[0:00] Since the beginning of this year, we have been following Jesus of Nazareth, the greatest preacher who ever lived, into his life-changing, history-shaping, counter-cultural, culture-making Sermon on the Mount, the greatest sermon ever preached.
[0:19] And today we come to just one line of the sermon. One line that is shot through with the gospel, shot through with good news. One line that oozes incredibly good, good news, liberating news.
[0:41] It is found in the gospel according to Matthew, chapter 5, verse 48. Matthew 5, verse 48. If you are able, would you please stand for the reading of really good news?
[0:59] Jesus is speaking. The Messiah and Lord, the Savior and King, the lover of our souls is speaking. Therefore, you are to be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.
[1:18] The word of the Lord. You may be seated. This one line is gospel.
[1:37] This one line is good news. This initially intimidating line is liberating.
[1:48] Yes. And when we understand and embrace the gospel in this one line, everything changes.
[2:00] Let us pray. Lord Jesus, we come to trust you. And we come to believe that you only say what you intend to make real in our lives.
[2:18] And so we trust you to do that today. Amen. I think it would be helpful if we took a moment and review where this one line is located in the Sermon on the Mount.
[2:36] Jesus begins his great sermon with the so-called Beatitudes. Blessed. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted, etc.
[2:49] And we came to learn that we can render the word Jesus uses, which we translate blessed, as right on. Right on are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
[3:00] Right on are the gentle and meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Right on are the peacemakers, etc. Jesus then makes the surprising and startling claim that such people, Beatitude people, are what the world desperately needs.
[3:19] You are the salt of the earth, he says. You are the light of the world, he announces. Beatitude people are to bring flavor to the world. And they are to check moral and spiritual decay.
[3:31] Beatitude people are to bring light to the world. They are to dispel the shadows and the lies. Jesus then launches into what's the major theme of his sermon.
[3:42] You must never think, he says. You must never think that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets. I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. And it turns out that this is the major approach of Jesus to life in general.
[3:57] Not to abolish, but to fulfill. He has come to fulfill the prophets. He has come to bring the prophets' visions and dreams into reality.
[4:10] He is fulfilling Daniel 7. The vision of the coming of the Son of Man. He is fulfilling Isaiah 53. The vision of the coming of the suffering servant of God.
[4:21] He is fulfilling Ezekiel 34. The vision of God himself coming to be the good shepherd. He is fulfilling Ezekiel 37. The vision of these dry bones coming to life.
[4:33] He is fulfilling the vision of Isaiah 9. Of the child who was born. A son who was given. Who will bring light to those who are walking in the valley of the shadow of death.
[4:44] And on it goes. I have come to fulfill the prophets. And then come to fulfill the law. Not abolish the law.
[4:56] But to fulfill the law. To fill it full, as it were. To bring out all of the inherent meaning and implications of God's good law.
[5:08] As we noted a couple of weeks ago, Earl Palmer suggests that we can look at the Ten Commandments as this great ark. And what Jesus is doing in his sermon is he's drawing out this ark into the full circle which was intended in each of those commandments.
[5:25] Jesus then says that the law is all about righteousness. Righteousness is a relational word. It's all about relationship. Righteousness is all about right relationship.
[5:38] Righteousness is all about right relatedness. The ark of the law moves toward this circle of right relatedness in every dimension of our lives.
[5:50] Then he says. Unless your righteousness. Unless your right relatedness exceeds that or surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees.
[6:03] You shall not enter the kingdom of heaven. Mercy. Exceed. Surpass. Yes. Yes. Because the religious leaders of Jesus' day have thought that they had kept the law.
[6:16] That they were righteous if they kept the letter of the law. And Jesus shows them that no. You can keep the letter of the law and not keep the law.
[6:28] For the law is about relationship. The spirit of the law is about relationship. The kingdom of heaven that is invading the earth in Jesus is all about relationship. And we will not enter the kingdom.
[6:40] And we will not enjoy the kingdom. Unless we attend to relationship. So. In six. You have heard it said.
