Perfection vs. Perfectionism

On local elder, Mr. Greg Thomas.

Well, thank you, Mr. Henderson, and good afternoon, brethren. Happy Sabbath to each and every one of you. As Mr. Patrick Garagri mentioned, the Passover is just a few weeks away. It's coming on us very quickly this year. And I would like to discuss a topic in the sermon today that's been in my mind recently for many reasons. One reason is a Bible study I've been doing in the book of Matthew and the statement that Jesus said in Matthew chapter 5 that we'll get to in a few minutes. Another reason is an HBO series that's on regarding John Adams that kind of coincided with what Jesus said about being perfect, some internet blogs that I've been reading, and lots of meditation. Actually, what I want to speak on today has been in my mind for a long time. And what I'm going to say today relates to the Church of God. It relates to everyone in this room. It's a message for those of us who have repented or are led by the Spirit of God in such a way that we have chosen to be here. And like I've said before in the past, it's like kind of like the group of people sitting in a psych ward, and the one says, why are we here? And his buddy says next to him, we're here because we're not all there.

And we're here today because we're not all there. So the message that I have is special for the Church of God. If I were to give a message similar to this, to the uncalled world, I would phrase things differently. I would emphasize different things. And I would not give this message, apply it in the same way or to the same degree because they don't have something very special that we have and all that goes with it. And that is God's calling and the blessing of God's Spirit.

Since Passover is only a few weeks away, I wanted to give this sermon for the edification of the Church of God, particularly God's Cleveland congregation. And he who has an ear, let him hear. Let's begin by turning to Matthew 5 and verse 48.

A scripture that is always good to read, but particularly before any Passover season, because it was the ultimate goal that Jesus Christ gave his disciples beyond repentance and beyond the gift of receiving God's Holy Spirit, then we have a very large goal that takes a lifetime to strive for. And that goal is achieved one step at a time, one life experience at a time, sometimes even one mistake at a time for us to learn what doesn't work and to reinforce in our minds what's wrong because it's painful and it backfires and then to learn how to do things right.

Jesus said, Matthew 5 and verse 48, after giving a lot of instruction to his disciples on how they should conduct themselves contrary to the Jews or the Pharisees or the scribes, he says, therefore you shall be perfect just as your Father in heaven is perfect. Now, the Scofield Bible note says this about the word perfect there in Matthew 5.48. It says the word implies full development, growth into maturity of godliness. Wow! What an incredible goal that Jesus established for you and I in here today. Overcoming our sins and our faults are so important that God even established an annual Holy Day season to make us get off the merry-go-round of living in this world and all of its distractions so that we stop, get off that merry-go-round and we say, where am I at this point in time? How am I doing? Is my life headed in the right direction? Am I obedient to the teachings of Jesus Christ and His word? Overcoming our sins and faults is very important and that's why we picture removing sin out of our lives by taking living out of our homes.

It's accomplished one step at a time, one experience at a time, and it's a process that will take the rest of our physical lives. Now, let's combine that scripture with something Paul said in Hebrews chapter 6 in which he also discusses perfection. Hebrews chapter 6 and verse 1. We want to blend these two scriptures together so we understand the impact that perfection has and why it's a goal that we continually strive for. Hebrews chapter 6 beginning in verse 1. Paul says, therefore leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God. So, Paul is saying here is there are some basics that we have to get in order in our lives and that is the fact that we need God, the fact that God exists, growing to the point of sorrow, of remorse, to repentance, to beseeching God and asking Him for His Holy Spirit.

And when that elementary principle, those principles are laid down, then there's another task. He said we don't need to go over those over and over again. Once you've done that, once you understand those important things, it's time to go on to perfection, not just dwell with that little foundation, but to do something about it, to take the next step. So, I'd like to ask all of us a question today. Are you going on to perfection or are you a perfectionist?

The difference between the two may sound very slight, but the fruits, the contrast between going on to perfection on one hand and being a perfectionist is very different, vastly different.

And in my sermon today, I would like to discuss the difference between these two perceptions.

The difference between the two, going on to perfection and being a perfectionist, begins with a different foundation. And as you know, after a foundation is laid on a building, if that foundation is faulty, if it's skewed, if it has problems, then it can possibly affect the rest of the building. The difference begins when a foundation is laid, and that foundation is understanding who and what God is and how He views His children. Again, that's those in this room today. This is a message especially for us. I have observed out of the 35-plus years that I have been in the Church of God, that I've counseled people, that I've done an awful lot of observation in my life, that the person who is going on to perfection tends to have a different foundation for Christian living that affects everything about them compared to someone who's a perfectionist.

