ByPerfection is one debated topic in the body of Christ. You may have heard Jesus say in Matthew 5:48 (NIV), “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” But the context in which He said this ought to be considered. Was Jesus saying it’s possible to be perfect without any iota of sin in your life? Or Jesus was giving out a conclusion on something He said before making that statement? Before we delve deeper into the Word, let’s look at some of the preceding verses of Matthew 5:48.
[43] “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
Matthew 5:43-47 (NIV)
[44] But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
[45] that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
[46] If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?
[47] And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?”
Love Your Enemies
In the above verses, Jesus was teaching some Israelites how loving their enemies perfects God’s love in their hearts. But being physically born and bred in the land of Israel, He knew of a wind of doctrine against it that has endured for generations. That teaching was “Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.” Meanwhile, that is never written anywhere in the Old Testament. That’s why in Matthew 5:43, Jesus started it by saying, “You have heard that it was said …”. So it was a doctrine passed from one generation to another by word of mouth with no scriptural root. Even today, I’ve personally met many people in my life who have derived laws about life based on life experiences and not the Word of God. These things happen.
Jesus did damage control to that teaching. He said, “… love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Then after that, He explained it’s important and rewarding to love our enemies before concluding to say, “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
One difficult thing to do in life is to love someone you know that he hates you. Enemies, both the ones you know and don’t know, dislike your progress. But Jesus said you should love them. Why? Because loving only those who love you doesn’t perfect God’s love in you. It’s when you love your enemies that you can be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.
The expanse of God’s love
God’s love has no loopholes. Its expanse is as broad as the entire world. That’s why John 3:16 (NIV) says,
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
“God so loved the world” means His everlasting love covers everything inside the world, including trees. That’s why He provides rain for even the worst sinners.
Friend, loving your enemies paves way for God to perfect His love in your heart. So don’t withdraw from expressing God’s love to people regardless of what they’ve done to you in times past. God will avenge those who did evil to you but carry no resentment in your heart. When you live this way, you become perfect just as God is.