[6:50] But I say to you sayings. Jesus spells out what this looks like in everyday life. He draws the ark of the commandment. You shall not murder.
[7:02] Into a circle that includes that unresolved anger. Which spills over into sarcastic and insulting words. He draws the ark of the commandment.
[7:13] You shall not commit adultery. Into that circle that includes lustful longing for other human bodies. Using other people as mere ends to our means to our ends.
[7:24] And he draws the ark of the commandment. You shall love your neighbor. Into this circle that ends up including the neighbor. So that we love the enemy. We bless those who persecute us.
[7:35] Just as he does. And to be like the father. Whose children we are. The father who loves indiscriminately. And scandalously. Okay. And then comes the one line.
[7:47] Now. Therefore. In light of everything else he has said. In light of. I did not come to abolish. But to fulfill. In light of his six.
[7:57] You have heard it was said. But I say unto you. Therefore. Therefore. You. Are to be perfect. As your heavenly father.
[8:09] Is perfect. Perfect. Like Jesus. I know. How imperfect. I am. And how.
[8:21] The more. I try. To make myself. Perfect. The more. Imperfect. I become. In. Perfect. Perfect.
[8:32] You shall be. Perfect. As your father. Is perfect. Your father. Your. This is the third time. In the sermon on the mount.
[8:43] That Jesus has referred to. His father. As our father. Your father. 516. Let your light shine before others. That they may see your good works. And glorify. Your father.
[8:53] Who is in heaven. 545. That you may be children. Of your father. Who is in heaven. And then. The one line. 548. As your heavenly father. Is perfect.
[9:04] Your. Father. The point being. The point being. That God becomes our father. Before we are perfect. Becoming perfect.
[9:15] Does not make us. Become children. Of the father. We are children. While. Imperfect. The one line. Is not saying. Get with the program.
[9:27] And become perfect. So that the God and father. Of our Lord Jesus Christ. Will make you. His child. The one line. Is not saying. Work hard. So that the father. Will finally.
[9:38] Love you. The father. Already. Loves us. The father. Has already. Adopted. Us. He's already. Signed. And sealed.
[9:49] The adoption. Papers. Already. We are children. With Jesus. The only begotten. Son of the father. Now. Says the older brother. You are to be like.
[10:00] Your father. Which is why. J.I. Packer. Calls the sermon. On the mount. The royal. Family code. The royal. Family code.
[10:11] This now. Is what it. Me. Being. A royal. Child. Of the. Great. King. Looks like. In the rough. And tumble. Of a broken world. Your.
[10:22] Father. Jesus. Knows. The father. Jesus. Loves. The father. Jesus. Trusts. The father. Even. In the face. Of evil. And death. On the cross.
[10:32] He cries out. Father. Into your hands. I commit. My spirit. And he wants. Us. To know the father. He wants. Us. To love the father. He wants. Us. To trust the father. He wants.
[10:43] Us. Like him. To be. Like the father. We were created. In God's image. And he wants us. To actually. Live. Out. Being. That image. Therefore.
[10:54] You. Are to be. Perfect. As your heavenly. Father. Is perfect. Perfect. The word. That's used.
[11:04] Here. Is the word. Telaios. It's related. To the word. Telos. Not. Telos. But. Telos. And it's crucial.
[11:15] That we. Understand. At least. To some degree. This. Word. Group. Because. This will. Explain. To us. Why it is. That Jesus. Calls us.
[11:26] To follow him. This will. Tell us. What he has. Gotten a hold. Of us. For. The apostle. Paul. Tells the Philippians. I press on. To lay hold.
[11:37] Of. That for which. I was. Laid hold. Of. By Christ. Jesus. Telaios. He laid. Hold. Of us. For. Telaios.
[11:49] Now. Telaios. Means. Arriving. At the. Telos. Telaios. Means. Actualizing.
[12:00] The telos. Telos. Means. Goal. Or. End. Or. Completion. Telos. Means. The inherent.