Both have right motives. It always starts out with the best of intentions. And what are those intentions? You shall be perfect just as your Father in Heaven is perfect. What are the intentions of both that start out very sincere and with the right motives and ideas and concepts? Both are genuinely let us go on to perfection. But somewhere along the way, because the foundation isn't quite right, there becomes a problem. And the problem is that if it's built on a faulty foundation, the results, the structure becomes negative. And it becomes negative to the person who's building that foundation and to those who love them. Let me give you a little definition here of two types of people that God has worked with and loves and calls, two different perceptions and why they're different. First, for a few minutes, and to take a look at a few scriptures, I'd like to talk about a person who has chosen the theological foundation of their entire lives in that they're going on to perfection. This is a person who views their life and the entire world as a glass half full. God loves them deeply, and He's even given them His Holy Spirit.

They're not perfect, but they're growing towards perfection. They know they need to continue to grow, to become more like God every day, and they accept Jesus Christ as their righteousness for their failings. They feel blessed, and they're inspired because of God's love towards them. The fact that God even called them and He gave them His Holy Spirit is proof enough that God loves them, unconditionally, that God always loved them, that God looks upon them with joy and fascination as a loving Father, and that He cares about them in every aspect of His life. It's the love of God that motivates them to grow and to change and become more like Christ. They know they're inadequate.

After all, they realize there's a big gap there at the halfway line. They know they fall short.

They know they're inadequate, but they believe in the following scripture that we're going to read in Romans 1, verse 16, and they take God at His word. If God says it, I believe it, and this is how I'm going to live my life. Romans 1, verse 16. Someone going on to perfection believes this scripture because it's not only in the word of God. It's a powerful statement that tells them how they should view God's love towards them. Paul wrote, For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for every one who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek, for in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith. The righteousness of God, not our righteousness, not any righteousness that we can achieve, but the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith. Now, what does that mean? Well, faith grows over time. There was a time when we didn't even know God, and he planted one of those seeds, and we were fortunate enough to be the seed that fell on the good ground. And it took a little bit of faith in our part to say, I don't understand this, I don't know this, but I'm attracted to it. I'm either going to write for literature, or I'm going to call a minister, or I'm going to talk to more up to this person who's part of the Church of God, and I want to learn more. That's kind of an infant seed of our own faith, combined with the faith that God gives us. And then, as we go through the process of baptism and repentance and the laying on of hands and receiving God's Spirit, then that faith becomes greater. And we are given additional faith that can come only from God. So that's why it's revealed from faith, a very small seed, some of it even generated by our own thoughts and efforts and desires, to one that's much greater and influenced by God's Spirit. For the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith as it is written, the just shall live by faith. Those who are justified, what does that mean to be made just? It means that God looks at us and He says, you are okay. You are fine as far as I'm concerned. I see no sin. I choose to see no fault. And why? Because you are made right by your faith in my word. That makes all the difference in the world. Your faith that my son died for your sins and came alive again after three days and three nights and shed his blood for the forgiveness of your sins. Your faith and knowing and understanding that and doing something about it is what makes you just and right and good.

I'd like to read the scripture from the translation of New Century Version. Verse 17.

It says, the good news shows how God makes people right with himself, that it begins and ends with faith as the scripture says, but those who are right with God will live by trusting in Him.

So those who are going on to perfection know that God loves them not because of what they do, not because of what they don't do. God loves them because they have the righteousness of Jesus Christ in them and they have the faith that that's true and they live by that faith. And it's because of that that they want to do right. Not because they think God is withholding His love from them because they're not perfect. Not because they live a life of shame or guilt or I'm never good enough.

But because God absolutely, positively has made them right in His eyes because of their faith.

Let's go to Luke chapter 8 and verse 15. See another very powerful scripture. Jesus had just given a parable about the sower and He explained how the seed was sowed in four different types of soil, four different atmospheres, we could say, four different environments.

But we want to focus in verse 15 about the ones that fell on good ground because that's talking about the people in this room today. As I mentioned when I started, it's talking about those who are here today who can hear this message. He said, but the ones that felt on good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience. You know what? He doesn't say that these people are perfect, does He? No, He says they're noble. Well, being noble isn't being perfect. That's just one small quality out of many qualities that define a person's character or life. He says they have a good heart. Well, that's fine. What does that mean? Well, it means that they have a good attitude, that they listen to the calling that God gives them, and they give themselves as a living sacrifice to Jesus Christ for the rest of their lives, and they want to do what's right, but they are by no means perfect.

They absolutely, positively, of themselves are not righteous. That righteousness has to come from somewhere else for them to be considered just and righteous in God's eyes. And I want you to notice what it says here. He says, with a noble and good heart, and they keep it and bear it with patience. Who are they having patience with? What kind of patience is required here?

