourselves. Without Him we are totally helpless. But I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. This involves a unique relationship of total dependency on Christ and total distrust of self, and leaning on the everlasting arms for everything.
We have not yet witnessed what God wants to do with man. He is singling us out in these special last days to be an example and an encouragement to weak individuals of what God can do. May we so fully depend upon Him that we become huge channels of blessing to all mankind, so that they know that God is not only love, but powerful. May the Lord make you perfect in every good work through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.