[12:11] Destiny. Of a thing. So. The telos. Of an acorn. Is to become. An oak tree. The telos. Of a caterpillar. Is to become. A butterfly. The telos.
[12:23] Of a little baby. Is to become. A fully grown. Adult. Telos. Telios. Actualizing. The telos. Arriving. At the. Inherent.
[12:33] Destiny. Paul. Tells. Timothy. The goal. Of our. Instruction. Is. Love. From a pure. Heart. The telos. Of our. Instruction. Is love.
[12:44] We have. Reached. The telos. Of a teaching. Ministry. When there. When there. Is love. Peter. Says. To those. Whom. He serves. Obtaining. As the outcome.
[12:54] Of your faith. The salvation. Of your souls. The telos. Of our faith. Is the saving. Of our souls. Our faith. Reaches. The telos. When our souls.
[13:05] Are saved. So. Telios. Actualizing. The telos. Arriving. At the inherent. Destiny. More simply.
[13:18] Biologically. This term. Means. Full. Grown. Relationally. Psychologically. Intellectually. Spiritually.
[13:28] This term. Means. Complete. Whole. Mature. Undivided. Later. In Jesus. Ministry. He meets up.
[13:39] With a man. A man. Who says. To Jesus. What good. Things. Shall I do. To inherit. Eternal life. Jesus. Says. If you wish. To enter. Into life. Keep the commandments. Which ones.
[13:51] The man. Asks. Jesus. Then. Recites. A number. Of these. Ten commandments. The man. Replies. All of these. I've kept. Really. All of these. I've kept.
[14:01] What am I still lacking? And Jesus. Says. If you wish. To become. To become. Complete. Talias. If you wish. To become. Talias. Complete.
[14:12] Mature. Undivided. Whole. Sell all you have. Give it to the poor. You'll have treasures in heaven. And come. Follow me. Follow me. Undividedly.
[14:23] Follow me. Completely. Now. Jesus is saying. That the father. Is Talias. The father. Is whole. The father. Is complete.
[14:33] The father. Is mature. The father. Is undivided. Which is why. He's able to send. The son. On the evil. And the good. And cause the rain. To fall.
[14:44] On the righteous. And the unrighteous. The father. Is undivided. He's mature. About his love. And he blesses us all. Therefore. You.
[14:55] Are to be whole. You. Are to be. Complete. You are to be. Mature. You are to be. Undivided. Just as your father. Is. Paul tells.
[15:08] The disciples. In the city. Of Colossae. That this is the reason. Why he preaches. We proclaim. Christ. Admonishing. Everyone. And teaching.
[15:18] Everyone. With all wisdom. That we might present. Everyone. Complete. In Christ. Talias. Talias. In Christ. Who is the. Talias. Paul tells.
[15:29] The Colossians. That their pastor. Apaphras. Praise for them. Always laboring. Earnestly. In his prayers. That you may. Stand. Perfect. Talias. That you may. Stand.
[15:40] Whole. Complete. Undivided. And mature. And Paul. Tells. The Ephesians. That Jesus. Has given. To every member. Of the body. Every member. Of the church. Certain gifts.
[15:51] So that. Working. Together. Together. We all. Grow up. And become. A mature man. A Tyler. Talias. Man. A Talias. Human. Growing.
[16:01] Into. Jesus. Who is the one. True. Talias. Human. The one line. In the sermon. On the mount. Is shot through.
[16:13] With gospel. With wonderfully. Good. Good news. Therefore. You. Are to be. Talias. As your father.
[16:23] Is Talias. Liberating news. This is liberating news. Yes. Because. It turns out.
[16:35] To be a promise. A promise. You read the text. And doesn't it. Look like. A command. And an impossible.
[16:46] Command. At that. Yes. There is a sense. In which it is. A command. But the command. Turns out. To be. A promise.
[16:59] Why? Why is this command. A promise. For three reasons. First. Jesus. Word. Is the. Performative. Word.
[17:10] You've heard me. Say that often. I said it. Last Sunday. Given who he is. The word. Made flesh. His word. Not only. Informs. It performs.
