TODAY’S WORD FOR WEDNESDAY AUGUST 24, 2016.
PERFECT
Complete in every detail; without defect; flawless; exact; precise; conforming absolutely to the description or definition of an ideal type.
There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil. Job 1:1
Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless (perfect) and I shall be innocent of great transgression. Psalm 19:13.
No one is perfect for we are all born in sin and we have a sin nature that we inherited from Adam and Eve when they sinned in the Garden of Eden.
Job was not without sin but it can be said that he was as perfect as they come. Job was a blameless and upright man (the scripture tells us) so completely devoted to God that God upheld him as a model of trust and obedience. In the verse above from Job we looked at the Hebrew word for “perfect” as used in this verse. It is TAMAN and has several meanings. First, it means consumed. Job was in deep sorrow and exhausted after losing all of his family and his possessions but he remained consumed (perfect) in his trust in God.
Job is a wonderful example for us. Often in times of great loss or suffering, doubts about God creeps in and our perfect trust in the Lord grows weak. Just when we need the Lord the most, we turn away from the Lord. Job’s faith in God never wavered. When our faith grows weak the first thing we should do is get back to reading God’s Word and praying. When we seek the Lord we will find Him.
TAMAN also means upright. The psalmist writes in Psalm 19:7: “The law of the Lord is perfect restoring the soul.” God’s law is perfect because it keeps us away from sin and directs us to conform to God’s will which is to do His work of righteousness in us to make us perfect. TAMAN also means to be complete, without blemish and blameless. This was Job’s status when we read about him in Job 1.
Our Lord and Savior is perfect and as believers He has set the standards in life that we need to strive for in our lives. In Psalm 18:30 we read that as for God, His way is perfect; the Word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust Him. What a wonderful promise of assurance this is for us as believers. We are not perfect nor has anyone in our world been perfect after Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden. It is only by the blood of Jesus that we can be made perfect. When we get to heaven we will be made completely perfect.
In Matthew 19:16-22 we read when Jesus counsels the rich young ruler. In verse 21 Jesus tells him, “If you want to be perfect, go, and sell what you have and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; and then come and follow Me.”
This might seem to be an unreasonable request. Jesus knows our true heart and saw that the man’s god was his wealth. He loved himself and his possessions more than God. Jesus said we are to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” Matthew 22:37.
To be perfect we must follow Jesus’s commandments and give God first place in our life. We must not let anything, any sin, or anyone stand between us and God. If there is something in your life today that stands between you and God, are you willing to give it up and allow God to do His perfect work in you? Ask the Lord to “Make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well pleasing in His sight through Jesus Christ” Hebrews 13:21.
Our memory verse for this week is found in Psalm 57:1.
Be merciful to me, O Lord, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by.
Dear Lord, I desire to be found perfect and upright in Your sight as Job was. Keep me from allowing sin to have dominion over me and enable me to always give You first place in my life so that You can do Your perfect work in me.
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