Paul closes Ephesians in chapter 6:10-24 with an exhortation unto Christian perfection. We are exhorted to “stand firm against the schemes of the devil”, “resist in the evil day”, and “extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one”. If we are living victoriously in this way, will we be sinning from day to day?
Some will say that we will never stop sinning until we reach heaven. I agree that we will always be prone to sin. However, multiple verses in Scripture expound on our freedom from sin and the exhortation to avoid sin. God would not put these verses in Scripture if it were not possible. However, we should understand this exhortation as preparing us for heaven.
There is no sin in heaven, and you and I will not be the first person allowed to enter while we continue in sin.
Christian perfection is rooted in subjection. We strive for Christian perfection because Christ calls us to be perfect in our hearts (Matthew 5:48), and because we know we are in subjection to Christ (Ephesians 1:22). Thus, subjection is embodied through obedience. We acknowledge our belonging by subjecting our will and our decisions to Him to whom we belong. As Christian perfection is an exhortation throughout Scripture, we strive for it because we are in subjection to Christ and not rebelling against Him. Genesis 17:1 (Abraham was instructed to walk before God and be blameless), Matthew 19:21 and 2 Corinthians 13:11 (complete), Ephesians 4:13 and Hebrews 6:1 (a mature man), Colossians 1:28 (complete in Christ), Colossians 3:14 (perfect love), James 1:4 (perfect and complete, lacking nothing), James 2:22 (faith is perfected), James 3:2 (a perfect man does not stumble and is able to bridle the whole body), 1 John 2:5 (love of God is perfected in the one who is obedient), and 1 John 3:9 (does not practice sin and cannot sin because he is born of God – see my study on 1 John for a more full explanation on “cannot”).
In financial planning, proper budgeting and reaching financial goals is about making choices. Unless your income is so high that you can spend money on whatever your heart desires, we must always make decisions as to how we will spend money. With a series of goals set, our impulses suggest that we should purchase the shiny object in the checkout lane. Our mind begins to justify why we need it. However, if we can recall the goals we have set, we can intervene in the moment and remind ourselves of the importance of the goals. The shiny object will have to wait, and in the moment, we deem the goals to be more important.
In the Christian life, we are constantly faced with choices and decisions to make. Ephesians 6:10-24 confronts us with the reality that we will constantly face “schemes of the devil”; struggle with rulers, powers and the forces of darkness and wickedness; the “evil day”; and “flaming missles”. We may even, as Paul experienced, suffer persecution for our belief in Christ. Daily, we are faced with choices.
Christian perfection is all about choices. As we find in James 3:2, we should strive to bridle the whole body. This is a person who is committed to constantly choose Christ. Like the person who never makes impulsive purchases and is very diligent about spending money only on necessities and budgeted goals, Christian perfection is rooted in always choosing Christ in every situation.
Make no mistake, bridling the whole body is extremely difficult. This is why many people object to the idea of Christian perfection. It is perceived as too much work and nearly impossible. With subjection in view, however, it is clear that such individual is not yet ready to admit a full subjection to Christ.
Ephesians 6:10-24 plainly shows that we are not alone in the struggle against evil and sin. We are called to put on “the armor of God”. Through God, we are able to overcome this world. We are to gird our loins with “truth” which comes from God, the “breastplate of righteousness” which is the righteousness of God, the “gospel of peace” which again comes from God, the “shield of faith” of which we know Christ is the author, and the “helmet of salvation” which was purchased for us by Christ.
We are also exhorted to pray. We become aligned with Christ through prayer, and prayer is the channel by which we are strengthened in the Holy Spirit to live in this world.
The one who refuses Christian perfection does not trust in the full armor of God. Anyone who walks in Christian perfection cannot boast of being made perfect through works. Our Christian perfection is rooted in taking on the strength of the Holy Spirit who enables us to walk in perfection.
With respect to Matthew 5:48, it is one of the plainest exhortations in Scripture for Christian perfection. The Greek Lexicon defines “perfect” as “of mind and character, one who has reached the proper height of virtue and integrity”. Thus, James 3:2 describes this as bridling the whole body, James 1:4 describes it as “lacking in nothing”, and 1 Corinthians 9:27 describes this as to “buffet my body and make it my slave”.
Jesus describes this in Matthew 16:24 as “deny himself”, Romans 8:13 describes it as “putting to death the deeds of the body”, Galatians 5:24 describes it as “crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (see also Galatians 5:16), Romans 6:6 describes it as “no longer be slaves to sin”, Romans 13:14 describes it as “make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts”, Colossians 3:5 describes it as “consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passions, evil desires, and greed”, and 1 Peter 2:11 describes it as “abstain from fleshly lusts”.
Christian perfection is not being perfect in every way, such as having perfect knowledge before buying a lemon of a vehicle, always carrying an umbrella on the right days, or always making the perfect decision while conversing with your spouse. Christian perfection is ultimately about self-denial, self-control, obedience to Christ, subjection to Christ, imitating Christ, and practicing the righteousness of God.
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