perfectlove

PERFECT LOVE REQUIRES AN IMPERFECT RECIPIENT

You’ve heard this story before.

Human beings were created in a state of perfection and lived in harmony with God, the universe, each other, etc…And then…

Perfect humanity made some imperfect choices and now everything that was once so harmonious and wonderful is now cursed and miserable.

I grew up hearing this story and, for me, it painted quite a portrait of God. He was a reactionary, hand wringing old man constantly fretting over the machinations of his own creation. I think this commonly told story contains some serious flaws which hinder us from seeing both God, and humanity, as we should.

Human beings were never perfect, by design. We were created imperfect and have always existed in this world in an imperfect state. Again, by design. If we were perfect, we would have remained so. Our choices would have been perfect, our decisions would have been perfect, our actions would have been perfect – always and at all times, such is the definition of perfection. A perfect being given “free will” is always, always, going to make perfect decisions. A perfect being, given free will is still going to be perfect in its action, perfect in its thinking, perfect in its ability to reason and arrive at a decision. Human beings are not, and never have been perfect, and we were created that way. We were, however, innocent.

God is perfect. And if we were created perfect we would have been like God. We weren’t. We were naked, and he wasn’t. Being naked before God is considered sin in the old testament sense and yet, there we were, naked before God….and created that way. It is no coincidence that, as the story goes, our first act after our “eyes were opened” and we were able to discern right from wrong (or, more to the point, able to see ourselves as imperfect and therefore, so unlike God our creator) was to attempt to clothe ourselves, or, attempt to be more like God, perfect.

So why would a perfect being create imperfect beings? Was this a mistake? If so, again, by definition, God, the creator, cannot be perfect if he attempted and failed to replicate his perfection in his creations. I believe in the perfection of God and the imperfection of humanity and I believe this is for one very specific and important reason.

Jesus always taught the relationship between God and humanity is a parent child type of dynamic. Parents have an innate desire for their children to know them, but as human beings, there are also things that we do not wish to share with our children, or anyone. Things within us or elements of our past that cause us shame or pain. But God has no skeletons in his closet nor ugliness within. He wants us to know him, to know every part of him. And the most important, most impactful and most meaningful thing we can ever know about God, is that he loves us.

If we were created perfect we could know that God loves us. But how would our own perfection skew our view of God and his love? We would think his love for us was based on our own perfection, based on the fact that we were so like him. We would think he loved us because we were perfect. Our view of his love would be forever flawed and thus, our view, indeed, our knowledge of God would remain flawed, eternally so. God’s love is perfect, unconditional, eternal, and only by being bestowed on imperfect beings can it be proven so. The only way to know that we are unconditionally loved is to be both aware of our imperfections, aware of God’s perfection, and aware that despite these two facts, we are loved. This is the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

God loves you just the way you are. He demonstrated his love for you in a profound way before you were even born. What he wants, and has always wanted from you is to have a relationship with you, to share his love with you. The love and the grace of God can change you and provide you with an everlasting peace, because God’s love is eternal, unwavering, and unconditional. You do not have to do anything to earn it and you don’t have to do anything to keep it, it is a freely given gift. All you have to do is accept it, as you would any other gift. To experience first hand the love of God simply reach out to God in prayer as shown below:

Dear God,

I know that I am imperfect and I know I have made many mistakes. I am sorry for the mistakes I’ve made in my life. I believe that you love me regardless of my imperfections and that you sent your own son Jesus to pay in full the price for my sins and the sins of humanity. I repent of my sins and ask you to forgive me of them. I accept Jesus as my savior and Lord. I ask Jesus to come into my life and to fill me with your love and your spirit. I pray this prayer in Jesus name, my lord and my savior now and forever. Amen.