God is not…a perfectionist.

That might seem like an utterly nonsensical statement.

Isn’t God perfect? Doesn’t he desire perfect obedience from his children?

Didn’t Jesus literally say “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect“?

Yes, yes and yes.

So…why have I chosen that particular title?

It is true that God wants perfection from us. He has given us laws and principles to live by, which if obeyed completely will indeed result in moral perfection. That’s exactly what Jesus did.

But it’s something that only Jesus has ever done.

If God truly were a perfectionist in the strictest sense of the word, then only one person would be with him in the Kingdom he will someday set up: Jesus.

That was never God’s intention. He promised from the very beginning that it wouldn’t be like that.

When Adam and Eve committed the very first sin by choosing to experience right and wrong for themselves rather than trusting God to teach them about it, they fell short of perfection. They had to be removed from God’s presence, never to return to it as long as they were alive.

And yet, God made this promise to the serpent who led them astray: “…and I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

That’s the very first promise about Jesus, in only the third chapter of the Bible.

What does this tell us?

It tells us that God’s plan was always for his one perfect child to die as a sacrifice for all the rest. Jesus’ death on the cross wasn’t some ‘Plan B’ that God had to come up with after all of his children failed to obey him perfectly.

It was always God’s intention.

It’s true for the human race as a whole and it’s true for you individually. God always knew you were going to fail. His purpose has been in place from the very beginning to accommodate that.

Still not sure?

If you’re struggling to grasp the idea of God not being a perfectionist in the strictest sense, think of it this way.

God could have created human beings such that we never felt tempted to disobey him or perhaps weren’t even capable of it. Moral perfection on our part would have been the result.

If perfection were what God wanted, why didn’t he just do that?

The answer is simple: he’d rather have a world full of children who choose to love him rather than robots who have no choice in the matter.

Perhaps you have children. Or perhaps you know someone who does. If you’re reading these words, you almost certainly possess a computer or mobile device.

Children or devices

Which do you think brings more joy and fulfilment to a person’s life? Children or devices?

I’d hope most people would say children!

God is no different. He wants you to choose to love him (even if you mess up half the time) when you had every opportunity not to, rather than force you to do it by programming you accordingly.

He wants you to learn and to grow and to come to know him through your experiences and your understanding of his message to us in the Bible.

Think about your own children or those of your friends. Do you want them to grow up to be like you? To follow your example? To follow in your footsteps perhaps in terms of their education or their career or their interests?

Or, on the other hand, have you made mistakes in life which you desperately hope your children won’t repeat? Do you hope your children will make better decisions and be stronger against temptation in situations when you know you failed?

I’d imagine that for all of us there are some aspects of our lives and personalities that we’d like to see our children emulate, and others we’d very much hope they avoid!

It’s the same for God, except for one very big difference. He’s never made any mistakes. He’s never failed at anything. He (and only he) can wish for his children to be exactly like him in every regard.

Our desire

That’s what every Christian should strive for. Not grudgingly or reluctantly. When we read the Bible and see the beauty of God’s character, when we express ourselves emotionally to him in prayer or in worship, we should want to be like him. It’s not a chore or a forlorn hope. It should be a joy and an inspiration.

Yes, we’ll fail. If you’re a baptised Christian, then you will already have done so. If you’re anything like me then you’ll have done it many, many times.

But that’s not the end of hope. God doesn’t expect you to be perfect straight off the bat. He won’t even expect you to be perfect at the very end of your life. Not under your own steam.

He will make you perfect. He will change you.

Embrace change

He will change you in both mind and body. When Jesus returns to the earth, those who are considered to have truly trusted and loved God will be given eternal life. Our bodies will be changed from the weak and decaying state we’re currently in, into something else. Something we can only imagine at this time. Something that won’t grow old or get sick or get injured. Something that won’t experience pain and cannot die.

That’s to come in the future and we look forward to it every day.

But right now is when our minds must change. At baptism you make the commitment to change your mind to become like that of Jesus. Your body doesn’t change – that won’t happen until later – but your mind must do so.

Why? Because when Jesus returns, anything in your mind that is not worthy of him will be melted away like a furnace melts the dross out of precious metal.

And what will be left of your mind when that purification process is complete? For some people, the answer will be nothing. For you and me…well, that’s something we’re determining right now with every thought we entertain and every decision we make.

Furthermore, if there’s enough of Jesus’ mind in yours that it survives that purification process, you’ll be given that new body.

And you will at last be perfect as God is perfect.

God will make you perfect. You just have to show him that you want it more than anything else in the world.