Gò0dNews for Life
Perfection
P
by Kristen West
erfection. It was a standard I believed I needed to
Thanks be to God for the work of being perfected!
achieve in every area of my life when I was a child.
David, known as a “man after God’s own heart” (Acts
From grades to social status, trendy outfits to recital
13:22), said it simply in Psalm 138:8: “The Lord will perfect
performances, perfection ruled my life. When I became an
that which concerns me.” David understood he was a work
adult—going through a variety of life messes—I realized
in progress. God made it resoundingly clear that He was
perfection is a myth this side of Heaven. It took me many
looking upon David’s heart and not his outward appearance
years to realize that there is a vast difference between
or performance: “…man looks on the outward appearance, but
perfection (a standard the world promotes) and being perfected
the Lord looks on the heart” (I Samuel 16:7).
(a work that God performs). If I may, I would like to wipe off the glossy veneer on the surface of perfection to reveal its dark underside—pride. The two always go hand in hand. The Pharisees—abrasive and confrontational characters that repeatedly appear in the Gospel stories—are a perfect case study for this. These religious men always put their egos first, made outward appearance of most importance and were obsessed with trapping Jesus. The Pharisees lived for perfection. They were rule keepers to the nth degree. Pride was their driving motive. Jesus clashed with this self-righteous group more than any other recorded in Scripture. Matthew 23 details a speech that Jesus gave to warn people about the deceptions of the Pharisees—denouncing their arrogant ways. A few highlights included: *They do not practice what they teach. (verse 3)
What a statement of truth, grace, and hope! The same
*They do everything to be seen by others. (verse 5)
God who looked on David’s heart is the same God working
*They live for social status, titles, and approval. (verses 6 & 7)
in us today! I pray this truth would breathe life into your
*They focus on the outward appearance. (verses 27 & 28)
heart, friend! We were not made to carry the burden of
This group of men had zero compassion for the hurting,
perfection, walk under the weight of pride or keep up with
no empathy for the broken, and complete disregard for the
the demands of appearances. Give all that to Jesus today
wounded. Pride reigned supreme in their hearts—the very
and let Him perfect that which concerns you: “I am sure of
opposite of what Jesus stood, lived and died for. Without
this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to
the grace of God, we would be just like them, wouldn’t we? Our
completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
sinful disposition always leans towards pride and is bent within us to move us from a place of pride to one of humility, love and grace.
20 // July 2021
About The Author
to act like the Pharisees. It requires God working internally
Kristen West works at Rock Bridge Community Church with a heart for staff leadership, development, and care. She is a communicator with a passion to inspire, encourage, and challenge others in their daily walk with Christ. She writes and publishes weekly content on her blog at kristen-west.com.
