Here is a good word from Jesus, a word to put us in our place:
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matt. 5:48).
Well not much of a hope with that one. Talk about falling short, and (if you don’t mind Jesus) just a tad unrealistic. Reading this the other day a little slower so that I did not just jump over it as if it is one of those Scriptures just simply to ignore I thought about the context, and that gave a different slant to it.
Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you… For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the gentiles do the same?
I suspect that is the perfection that Jesus is referring to. Embracing the ‘other’, loving (orientation and action), praying for… etc.
Attainable? I think we can realistically go a long way toward that, and maybe more challenging than some idea of a set of standards. Pushes us toward Paul’s confession that although he was righteous according to the law, he was the ‘chief of sinners’. All-but-perfect…but not perfect as God, the heavenly Father. Maybe hard to implement on the global political scene but it certainly will never be implemented there if those who claim to follow Jesus do not align with those values.
At a time of scandals being exposed within the body of Christ (keep your seat belts on, us charismatics) and beyond, honesty and humility need be the clothing we pull out of the wardrobe. Back in the day I was asked who is your ‘prophetic’ hero and of course it was either Elijah or John the Baptist. Give everything a healthy old kick and never acknowledge that my toe was bleeding. I probably don’t have time to answer such a question today but have been thinking a bit about Elisha (a few troubling elements in his behaviour such as the call some bears out of the woods ‘trick’!!!). Elisha: crazy levels of revelation, and radical honesty when blind.
Gehazi (his servant) ran after Naaman and deceitfully gained some gifts, but Elisha went with him (in Spirit). Revelation!
He went in and stood before his master, and Elisha said to him, “Where have you been, Gehazi?” He answered, “Your servant has not gone anywhere at all.” But he said to him, “Did I not go with you in spirit when someone left his chariot to meet you? (2 Kings 5:25,26).
The king of Aram was somewhat annoyed, suspecting a traitor but the situation was that Elisha had a major heads up on what was being planned in secret:
The mind of the king of Aram was greatly perturbed because of this; he called his officers and said to them, “Now tell me: Who among us is betraying us to[b] the king of Israel?” 12 Then one of his officers said, “No one, my lord king. It is Elisha, the prophet in Israel, who tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedchamber.” (2 Kings 6:11,12).
Then we have the situation where the ‘Shunammite’ woman came in great distress after her son had died. Anyone who has some measure of prophetic gifting could have made a good stab at it… ‘I pray for this woman who is in great distress, she has encountered great pain’ (and then if ‘cheating’ watch the body language – I do think that is cheating!! – and push on) ‘within her home…’ and maybe even eventually get to ‘her son’! (A little bit of exaggerating description in there but hopefully I get a point across.) Mr. mature prophet Elisha could have done with some mentoring as we go on to read:
When the man of God saw her coming, he said to Gehazi his servant, “Look, there is the Shunammite woman; run at once to meet her and say to her: Are you all right? Is your husband all right? Is the child all right?” She answered, “It is all right.” When she came to the man of God at the mountain, she caught hold of his feet. Gehazi approached to push her away, but the man of God said, “Let her alone, for she is in bitter distress; the Lord has hidden it from me and has not told me.” (2 Kings 4:25-27).
Honest and not very impressive… but honest and life-giving for the boy is raised from the dead.
Be perfect… be honest… be humble… be ignorant… embrace others…