Well, they have to be patient with themselves, because they're not perfect. When you receive God's Spirit in the process of leading up to baptism, you totally understand how far short you fall of God's perfection and righteousness. So they have to have patience with themselves, and they have to have patience with God, because they now have a new relationship, and God gives you promises that He doesn't immediately fulfill. Sometimes God promises something, and it takes weeks, months, or years before God provides that promise. That takes patience. What else do we have to have patience with? We have to bear fruit with patience. We have to have patience with one another, because when you're called into the Church of God, everyone around you has problems, just like I do and just like you do. So they keep it, and they bear fruit with patience. But the foundation of someone going on the perfection is they understand that God completely gives them His love. He's always loved them. He's always intended to call them, and He's with them 100%. God is our biggest cheerleader. As I said in a sermon a few weeks ago, God isn't mad at you. God is mad about you. And if we could only understand that and grasp it and believe it, it can change a lot of things about who we are. Now I'd like to define a little bit a perfectionist. A perfectionist is a person who views their life and the world, same reality, same glass, same reality as everyone else, but they view it as half empty. You see, God withholds His love from them, because they're not perfect. They're inadequate. They feel inadequate, and therefore they're in constant judgment of themselves and they're in constant judgment of other people. They tend to feel guilty and uneasy about their faith, because after all, the glass is half empty. They often feel unworthy. They feel guilt-ridden. They feel shameful. And furthermore, because they're driven to perfection in themselves and everyone else, they tend to judge other people far more harshly, because if perfection is the goal, and I'm not content until I'm perfect, and God withholds His love from me and He really doesn't love me because I've still got problems, then the natural consequence of that is that we are going to judge other people often, and we're going to judge them harshly. Further, because they feel driven to perfection, they're going to judge other people on a constant basis. Let's take a look at a scripture in Romans chapter 5 and verse 8. And I'd like this to answer whether the right foundation is going on to perfection or whether it's being a perfectionist. Does God have conditional love towards you?

Does God say that until you do better, I'm going to withhold my blessings from you?

Until you do better and get more perfect, I'm going to withhold my love from you because my love is conditional on you doing this and this and this and this and this and achieving all these things.

Romans chapter 5 and verse 8. Paul writes, but God demonstrates His own love towards us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. So who loved us first? Who loved us the most? Who loved us while we were still stinking and reeking in sin? God did. He always has. You were chosen to be called at this age from the foundation of the world. God knew He would have firstfruits.

And you have always been special in God's sight. He is always long for the day when you would be born, long for the time when you would grow to a point of consciousness that He could call you, that He could offer you His Spirit. You are a delight in God. Verse 9, much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, how much more having been reconciled shall we be saved by His life. If He loved us when we were still sinners, if He loved us when we were still enemies, think how much more He loves us when we cry out to Him and we accept the shed blood of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. The scriptures tell us, brethren, that God has unconditional love for His people towards us. That means that while we're filled with sin and though we were condemned by it before we were called, God loved us first.

And He loved us so much that He was willing to allow His innocent beloved Son to die for us.

This should be considered right here, a bedrock scripture for those who have been called as the first fruits of Jesus Christ. If we really get and appreciate what this scripture tells us, it changes our approach and our thinking toward a large number of topics. It changes how we view ourselves and our own shortcomings. It changes how we view our spouses. It'll change how we rear our children. It'll change how we deal with church organizations because we won't expect them to be perfect. It will change how we deal with our co-workers at work. It will change a lot of things in our lives if we really understand that God's example to us is not conditional love. If you do this, if you do that, if you grow to a certain level, it's unconditional love. Let's go to Romans back just a few chapters, chapter 3 and verse 21. Romans chapter 3 and verse 21.

Paul wrote a few chapters earlier, but now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the law and the prophets. Paul is saying in the Old Testament and former times, people looked to the law of God to be their righteousness. If they could only keep the law of God perfectly, they would consider themselves to be righteous. But he says now there's a righteousness that they part from the law. The law is important. Remember, we need to go on to perfection. We need to be perfect as our Father is perfect. The law is very important. We need to be obedient to God, certainly. But he says there's a righteousness that has nothing to do with just doing something right and obeying the law all the time. Verse 22, "...even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all and on all who believe." So if you believe, and we know that means more than just, you know, some sing-songy, syrupy, yes, I accept Jesus as my personal Savior, that belief means you're doing something about it.

You're here. You're spending your week thinking about God. You're studying God's Word. You're praying. You're meditating. You're involved, meaning that you really believe even the righteousness of God through the faith of Jesus Christ. That's a righteousness that's given to us by God Almighty. "...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Verse 24, "...being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ." I want you to notice in this scripture that the righteousness that we lack, because we're still imperfect, is given to us because of our faith. Where we lack, Jesus makes the difference. Jesus Christ fills the gap while we grow, while we continue to move forward to perfection, while we look at our lives and examine them, and as God opens our minds more and more to see the truly, deeply hidden sin that we deny or that we're unaware of for many, many years. During that whole process of time, we are justified because of our faith. Our faith, that the righteousness of Jesus Christ is what makes the difference. Now, does the scripture say that God gives his grace just a little bit? Because maybe God withholds some of his love or grace while we're struggling, because after all, we're not perfect. You know, I've had the opportunity in the ministry to personally do some funeral services for a few members that have died, and I've attended dozens of funerals of people who died in the faith, and I never saw a perfect person buried. Never saw one. Everyone who died was still working to the last gasp of their breath towards that goal that Jesus Christ gave us. But does God hold back his grace? What does Paul tell us? Is he just enough to get through? Maybe just enough so that you don't stink so much in my sight?

