Today, I wanted to talk about "perfection". I'd like to start by quoting a song that many of you probably won't be familiar with..
"Perfection is my Direction. Even if that's all I had"
It's not like I need no correction, I just know that
Life's not so bad."
... Honestly, been thinking a lot about what it means to be "perfect". In the new testament, Jesus tells us to "...be ye therefore perfect..." How is that POSSIBLE?!! Being human is the definition of being IMPERFECT!! How is it that we can even be commanded to be perfect? Nephi, in the Book of Mormon, tells us that "the Lord giveth no commandments to the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." (http://lds.org/scriptures/bofm/1-ne/3.7?lang=eng#6)
Why then, would Jesus Christ, knowing that we are all human and imperfect beings, command us to be perfect? Kind of at a paradox here... I'm going to ask the world at this point to tell me how that is possible? I want people to give me their answers as to HOW and WHY Christ would command us to be perfect, knowing that none of us would be able to be perfect in this life... Please comment! And post this link to your facebook or send it to your friends, I wanna hear EVERYONE'S answers to this question.Now, I have an answer... But I'm not going to tell y'all until someone breaks the ice first!! I want COMMENTS!!! I will give y'all my answer soon! (hopefully) But it all depends on the rest of y'all.. God Bless Y'all!!
Oh Jake.... I've been waiting for someone else to comment, so I didn't have to be first (and so I could copy their answer).
ReplyDeleteI personally feel that the commandment to be perfect is giving us something to work for. There are a lot of things that I know I will never be but that doesn't keep me from trying and working towards being better at those things. Also, I believe that while we will not achieve perfection in this life we will have the chance to continue to work towards that goal in the next life, and how sweet will it be to have a head start because we have worked on it here.
I'm kinda late responding, but after our 4th Sunday lesson that I had to teach, I had a completely different understanding to becoming perfect. In 3 Nephi 27:20 it says:
ReplyDelete“Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day”
I came to the realization that our understanding of perfection here on earth is just so limited. What is really required of us is to strive, as Sue put it, and continually strive to do what the lord asks us and of course we need to always be repentant and come unto Him and take His yoke upon us and we will have claim on His grace, which will make us as He is, guiltless and spotless.
WHAT A RELIEF!!! Thank you Elder Barnhart!