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Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. -Matthew 5:48
How's that, for pressure? Christians are called to be perfect. How perfect? - "even as your Father which is in heaven in perfect."
To be perfect, one must be sinless. There are three steps to this:
1) Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. -1 Peter 1:23
When one is born again, all of their sins are washed away, via Jesus' spilt blood on the cross:
And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood -Revelation 1:5
And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. -Matthew 1:21
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. -John 5:24
2) There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. -Romans 8:1
When the born again Christian walks in the Spirit, they are communing with God, and producing fruits of the Spirit:
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another. -Galatians 5:22-26
The Christian is supposed to bring fruit into the Kingdom of God. The Christian is also to bring physical fruit into the Kingdom of God. The Christian is the bride of Christ (See Eph. 5, 1 Cor. 7, 1 Cor. 12, etc). The fruit produced between the union of Christ and His bride are new people born into the kingdom of God, via becoming saved, born again Christians.
3) If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. -1 John 1:6-9
A Christian is not to sin, and is to walk in the Spirit. However, Christians are still in this cursed world, and still in the flesh. When a Christian does sin, they are to confess it to the Lord God, and the Lord will forgive them.
Being perfect also means having a perfect heart towards God:
And said, Remember now, O LORD, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore. -Isaiah 38:3
"With truth and a perfect heart."
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
Jesus is God. Jesus knew that man's heart, and that he valued his earthly treasure more than anything. This man elevated things above God. To have a perfect heart for God, the man needed to get rid of what he valued more than God, and turn his heart to God, completely.
For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. -1 Kings 11:4
Solomon was the wisest man ever. God granted him wisdom. The Bible says in both Old and New Testaments that the man is to have one wife, and the wife, one husband. It even says specifically that kings are to have only one wife. Solomon broke that law, and had multiple wives. Many of his wives didn't follow the one, true God, and they, like leaven in a lump of bread, spread their poison - even into the heart of Solomon, their husband. In addition to worshipping the Lord, Solomon starting keeping pagan practices with his wives, as well. His heart was not perfect with the Lord, like David's. David sinned as well - murder, adultery, polygamy, etc. but he never followed the pagan practices of the false gods. His heart was perfect with the Lord, because he repented of his sins, and never turned to idols and pagan traditions.
And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. -1 Chronicles 28:9
A person can appear to be perfect with the Lord. Outwardly, they can go through all the motions of looking like a good Christian, but the Lord knows what's in their heart. He knows their secrets of secrets. To be perfect with the Lord, the Christian needs to not only look and act like a Christian, but be one inwardly, as well.
Amaziah was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, but not with a perfect heart. -2 Chronicles 25:1-2
God isn't satisfied with "acceptable," "good enough," "close enough," or "reaching the minimum requirements." He wants ALL of you. He wants to commune with you in your heart of hearts. In your soul, mind, spirit, in every way in your walk.
He wants to cleanse your heart. He wants to make you holy.
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. -Matthew 5:48
Notes
1) One of the lies of the black thread, is that a Christian can't be perfect.
2) The deception lies in a misinterpretation of what perfect means in the Scriptures.
3) To be perfect - be saved, walk in the Spirit, confess your sins to God.
4) To have a perfect heart for God - follow Him, and only Him. Cleanse your heart. Step out of pagan traditions, and have a heart perfect for God.
5) The lie of this world is that we can partake of pagan traditions, but still be walking with the Lord. The Bible says else wise. To have a perfect heart means purging the leaven of the black thread from our lives, and following the Lord and His Word.