Is that God's approach? No. What does Paul say here? He says, being justified freely, abundantly, with joy. God justifies us through his faith, and faith is God's favor.

Faith is his pardon. Faith is what makes us right and just in the eyes of God. So we're justified freely by his grace. Now, from the perspective of someone who's going on to perfection, here's the personal philosophy that they have. They say, you know, God loved me and loves all of us while we were still sinners. Therefore, we too should love others with unconditional love.

While we or others are struggling with a problem, we should have patience and we should have love towards those who don't meet God's standards. And maybe they don't even meet our own standards.

Now, having this unconditional love towards others, in other words, following the example of God, by no means says that we agree with sin. It doesn't mean that we condone someone's lifestyle.

It means that we simply have chosen to follow the example of God in our daily conduct and in our treatment of others. And while people are struggling with problems, while people obviously have serious issues that they're dealing with, that we should love them unconditionally and not give them the impression by our conduct or by our avoidance that you don't quite meet the standards. So I'm going to withhold my presence from you. I'm going to withhold my love to you until you get your act together. The philosophy of someone who is a perfectionist, and unfortunately this permeates Western civilization, is that love is something that has to be withheld or denied until someone conforms to the wishes and the will of the perfectionist. Since they picture God as a perfectionist because they have a different foundation, they feel unworthy of God's love.

God is perfect. I'm not perfect. Therefore, I don't even deserve God's love. I'm not worthy of God's love. Love is considered conditional, and they believe that it's only available if they do everything right, if they live a life of complete obedience. Sadly, offering conditional love is how most of the child-wearing practices have been done for generations. One reason I mentioned about John Adams is that the next episode is a relationship that he has with his son, Charles. John Adams was a very hard man. He believed in only conditional love.

You do everything I say. You do this, this, this, or this, or I don't love you and care for you.

And in the next episode with his son Charles, as history records, because I've cheated, I read the book, that's going to blow up in his face. Another example of that, and unfortunately I apologize, I left the book at home, was a letter written by one of my personal heroes, Thomas Jefferson, to his 11-year-old daughter. And he tells her in the letter, he says, when you do all your studies, when you do all of these things and everything I tell you to do, then I will love you. And don't forget, he tells her, that my personal happiness depends on your obedience. Now this is to an 11-year-old girl whose mother died within the same year.

But you see, more than we admit it, more than we realize it, conditional love is part of our Western culture. And again, that aspect is, I only care for you, I only love you when you do everything that I say. And when one enforces conditional love, there's going to be one of two responses every time. Number one, first response is that people are going to stop trying to conform, and they're going to depart. Because one of the problems with conditional love is that the rules always change. When someone who is trying to make a perfectionist happy, when they do a few right things, then suddenly the bar is changed. The bar is always changed. And then the guilt trip is laid on. You make me sick, implying that my health and happiness is dependent on you doing everything that I say. And guilt is used, and manipulation. And the idea, sadly, is to control another person by making them feel little, by making them feel inadequate. And ultimately, people stop trying to conform, and they depart. The second thing that occurs with conditional love is that people end up living a life of guilt, and they constantly struggle emotionally to live up to a perfect standard that is impossible to achieve. The results in individuals who do this show that they suffer chronic frustration, and that frustration over a period of time, because they can never do everything right. No one can do everything right, especially when the rules are changing, when the bar is always being raised higher and higher, when you do a few things right. The end result is chronic frustration. That leads to a feeling of despondency. Despondency leads to depression, and instead of it being a motivator, it becomes a demotivator. And a person just is paralyzed with guilt and is basically unable to even function. They're unable to get a grasp on what's wrong with my life. Why do I feel this way all the time? Many of us who were born perfectionists, were born perfectionists due to genetic personality influences. And people are born differently. We all have that unique mixture of DNA, and frankly, some of us just came out of the womb with perfectionist tendencies. Others of us were made one by how we were raised as children.

As I said a few minutes ago, most Anglo-Saxon cultures raise their children with conditional love. And the conditional love says that the parent is going to withhold their affection from their children as a form of punishment until they conform to the parent's every desire. And this unbiblical mindset, sadly, carries over when we become an adult. And if God calls us, then we think that God, our Father, is the same as our physical Father. Our physical Father withheld love.

We were never good enough. We were never able to achieve enough in their eyes. So therefore, our spiritual Father, in his eyes, we must never be good enough. No matter what we do, the bar is always changed. I'm struggling to be perfect, and I can't be perfect. So the way that we're raised, unfortunately, can be carried over into our spiritual lives when God calls us and how we view God's relationship towards us.

And again, that conditional love, sadly, is conditioned to make us feel guilty, to make us feel like our conduct either makes our Father happy or sad, or our spiritual Father happy or sad, as if your conduct can change whether the great God of the universe is happy or sad. Think about that for a minute. Think about all the power and majesty and glory and honor that He has. That one little person's conduct is going to make Him throw all that out and be unhappy.