[17:22] Jesus. Word. Makes. Things. Happen. When he. Speaks. Things. Happen. Let there be light.
[17:33] And there was. Let there be seas. And there were. Be calm. And the wind and waves. Die down. Be gone. And the demons. Flee.
[17:43] Get up and walk. And a lame man. Dances with joy. Lazarus. Come forth. And a dead man. Walks out of the tomb. Tomb. You. Are to be perfect.
[17:55] And we will. You. Are to be mature. And we will. You see. This is. Not just. Another guru. Speaking to us.
[18:05] This is not just. Another. Holy man. Who happened on the scene. This is not just. Another. Idealistic. Philosopher. You have heard. It was said. But I say. But I say.
[18:16] But I say. I. I. I. This is the creator. Come into the world. As one of us. This is the one. Who holds all things together. And if he says. You are to be.
[18:28] Mature. We will. Jesus command. Is a promise. For a second reason. His commands.
[18:38] Emerge. From his heart. And mind. His commands. Reveal. His plans. And purposes. In every command. Jesus is saying.
[18:49] This is what I want to see happen in the world. In every command. He is saying. This is my passion. For human life. And given who he is. His plans.
[19:01] His purposes. His passions. Are going to be fulfilled. You see. This is why. The writers of scripture. Love. Love. The law.
[19:11] Of God. Hasn't that ever troubled you. In our era. Where we don't really like law. It troubles you. That so many. The psalmist. And so many. The writers of scripture. Love. The law. Of God. Why do they love the law?
[19:23] Because the law. Reveals. God's passions. For us. Passions. Which God. Is going to bring. To fruition. So this is how.
[19:33] I think. You're supposed to read. The law. You shall have. No other gods. Before me. You shall have. No other gods. Between. Me. And you. One day.
[19:45] There will be. Nothing. Between. Me. And you. You shall. Make no image. Or likeness. Of God. You shall not. Try to figure out. Who I am.
[19:55] On your own. One day. I will show you. Who I am. In my most. Perfect image. You shall not. Take the name. Of the Lord. Your God. In vain. You shall not.
[20:06] Call. On my name. In vain. One day. You will realize. That I have. Heard. Every time. You have cried out. Using my name. One day. You will realize.
[20:16] That I've answered. Every one of your prayers. In ways. You could never have imagined. You shall not covet. For one day. There will be. No other God. Between you and me.
[20:27] And you will be. So satisfied. In me. That all of your desires. Will be healed. And then he says. And you are to be.
[20:38] Talios. Whole. Complete. Mature. Undivided. This is my plan. For you. This is my purpose. For you. This is my passion. For you.
[20:50] And Jesus command. Is a promise. For a third reason. And this reason. Is embedded. In the actual form. Of the verb. To be.
[21:01] That is used. In the text. You are to be. Perfect. It is in. The future. Imperative. The future.
[21:12] Tense. Of the command. Mode. Just. Think about that for a minute. That's really hard. To get a hold of. The future. Tense. Of a command. Mode. It is so rarely.
[21:24] Used. In the New Testament. And because. It's so rarely. Used. It's really. Difficult. To translate. Accurately. The Greek. Language. Has the capacity. To make.
[21:35] Nuances. That the English. Does not. I would imagine. Many of your other. Languages. Represented. The room. Might have. Greater. Capacity. For making. Nuances. So for instance. The past.
[21:46] Tense. Imperative. The past. Tense. Imperative. Carries. The nuance. Of either. Start. Doing. Or stop. Doing. Very. Clear.
[21:57] Commands. The present. Tense. Imperative. Carries. The nuance. Of. Continue. Doing. Or. Keep. On. Doing. Very. Clear. Commands.
[22:07] So later. In the Sermon. On the Mount. Jesus. Will. Say. Do not. Be. Anxious. And. It's literally. Stop. Being. Anxious. He. Will. Say. Later. To us.
[22:18] Look. At. The. Birds. Of. The. Air. Consider. The. Lilies. Of. The. Field. And. Literally. It. Is. Start. Looking. At. The. Birds. Start. Considering. The. Lilies. Of. The. Field. Now.
