Striving for Perfection

Aim high. Mature with grace. Separate self from sin. When self is all but gone and all that’s left is Him—you’ve arrived.

January’s Awakening, Day 28

The fact that perfection is beyond our reach, should not diminish the fervor of our desire after it.

 —C. H. Spurgeon  

Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.

 —Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

The only way to perfection is, to live in the presence of God.

 —Thomas Wilson

Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:48 NIV

            Even though true perfection in holiness is impossible in this earthly existence, we are instructed by God’s Word to continually walk in the Spirit of holiness in our new creation in Christ. We must aim for perfection for we will always fall way short of the mark. If we simply aim for mediocrity, even that will escape us. Maturity in ever-increasing holiness is a great goal to strive for and work for till the day Christ brings us home. Remember the key that holiness is “wholly otherness,” such that it is a separation of our body, soul, and spirit from everything contrary to God. Avoid and refrain from the sin that so easily ensnares and entangles us and chains us down to prevent us from winning the race. And yes, perfection truly has arrived when it’s more of Him and less of you to the point where self has all but disappeared.