The concept is, when you're good, then I will love you. A few weeks ago, I made a compliment to a man, Sir Randolph Churchill, the father of Winston Churchill, and I told his story of Alexander Fleming, how he allowed arrangements for Alexander Fleming to go to medical school. You may remember that story. What I didn't mention about him is that he was a miserable father. He believed in conditional love, and one of the things that Winston Churchill struggled with all of his life is that his father never showed any love or affection towards him.

Whatever Winston did, his father ridiculed him. As a young boy, he stuttered, his father mocked him. He wasn't a great student, as a matter of fact, he was a rather mediocre student. His father, there are letters written where his father pounds him on the fact that he's not a good student, and he's not living up to his father's expectations. And many of us who come from Anglo-Saxon backgrounds, particularly or Western civilization, were brought up in our parents' child-rearing practices with conditional love, meaning the love is withheld as a punishment until you do everything that I say.

And the intent, sadly, is to make us guilty. But I'd like to say a few words about guilt that I learned a number of years ago in my leadership studies, because when you study leadership, they look at guilt as a concept to motivate others. And here's what lots of research has found about guilt. Guilt is only effective as a short-term motivator.

You know, God's Holy Spirit properly uses guilt to prod us to do something that we've neglected to do. It is effectively used as a tool to get us to change or reconsider something that we're doing. It's a very effective short-term motivator, and it's a tool that God uses. But it was never intended to be used as a long-term motivator because it doesn't work. In time, harboring guilt or shame only leads to frustration. It's like there's this huge weight, the weight of the world on your back.

You just can't seem to get it right. That grows into despondency, eventually into depression, and if that guilt isn't processed and released through repentance and through change and through the way God intended it to be, if it's chronic, if it's always there, if the burdens are always placed on someone, it actually becomes a demotivator. They don't even have the emotional energy to do anything anymore because they're burdened by this terrible weight of guilt. It emotionally paralyzes people, makes their lives ineffective, certainly makes them and those around them very unhappy.

Let's go to Matthew chapter 9 and verse 35. Matthew chapter 9 and verse 35. Do you think Jesus ever dealt with perfectionist? Well, he dealt with the classic perfectionist known as the Pharisees, who had a rule and a law for everything because they had to judge everything, because they had to be perfect. And if people weren't living like them, then everyone else and every situation had to have a judgment.

But let's look at the difference that Jesus Christ has towards people in general. Matthew chapter 9 verse 35. It says, When Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered like sheep, having no shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few.

Therefore, pray that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers into his harvest. So did Jesus immediately, when he saw sin and my, was there sin in the multitudes, did he withhold his love? No, he healed people, people with very tragic lives of sin. He was even condemned for hanging around sinners and tax collectors. Unbelievable! Now, I agree with the tax collector part, personally. But, that being said, even though he was judged, what was his reaction towards people that just had pretty miserable lives?

Did he get angry? Is it time for judgment? Why, you worthless! The world's going to come down on you, and God's going to beat you in the dust? No, it says he had pity for them. He had compassion on the people. Let's go to Luke chapter 13 and verse 34. Luke chapter 13 and verse 34. Take a look at another example here.

Luke chapter 13 and verse 34. He looks upon the city of Jerusalem. Do you think there's some problems in the city of Jerusalem at this time? Whoa! Do you think it's a city of sin? Wow! He says, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who were sent to her.

Now, is that sinful to stone and kill people? I think so. The book I read says it is, How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing. Jesus Christ was a man of interesting contrast, and that when he saw people, he saw the groups and the masses of people, he had compassion and love for them.

And when he saw the leaders who knew better, and he could read their hearts and knew many of them, when they saw his miracles, knew that he was the prophesied Christ. When he saw the leaders, he was harsh and condemning and judgmental, because they were heading directly for the lake of fire.

But he viewed the sins and weaknesses of the common people with a lot more patience and gentleness.

He was known to condemn the religious charlatans, but he always had pity and sadness on the general population, because it was pathetic how much pain and misery they were bringing into their lives because they didn't know God. The foundational scripture that we read earlier in Romans 5 should affect how we view others. If God, out of his mercy and compassion, had unconditional love for us while we were yet sinners, as Paul said in Romans, while we were enemies of God, should we not have unconditional love when we see the kind of sins that are going out in the world? Hence again, the difference in the theological approach between a person who's going on to perfection and a perfectionist. For someone going on to perfection. They feel genuine pity for people who are sinning and live very confused and degenerate lives. The reason they feel pity and compassion is they see all the pain and misery that either uncalled or ignorant or foolish people do to themselves and their families. They know that the only answer to solve the problems of this world is either God calling people to his way of life or what we all look forward to, the establishment and the kingdom of God. They know there's a lot of evil in the world and that most things that we see in the world are dead wrong because they violate the principles of God's law.