[22:30] Most. Of. Us. Grew. Up. With. This. One. Text. This. One. Line. Reading. Be. Ye. Perfect. I. Remember. My. Grandmother. Used. To. Cite. It. To. Me. Be.
[22:41] Ye. Perfect. But. That. Is. Not. How. To. Translate. The. Future. Imperative. Other. Modern. Versions. Have.
[22:52] Therefore. Be. Perfect. But. But. That's. Not. How. To. Render. This. Text. The. Version. We're. Using. This. Morning. The. NASB. Gets. Closer. You.
[23:02] Are. To. Be. Perfect. But. Again. It's. Not. Getting. There. So. This. Past. Week. I. Read. Every. Greek. Grammar. I. Could. Get. My. Hand. On. To.
[23:12] Try. To. Understand. Better. This. Future. Imperative. And. I. Come. To. Conclude. That. The. Best. Way. To. Render. It. Is. Going. To. Be. Not.
[23:25] Start. Being. That. Would. Be. The. Past. Imperative. Not. Continue. Being. That. Would. Be. The. Present. Imperative. But. Going. To. Be. And.
[23:35] The. Best. Way. To. Render. This. One. Line. Of. The. Sermon. On. The. Mount. Then. Is. You. Are. Going. To. Be. Perfect. Not. Be. Perfect. I.
[23:46] Mean. How. Can. Imperfect. People. Be. Perfect. And. Not. Even. A.
[23:57] Command. In. The. Normal. Sense. It. Is. A. Promise. You. Are. Going. To. Be. You. Are. Going. To. Be. Therefore. You. Are. Going. To. Be. I.
[24:08] Did. Not. Come. To. Abolish. But. To. Fulfill. You. Are. Going. To. Be. The. Telos. Of. My. Will. And. My. Purposes. Are. Going. To. Be. Actual.
[24:18] Life. In. And. For. You. You. Are. Going. To. Be. Telos. Your. Righteousness. Is. Going. To. Surpass. And. Exceed. You.
[24:30] Have. Heard. It. Was. Said. But. I. Say. To. You. Six. Times. And. Those. Six. Times. Jesus. Is. Describing. This. Maturity. He's. Describing. This. Telos. He's. Describing. This. Perfection.
[24:41] He has. In. Mine. You. Are. Going. To. Go. Beyond. Unresolved. Anger. So. That. Words. Of. Sarcasm.
[24:51] And. Insult. Will. Give. Way. To. Words. Of. Blessing. You. Are. Going. To. Move. Beyond. That. Being. Overcome. By. Your. Lust. So. That. You. Appreciate.
[25:02] Objects. Of. My. Affection. With. Delight. You. Are. Going. To. Move. Beyond. Walking. Away. From. Relationships. When. They. Are. No. Longer. Fulfilling. To. You.
[25:12] So. That. You. Can. Hang. In. There. And. Watch. Me. Renew. And. Heal. You. Are. Going. To. Move. Beyond. Propping. Up. Your. Promises. With. An. Oath. So. That. Like. Me.
[25:22] Your. Simple. Yes. Or. No. Is. Enough. You. Are. Going. To. Move. Beyond. The. Need. For. Revenge. So. That. Like. Me. And. My. Father. You. Respond. To. Evil.
[25:33] With. Good. Indeed. You. Overcome. Evil. With. Good. You. Are. Going. To. Move. Beyond. The. Understandable. Hatred. You. Have. For. People. Who. Hurt. You. So. That. Like. My.
[25:43] Father. You. Will. Bless. Those. Who. Curse. You. And. You. Will. Will. The. Good. Will. Of. The. Other. You. Are. Going. To. Be. Deliance. Good. News.
[25:55] Liberating. News. And. How. Is. It. Going. To. Happen. That. Is. Who. Is. Going.
[26:05] To. Make. This. Happen. Answer. The. Preacher. The. Preacher. On. The. Mount. Is.
