Today’s devotional concludes our series on “Are You Perfect?” (Please read the previous three devotionals if you happened to miss them.) We have closely examined Perfection in various aspects. We have noted that such is very real as a Possibility; that it is Present; that it is according to the Power that God has given us by His indwelling Spirit. Finally, we note that Perfection is a matter of our Placement in relation to Christ.

(1 John 3:2) “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.”

Our Placement of Perfection indicates three aspects of our relation to Christ. The first of which is our placement to be like Christ. Initially, this being like Christ is as sons of God. According to the Power of Perfection, we are given power to become sons – heirs to the promises of God (Romans 8:17). We are placed into the House of Faith, the family of God. This Power has been shown to be a working of God in the recipient of Grace, transforming them into a Christ-likeness.

This Power also makes us like Christ in the effectual changing us into His image. This takes us a step closer to being like Christ, since we are not only heirs of God, but joint-heirs with Christ. Not only do we have the privilege of being sons of God, but we see that we are in Placement like Christ. This Placement, according to the Sovereign Plan of God (Romans 8:29-30), we see is played out in time, as we are conformed to the image of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18).

A second aspect of our relation to Christ is indicated by our Placement of Perfection. This is our placement to be in Christ. We’ve noted that the Spirit of God is at work to bring about the Perfection of the saints. It is therefore imperative that a person be joined to the Lord, becoming One Spirit with Him (1 Corinthians 6:17). This Oneness in Christ is a Placement of Perfection in His Body, the Church.

(Ephesians 5:30) “For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.”

The Placement of the saints in the Body of Christ has every significance of our being the physical presence of Christ in this world. We are His hands. We are His feet. We are One in Spirit with Him and it is His Spirit that moves us as His Body. It is our Placement in His Body that allows us to serve His purpose as He directs the individual members of His Body.

The Placement of Perfection in Christ is further indicative that the recipients of Grace are One in the Person of Christ. Christ is not divided (1 Corinthians 1:13) and has none His superior. “The disciple is not above his master: but every one that is perfect shall be as his master” (Luke 6:40). It is in the Person of Jesus Christ that the saint is made Perfect. What great privilege it is to stand complete in the Person of Christ (Colossians 2:10)!

(John 17:21-23) “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. (22) And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: (23) I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.”

A third aspect of the Placement of Perfection shows us our relation as we are with Christ. Christ is in the Father and the Father is in Christ, and so They are “made perfect in one.” This Perfect Oneness is the Place that Jesus told His disciples He was going to Prepare (John 14:2-3), in the House of the Father. According to our Placement, we are inseparable from Christ as we are with Him in Oneness with the Father.

Conclusion: In our examination of Scriptural Perfection, we’ve seen that Perfection is a very real possibility for the saints. Jesus has not set forth any unobtainable goals, nor has He set forth a concept that did not directly pertain to His listeners. We’ve seen that Perfection is Presently Possible as it is commanded by God and forms an essential element to living an abundant life in Christ, as well as enabling us to understand Scripture. We also saw that maturity is a sign of Perfection as it is being worked in the individual’s life.

We ultimately saw that the Power of Perfection is something given by God. This Power makes the recipient a son of God, working about our effectual conforming to the image of Christ by our following the commands of God. We noted that this Power lends to the Placement of the saint in relation to be (1) like Christ, (2) in Christ, and (3) with Christ.

Perfection is possible now, as we are joined to the Lord as His Bride. When we are made One by the indwelling Spirit, we are made joint-heirs with Christ. Our Placement in this position entitles us to all the promises of God. To deny our Perfection would be to deny this entitlement and nullify our prayers in Jesus’ Name (or in His Authority).

“Are You Perfect?” You are if you have the Spirit of Christ indwelling you, making you perfect. Continue in this Spirit, growing in grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ, being built up into His Perfection.