However, understanding that they don't spend great amounts of energy condemning others and judging others because it's up to the supreme judge, the one who can really read people's hearts, it's up to the supreme judge of the world to do that in due time. In contrast, what, because of the foundation laid, what does the perfectionist feel they must do? Well, they feel that they have to judge every situation that doesn't conform to their idea of what is right and wrong. Furthermore, if that isn't bad enough, they have to make sure that every cultural fad, every fashion, every social norm is now made into a doctrine. So you have to begin to create doctrines out of things that were never intended to be doctrines. And you can get into far-off topics like cosmetics. You can get into far-off topics like the shape of the instrument that Jesus Christ was crucified on. Was it a cross or was it an upright stake? When we get into that mindset and that mold, we begin to make doctrines out of things that were never in God's eyes.

Never intended by God to be created as a doctrine.

Go with me, if you would, to Matthew chapter 15, beginning in verse 1. Matthew chapter 15 and verse 1.

The problem with being a perfectionist, and I want to tell you this from my heart as someone who's a recovering perfectionist, the problem with being a perfectionist is that it limits your joy because it takes an awful lot of energy to judge the world. When you were constantly ordained, and I don't mean in a ministerial sense, I mean as someone who's been called of God, if you think you've been set aside to judge everyone, everything, every situation, is it right or wrong or good or bad?

That's a terrible burden to have on your shoulders. It takes an awful lot of energy to judge the world.

Judging everything and everybody almost becomes a full-time job. And you know what? Here's the problem with it. There's always something that's going to aggravate you. When you're a perfectionist, everybody's wrong. You're wrong. They're wrong. Everybody's wrong. There's always something to point out as wrong. There's always something to get aggravated about. There's always something to get frustrated about. And what does it do? It robs your happiness. It takes the joy right out of your life. It just saps it, pulls it right out of your heart because it takes so much energy to judge others. Let's go to Matthew 15, verse 1, the classic perfectionist.

Matthew 15, verse 1. See an example here. It says, then the scribes and the Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, Why do your disciples transgress their tradition of the elders? They're saying, Well, look here, we have a cultural tradition, and your disciples just violated God's law.

A perfectionist doesn't see any contradiction. They don't see any problem in that concept.

For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread. He answered and said to them, Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? He says, I'm going to reverse it. I have a question for you. Why do you violate the literal law of God because of one of your silly man-made traditions? Verse 4. For God commanded, saying, Honor your father and mother, and you who curse his father or mother shall be put to death. But you say, Whoever says to his father or mother, whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God, then he will not honor his father or his mother. So God's law says, when your parents are in need, you financially help them. They said, No, if the money is intended for the temple, then it's okay if mom and dad starve. It's okay if they go hungry, because after all, the temple is where God's presence is. Therefore, you can violate one of the literal Ten Commandments because the money is to go to the temple. And Jesus turns the whole thing around in them.

And here's what he continues to say. Verse 7, as he often felt about the leaders, the religious leaders of his day. And as I've said before, and I truly believe, that there will be in the lake of fire more rabbis, priests, and ministers than any other profession.

Hypocrites, well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying, These people draw near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. And in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. So what were they trying to do? They were trying to take a tradition, a cultural thing, and that is washing your hands and trying to make a doctrine out of it, as if it had something to do with the Ten Commandments, as if it had anything to do with God's law. But in their minds, the mind of a perfectionist, they don't see a contradiction there because everything has to be black or white, right or wrong, proved or disproved.

Let's go to Philippians chapter 3, if you'll turn there.

As I said, the Pharisees were classic perfectionists. They viewed the world as half empty.

They felt a need to stand in judgment of every situation and everyone to see if it conformed to their standards. And my, oh my, did that attitude aggravate Jesus Christ. The oral law even made doctrines out of issues that were never intended to be doctrines, and they felt a need to have a dogmatic opinion and a doctrine about hundreds of things that were either none of their business or that they knew nothing about anyway or that were never discussed in scriptures. But a perfectionist almost can't help themselves. You see, since they constantly feel guilty about themselves, the only relief they get is when judging they judge others harshly, because that, in contrast, at least makes them appear to be better than other people. That's the only temporary relief that a perfectionist gets. It makes them temporarily feel more righteous when they judge others harshly. Philippians chapter 3 and verse 8. I wanted to look at a few more scriptures regarding perfection and the fact that it's a process. Paul writes, yet indeed I also count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having my own righteousness which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith. So he said, the fact that I'm righteous isn't because I keep the law. I could keep every law. I could keep them all perfectly, and I still wouldn't be righteous. There's still a void there. There's still an emptiness there. Who fills that void? The righteousness that comes from faith in Jesus Christ. Verse 10, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings being conformed to his death, if by any means I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not, he says, this is a 60-year-old man writing, not that I have already attained or I am already perfected, but I press on that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended. In other words, he says, I'm not there yet. I'm not perfect. Paul says, I still struggle with things.