[26:17] Going. To. Make. This. Happen. He. Is. The. Only. One. Who. Can. Make. It. Happen. It. Is. A. Massive. Job. Massive.
[26:29] Job. It. Involves. Healing. Wounds. From. Childhood. It. Involves. Reforming. Our. Sense. Of. Identity. Our. Self. Worth. It.
[26:40] Involves. Deconstructing. And. Reconstructing. Our. Vision. Of. The. World. It. Involves. Overcoming. Deep. Fear. It. Involves. Teaching. Us.
[26:50] New. Habits. And. New. Behaviors. And. It. Involves. Literally. Literally. Rewiring. The. Brain. So. That. The. Brain.
[27:01] Responds. To. Stimuli. Redemptively. It. Is. Not. A. Command. It. Is. A. Promise. You.
[27:12] Are. Going. To. Be. To. Lyle. I. Am. Going. To. Make. You. To. Lyle. Given. Who. I. Am. You. Are. Going. To. Be. Who.
[27:23] I. Long. For. You. To. Be. I. Told you. This. One. Life. Oozes. With. Gospel. And.
[27:34] What. Is. Our. Role. In. It. We. Keep. Saying. Yes. Yes. We. Keep. Saying. Yes. To. Him. Whose.
[27:45] Word. Actualizes. His. Promise. We. Keep. Saying. Yes. To. His. Passion. We. Keep. Saying. Yes. To. His. Purposes. We. Keep. Saying. Yes. Lord.
[27:55] Jesus. I. Want. To. Be. Hold. And. We. Keep. Confessing. Our. Inability. To. Make. Our. Our. Perfect. It's. An.
[28:05] Important. Part. Of. This. We. Must. Confess. Our. Inability. We. Got. To. Get. Out. Of. The. Way. We. Come. To. The. End. Of. Our. Self. Holification. We.
[28:16] Own. Our. Utter. Helplessness. And. We. Hear. The. Beginning. Of. The. Sermon. On. On. Blessed. Are. The. Poor. In. Spirit. And. We. Confess.
[28:27] That. Our. Trying. To. Make. Our. Ourselves. Perfect. Borders. On. Idolatry. For. If. We. Think. We. Can. Make. Ourselves. Whole. Apart.
[28:37] From. God. It. Means. We. Can. Live. Without. Him. That's. Idolatry. To. Think. That. We. Can. Make. Ourselves. Like. The. Father. Apart. From. The. Work. Of. The. Son.
[28:48] We. Can. Keep. Confessing. Our. Own. Inability. And. Then. We. Keep. Laying. Our. Imperfection. At. The. Feet. Of. The. Sermon. Of. The. Preacher. On. The. Mount. We.
[28:58] Just. Keep. Offering. Up. All. Of. This. Immaturity. Here. It. Is. God. Here. Here. Another. Form. Of. Immaturity. And. We. Keep. All. Laying. It. In. His. Mercy. And.
[29:08] Then. We. Cooperate. We. Cooperate. With. His. Work. We. Just. Do. Whatever. He. Tells. Us. To. Do. So. That. We. Can. Participate. With. Him. In. His. Work. I.
[29:21] Want. To. Conclude. By. Reading. From. C.S. Lewis. And. Maybe. Reading. From. Mere. Christianity. If. You've. Never. Read. Mere. Christianity. By. C.S. Lewis. It's. Just. A.
[29:31] Must. Read. And. Some. Of. You. Who. Know. Mere. Christianity. Well. Probably. Know. Where. I'm. Going. To. Be. Reading. From. I. Find. A. Good.
[29:41] Many. People. Have. Been. Bothered. By. What. I. Said. In. The. Last. Chapter. About. Our. Lord's. Word. Be. Perfect. Some. People. Seem. To. Think. This. Means. Unless.
[29:52] You. Were. Perfect. I. Will. Not. The.
[30:03] Only. Help. I. Will. Give. You. Is. To. Become. Perfect. You. May. Want. Something. Else. Less. But. I. Will. Give. You. Nothing. Less. Let. Me. Explain.
