Scripture Reference: Matthew 5:48
This truth concerning the perfection of the saints of God is a very much misunderstood teaching by the confessing Christian world today, and this is why Christianity don’t believe they can and must be perfect. Gods word clearly tells us to be perfect and since this is a command of God, then we need to understand how this is done. Gods word does not tell us to do a certain thing if it would be impossible for us to achieve it. Perfection is not an overhaul of our body, soul, and spirit, making us like Adam in the beginning before he fell into a life of sin, but rather we must have a new life placed within us and this life is the very life of Christ. Jesus himself tells us these words stated in John 10:10 that says, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
Christ came to give us his life, which is a sinless and eternal life, but we cannot have his life unless we are willing to give up our life, which is a life of sin. Listen to what Paul tells about the life of Christ in what he says in his writings of 2 Corinthians 4:10-11 that says, “Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the “life of Jesus” might be made manifest in our body. For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the “life of Jesus” might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.”
Paul is telling us that we ourselves do not live a sinless and perfect life, but rather it’s Christ that becomes the life that will manifested in and through our mortal flesh. Listen to Paul again concerning this in what he says in Galatians 2:20 that says, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Can you not see that it will be the sinless and eternal life of Christ that will take over the reigns of our heart and life and not us within ourselves living a sinless life? Listen again to Paul in what he tells us in Colossians 3:3-4 that says, “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.” Notice that Paul tells us that we. which was our old carnal man, is dead and Christ becomes our life. Jesus himself tells us these word stated in John 14:6 that says, “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
Christ was the very “ life of God” manifest in the flesh. Let the apostle John enlighten us concerning this truth in what he tells us in I John 1:1-2 that says, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)”
To possess Christ in our mortal body means that we possess his life, because he himself said he was the way, the truth, and the life. In regards to this listen to what John tells us in I John 5:12 that says, “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” This life of Christ” is both sinless and eternal. So its not us that lives a sinless life, it’s the “life of Christ” being manifested in and through our mortal body. So perfection is the perfection of the very “life of Christ” in us and not our old sinful life that we were born with when we were born physically into this world from the womb of our mother. Here is the conclusion of the matter, which is to say, cease from trying to live for Christ and let Christ live for you. We become a perfect man in Christ as Paul tells us in Colossians 1:27-28 that says, “To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:”
Perfection is therefore the perfecting of the very Life of Christ” within our mortal being and it certainly is not us living a sinless life by choosing to do so like its being taught by some today. When Adam was created he was created without sin or having a sinful nature. When Adam did sin by partaking of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he did so by choice. He chose to eat of the tree, and was not forced to eat of it. When Adam fell into sin and rebellion against God, his nature was spiritually changed and it became sinful. This nature was passed on to every person that will ever be born physically into this world. Some teach that every person born into this world were not born a sinner nor were they born with a sinful nature, but if that be true, then why do we all begin to sin against God somewhere in out life as we grow physically? We are not, at our physical birth, born like Adam was in the beginning when he possessed no sin nor had a sinful nature and neither was he created being a sinner.
It was sin that entered his life and changed his nature spiritually into a sinning rebel against God and that sinful nature was passed on to every person born into this world. So we can say that Adam was created being a perfect man without sin, but when he sinned against God he was no longer perfect and sinless. To believe that we can choose not to sin from our physical birth, as Adam did, is leaving Christ out of our life completely. Jesus himself tells us that without him we can do nothing, but Paul t5ells us in Philippians 4:13 that through Christ that strength us we can do all things. To say we can by choice not to sin is another gospel that Gods word condemns. “HE THAT HATH AN EAR, LET HIM HEAR WHAT THE SPIRIT SAITH UNTO THE CHURCHES”