I do not count myself to have apprehended, but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead. Here's Paul, the apostle, writing about 60 A.D. He's about 60 years of age, approximately. He admits he's not perfect, but he's pressing on, knowing that he has shortcomings, but knowing that those shortcomings are covered by the righteousness that comes from faith. Notice he's not dwelling on his faults from the past. Now, did he have past problems he could have highlighted? Well, let's see. He could have highlighted the time when he was there when Stephen was stoned and he didn't try to stop it. He could have highlighted the time when, like a terror, he went to Christians and he put them in prison, separating families, and caused some to be put to death. He could focus his guilt, could focus on a lot of terrible things, some so terrible that you and I haven't even committed some of those acts. We may have sin, but we haven't done those kinds of sins. Does he dwell on that? No. He says he's reaching forward to those things that lie ahead because he knew he was imperfect. He knew he had problems, but he also knew that while he grew and changed and allowed those life experiences to make him a better Christian, that the gulf, the difference, the gap was filled by the righteousness of Jesus Christ through faith. Let's now go to Ephesians 4 and verse 11. Ephesians 4 and verse 11.

Paul wrote, and he himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers for the equipping of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect man. You notice why God gave us as a gift, he gave us servants to teach us, and what's the purpose of those ministerial offices and positions in the church? To help all of us to grow towards that process to become a perfect man. Paul continues, to the measure. Have you ever measured something? You know, it's a big container, and there are little inch marks on it. You measure it usually by just putting so much in it and looking where it's at. And oftentimes the measurement isn't even filled. And we grow in a measure. We grow a little bit this year. The measure increases a little bit more the next year. And thankfully, and hopefully, as we go through the training process that God puts us through in this lifetime for 10, 20, 30 years of keeping His holy days, of examining ourselves, of striving to keep the law of God and the media, hopefully the measurement increases over that period of time. To the fullness, the stature of the fullness of Christ. He's full, we're not. He's brimming, overflowing, we fall short. Let's take a look at, I'm going to read this scripture from the New Century version. Paul wrote, In Christ gave gifts to people, He made some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to go and tell the good news, and some to have the work of caring for and teaching God's people. Christ gave those gifts to prepare God's holy people for the work of serving to make the body of Christ stronger.

This work must continue until we are all joined together in the same faith and in the same knowledge of the Son of God. We must become like a mature person, growing until we become like Christ and have His perfection. I love the way that's translated in the New Century version.

So, with the message that I've given today, if you feel that you are either a perfectionist or maybe have shades or leanings of perfectionism, what are some of the things that we can do to overcome this problem? To overcome the struggle of being a perfectionist.

Of looking at God as one who's having only conditional love. The feeling that God holds back because I'm not perfect. God doesn't really love me fully because I'm still struggling with problems. I don't even know if God loves me at all. The feelings that a perfectionist has that almost drives them to be hard in themselves, to live a life of guilt, to be judgmental of others, to have conditional love on their own family because that's how they feel loved. Maybe that's how they were raised. What are some of the things that we can do? All right, two things. Two very short but I hope helpful things for us today. Number one is to rebuild your spiritual foundation.

Now, you don't have to tear the structure down to rebuild your foundation. I'll explain an analogy to that in a few minutes. The structure may be fine, but if you change the foundation, you'll be able to modify parts of the structure to get where you want to be. You don't have to tear everything down from scrap. You can literally rebuild the foundation of a building. You know, churches are moved every day. They take the basic body of the church. They put a foundation somewhere else. There are house movers. They build a foundation somewhere else, and they take the whole house, and they move it somewhere else, and they plunk it to the foundation. That's a very common occurrence. So the first thing that we can do is we can rebuild our spiritual foundation.

Let's go to Luke 6 and verse 31, and take a look at this scripture a few verses.

Luke 6 and verse 31, rebuilding your spiritual foundation.

Jesus said, And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.

Do you want people to be judging you all the time? Do you want people to judge everything you say and do? Well, if you don't, read the words of Jesus. Just as you want men to do to you, you also should do to them likewise. But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even the sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners and receive as much back. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return. Now, what's a perfectionist reaction to this? Why should I lend? Get a job! Right? If you had a job and worked hard, you could afford your own tool. You wouldn't have to come and borrow it from me. I work hard for the things that I have. That's the reaction of a perfectionist. And Jesus is saying, when somebody has a need, don't judge who, what, when, where, why. Why are they in bad health? Why do they have this?

Just help them. Let God sort out all the issues of why. Here's an issue for you to solve. Help them.

That's what he's saying. But love your enemies and do good and lend, hoping for nothing in return.

And your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. Is God a God of unconditional love? Jesus says, for He is kind to the unthankful and evil. Therefore, be merciful, just as your Father is also merciful. Judge not, that you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you. If our measurement is constant judgment, harsh condemnation, always trying to analyze everyone else's faults and weaknesses, or always putting ourselves down, always comparing ourselves to a standard that's impossible to achieve, it comes back and bites you.

And you know where it bites you. Remember what I said in the last sermon? That hidden law, what goes around, comes around, the way that we treat people, the way that we judge people, the way that we look at people, is going to come back and haunt us, because we're going to be treated in the same way. Verse 39, and he spoke a parable to them, can the blind lead the blind?