[30:14] Lewis. Rights. When. I. Was. A. Child. I. Often. Had. A. Toothpake. And. I. Knew. That. If. I. Went. To. My. Mother. She. Would. Give. Me. Something. That. Would. Deaden. The. Pain. For. That. Night. And. Let. Me. Get. To. Sleep. But. I. Did. Not.
[30:24] Go. To. My. Mother. At. Least. Not. Until. The. Pain. Became. Very. Bad. And. The. Reason. I. Did. Not. Go. Was. This. I. Did. Not. Doubt. She. Would. Give. Me. The. Aspirin. But. I. Knew.
[30:34] She. Would. Also. Do. Something. Else. I. Knew. She. Take. Me. To. The. Dentist. The. Next. Morning. I. Could. Not. Get. What. I. Wanted. Out. Of. My. Mother. Without.
[30:45] Getting. Something. More. Which. I. Did. Not. Want. I. Wanted. Immediate. Relief. From. Pain. But. I. Could. Not. Get. It. Without. Having. My. Teeth. Set. Permanently. Right. And. I. Knew.
[30:56] Those. Dentists. I. Knew. They. Started. Fiddling. About. With. All. Sorts. Of. Other. Teeth. Which. Had. Not. Yet. Begun. To. A. They. Would. Not. Let. Let. Sleeping. Dogs. Lie. If. You. Gave. Them. An. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In.
[31:06] In. In. Now. If you. Put it. That. Way. Our. Lord. Is. Like. The. Dentist. If you. Give him. An. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. Fine. Dozens.
[31:16] Of. People. Go. To. To. In. To. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In.
[31:26] In. In. In. In. In. paragraph. That is why he warned people to count the cost. Make no mistake, he says, if you let me, I will make you perfect. The moment you put yourself in my hands, that is what you were in for. Nothing less or other than that. You have free will, and if you choose, you can push me away. But if you do not push me away, understand, I'm going to see this job through. Whatever suffering it may cost you in your earthly life, whatever inconceivable purification it may cost you after death, whatever it costs me, I will never rest nor let you rest until you are literally perfect. Until my father can say without reservation that he is well pleased with you, as he has said he was well pleased with me. This I can and will do, but I will not do anything less.
[32:38] Boy, that's good news. We do. A couple of them revolve around the word telos, and I just wanted to kind of put them all into one. So I'll ask you one and then have some follow-up questions. One of the questions is, do we have an individual telos, or is Jesus describing one telos that we aim for, or a bit of both?
[33:12] That's a good question. I think the way to say that would be the telos of an acorn is to be an oak tree, that telos of a caterpillar is to be a butterfly, that telos of a little babies to be a full-grown adult, that telos of any human being is to become like Jesus Christ. That's the plan. Now within each of, then, having given that general sense, yeah, I think that he has particular plans, particular purposes for each of us. And that's why he gives us the gifts he gives us. That's why he gives us the personality he gives us. And he's going to realize that particular telos within the larger human telos. I think so.
[33:53] A little bit of both. Is that what the person thinks asking? Yeah. Yeah. So it's not one size fits all. There's no one cookie-cutter human being. Okay. When we arrive at telos, does it mean that we no longer need Christ or that we no longer learn from him? Good question. When we arrive at telos, it will be another time in another place where none of us is going to arrive there in this life. And Lewis hinted at that.
[34:30] To be fully mature is to be dependent on and integrated into the one mature one. So true maturity is radical, total, unequivocal, undivided dependence on Christ. So if I become, if all of a sudden I realize, hey, I'm telos and Jesus is over there, I'm far, far away. No, it's always, there's no way to be whole except in the whole one.
[35:07] Is that what you think what the person's getting at? Yes, I think so. That answers another one. But there's a third follow-up question is, when we become perfect, does it mean that we become something other than human? Because it seems like the definition of being human is being imperfect.
[35:24] Okay. Okay. Okay. This is where we have to think in terms of the big story. When we first were humans, we were not imperfect. We weren't perfect in this. We fell, we become imperfect.
