“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Matthew 5:48 NIV
What an astonishing command: “Be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” On the surface it seems like an impossible, unreasonable, even thoughtless request, because God knows that we are a sinful race with a fallen nature, and there is no way that we could ever obey this command. God’s eternal plan for us is so designed that we are unable to obey His commands in our own strength. Yet, over time we can nurture a very legalistic mindset, always trying to perfect our own walk, just trying to be a little better, work a little harder, always striving but never reaching that goal of perfection. We can become judgemental, looking down on those ‘less perfect’ than ourselves, and never satisfied with our own, futile efforts. Often, we will spend months, years, even decades trying to reach our own standards of perfection through our own imperfect strength, until at last we come to understand that being perfect can never be achieved in our own effort, but only through Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord. Before the world was created, God planned a way for us to be made perfect. A plan that had ultimate fulfilment in Jesus Christ, for our righteousness is in Him and we are perfected in Him. “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) In Christ, we are to become mature, complete, lacking in nothing. We are to live out all that God has done for us in Jesus Christ through the indwelling power and presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
PRAYER THOUGHT
Lord Jesus, thank You for the gift of righteousness we have in You.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord Jesus, thank You, through Your indwelling Holy Spirit we can become mature, complete, lacking in nothing, living out all that You have done for us, in a righteousness not of our own, but Yours. AMEN
INTERNATIONAL BIBLE READING ASSOCIATION (IBRA)
Matthew 6:9-15
LISTEN TO TODAY’S DEVOTION
If you received our daily emails, please listen to today’s devotion on our website www.ffdl.co.za
On Facebook follow this link to start listening.