Will they not both fall into the ditch? A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher. Only why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the plank that's in your own eye? Or how can you say, your brother, brother, let me remove the speck that's in your eye when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye? Hypocrite, first remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother's eye. Verse 43, for a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor a bad tree bear good fruit, for every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush. A good man, out of the treasure of his heart, brings forth good, and an evil man, out of the treasure of his heart, brings forth evil.

Verse 48. Don't want to forget the point that I was trying to give to.

And he is like a man building a house who dug deep and laid the foundation on a rock, and when the flood arose and the stream beat vehemently against that house and could not shake it, for it was founded on a rock. But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation against which the stream beat vehemently and immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great. So without destroying the house, we can rebuild a new foundation. A few years ago, the Weltys had a problem with the foundation of their home in Strongsville, Ohio. The original builder didn't build the house foundations correctly. This was a common problem with a lot of homes, virtually everyone this builder had built. An excess moisture literally caused the foundations, the walls, to collapse and cave in. It was very dangerous. Unfortunately, Mr. and Mrs. Welty had to spend thousands upon thousands of dollars to have a new foundation put in. But what they did is they were able to build temporary supports, the jack-up sections of the house, while they tore the old foundation out and literally built a new foundation to set the house on. And they replaced the entire home's foundation to make it one that was more sturdy, one that could withstand the troubles and trials of the environment and draw an analogy the troubles and trials of our lives. So if you're a perfectionist, if you have leanings towards perfectionism, you don't have to destroy the whole dwelling. You don't have to take everything down and start from scratch. All you need to do is going back to Romans 5, as that key foundational scripture, knowing that God loved us while we were yet sinners, that God has unconditional love towards us. And that should be the mantra of our lives. It should be the foundation of our lives. And that knowledge should change and affect how we view ourselves, how we view our families, how we view our children, how we view our co-workers, how we view the church and any problems that it may have. It should change everything if we truly and really understand it. So going back to the wealthy's home, they had to literally rebuild the foundation, and the home was fine once the entire foundation was back in place and the home was able to sit on it. The second and final thing that I would like to encourage you to do is challenge yourself. Talk. This is so important. I was watching a show recently from PBS. They had the fundraising programs on. One was called the Brain Fitness Program, and another one was called the Secret Life of the Brain, and emphasized a couple of things. One of them is that our brains are changeable throughout our lifespan, regardless of even 100-year-olds can change. So they were able to to pinpoint that.

But in looking at a final scripture, if you'll turn to Mark, chapter 7, Mark 7, verse 14, I'd like to encourage you to challenge yourself. Talk. I have a question while you're turning there.

How many of you ever, as teenagers, talk back to your parents?

I wish I had like five hands.

You know what? You need to start talking to yourself the same way.

One of the problems that we have, and it was mentioned on this PBS special, is that we've deluded ourselves to thinking that if I have a thought that it's valid, after all, I thought of it. And nothing could be farther than the truth.

One psychologist said, leading behavioral researchers have told us that as much as 75% of everything we think is negative, counterproductive, and works against us.

We have a lot of thoughts that are negative, selfish, and disruptive, and we just accept them at face value. We see something we don't like, that's bad. Challenge yourself. We see something we don't like that doesn't fit our culture or our mold, and we just accept because I thought it must be good and valid and right and should never be challenged. No, it probably should be challenged.

Because we all know that Jeremiah 17 says, the heart is deceitful above all things, and our heart and our thoughts, as was emphasized on these PBS shows, our mind lies to us quite often. Ever hear the expression of mind of its own? That's the way our minds are. And throughout the day, we're constantly talking to ourselves. We're constantly carrying on a conversation with ourselves. And far too often, we allow negative thoughts and ideas, and judgmental thoughts and ideas to enter our minds, and we don't challenge them.

Jesus said, take a look here in Mark 7, verse 14, in my final Scripture. And actually, let's pick it up in verse 20. He said, What comes out of a man, that defiles a man, for from within out of the heart of men proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness, all these evil things come from within and defile a man. So begin to challenge yourself talk, especially when things that you tell yourself are negative or destructive.

This is also important when you meet new people or different people. Be very careful when you meet someone for the first time, not the judge too quickly or harshly. Give everyone the benefit of the doubt. You know, Jesus said that we should judge a tree by its fruit. He didn't say judge it by its bark. He didn't say judge it by the buds that come out on the tree. He didn't say judge it by the summer leaves. He said judge it by its fruit. That means let a season pass before you pass judgment. Judge it by its fruit. That takes time. That takes giving people the benefit of the doubt.

That allows things to settle for you to get more information and all the facts before you can judge something by its fruit. Don't judge it too quickly. Well, brethren, I'm out of time today.

This sermon is over, but I do hope in all sincerity that I gave you some food for thought as we prepare for the Passover just a few weeks away. I want to encourage you to examine your life, to examine how far you've come, to look at the glass as half full, and to realize that God wants all of us to go on to perfection with the right foundation, with the right attitude. God promises that He will finish the work He has begun in us. Praise be to God and have a great Sabbath.