[35:41] When Christ comes again, he finally realizes all of that and we're perfect. I think St. Augustine put it this way. When we were first created, we were created with the capacity not to sin. When we fell, we don't have the capacity not to sin. We just sin. And in this new state, we'll have the capacity not to sin. We just can't sin. So the definition of human, I want to know which human. I think because we live in this space in between when we're so aware of our sin, we assume that's what it means to be human. No, that's a fallen human. That was not God's plan. We're not to be that. We were this, we became this, and we're going to become that. And this model, by the way, is better than the first one. But at any rate, so the definition of being human that I think scripture would give us made by and for Christ intended to become like him. That's what it means to be human. And we're on our way.
[36:45] Two more questions that are similar to the ones. Do you think we have time? You have time? I think so. Andrea, she's the boss. Okay, so the first question, or the next question would be, when, I'm going to try and word this because it's a couple of questions put together.
[37:03] You're doing well, by the way. Okay, so how do we live in the tension, I think this is what the person's getting at, between this perfection that is in another time and this call in 1 Peter or in Leviticus to be holy as I am holy. Like, how do we live to these standards of what we want to be in this world versus what we're looking forward to in the future? Does that make sense?
[37:31] I'll try. I had thought about trying to incorporate into the sermon the reference to Leviticus and 1 Peter, you are to be holy for I, the Lord, your God, am holy. But I thought that would take us a little bit into other directions. But that's what I want to say. I think that Matthew 5, 48 is Jesus' restating of that command.
[37:57] You are to be holy for I, the Lord, your God, am holy. It's the same thing as you are to be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect. So another way to say teliosk would be to put the word holy in there because holy fundamentally means whole. Now, the tension in that, what I was trying to say here is that even that turns out to be a promise. I believe with all my heart now, I'm going to live the rest of my life with the confidence that any command is also inherently a promise.
[38:27] So, God said to people of old, and then it's quoted again in the New Testament, because I'm holy and because I have grabbed hold of you, you too are going to be what I am.
[38:40] And so this command, it's grace. I think we divide law and grace. The law is grace. Grace. And grace enables you to live the law. So, I want to reduce the tension. He's got a hold of us.
[39:00] I'm holy. You're going to be holy. I'm going to hang on to you. You may try to go away. I'm going to let you go. And we're going to get this job done. Sorry, I just said that wrong, didn't I?
[39:11] I am going to get this job done. Not me. Jesus. One more? Yeah, one more. A couple of people have, actually several people have texted.
[39:26] I think just with hearing this message of grace and trying to wrestle with Telilas in their own life and seeing, I guess, not much fruit of Christ perfecting them and them feeling like they're constantly falling.
[39:41] So, they get to a place where they're questioning their own salvation or they're questioning, do I have this regenerative power inside of me? Or maybe I don't because I don't see any change.
[39:52] Can you speak a pastoral word to these people? I would want to say a couple of things. Let's pretend you're the one. It's easier for me to...
[40:02] Okay, so you're saying sometimes you feel that way. It's me too. All right, so we're going to minister to each other here. That feeling like you just don't see the progress or more than that, you see things that just call into question whether you're saved.
[40:17] Okay, number one. Do you want to be like Jesus? Yes. You would not want to be like Jesus if he hadn't gotten a hold of you. Number two.
[40:28] The fact that you know you're not like Jesus is also a sign that he got a hold of you. When he gets a hold of you, he shows you what you are and where your need is. And the third thing I'd want to say is, Hey, you're too hard on yourself.
[40:42] I know you. And I see all kinds of grace in you. You're seeing the negative. You're seeing the downside. I can see the things he's doing in you. And trust that those are signs that he's going to get this job done.
[40:55] That's what I'm saying. Thank you. Thank you.
[41:06] Dear God, we thank you that you love us just as we are. But that you love us too much to leave us just as we are. And that you are going to fulfill your purpose.
[41:19] And make us like yourself. Oh, bless you. Amen.