Monday, September 22, 2014
What does it mean to be perfect
Yesterday I had a true quiet time for the first time in a long time.
I sat on our front porch with my Bible and physical journal and wrote about that day's devotional study from Psalm 19. That lead me to do a study of the words found in verses 7-8.
The law of the Lord is:
- Perfect
- Refreshing
- Trustworthy
- Wise
- Right
- Giving
- Joyful
- Radiant
So I'm going to do some quick studies on these words in light of The Word.
Perfect.
"The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul."
I looked up the definition of Perfect..
1. Conforming absolutely to the description or definition of an ideal type: a perfect sphere; a perfect gentleman.
I sat on our front porch with my Bible and physical journal and wrote about that day's devotional study from Psalm 19. That lead me to do a study of the words found in verses 7-8.
The law of the Lord is:
- Perfect
- Refreshing
- Trustworthy
- Wise
- Right
- Giving
- Joyful
- Radiant
So I'm going to do some quick studies on these words in light of The Word.
Perfect.
"The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul."
I looked up the definition of Perfect..
1. Conforming absolutely to the description or definition of an ideal type: a perfect sphere; a perfect gentleman.
2. Excellent or complete beyond practical or theoretical improvement: There is no perfect legal code. The proportions of this temple are almost perfect.
3. Exactly fitting the need in a certain situation or for a certain purpose: a perfect actor to play Mr. Micawber; a perfect saw for cutting out keyholes.
4. Entirely without any flaws, defects, or shortcomings: a perfect apple; the perfect crime.
5. Accurate, exact, or correct in every detail: a perfect copy.
6. Thorough; complete; utter: perfect strangers.
7. Pure or unmixed:
Each of these things is interesting in its own way when contemplating scripture.
Conforming absolutely to the description or definition of an ideal type...
Hmm, why do we seek out The Word of The Lord? What is our purpose in reading his precepts, his commands, his letters to us? The verses preceding this section of Psalm 19 reflect the beauty of God's creation and the author's wonder at what the Lord has done. He moves from that into these descriptive phrases regarding scripture and his first choice of words is PERFECT.
Under this context, we could say that David's ideal concept, his idea of The Lord's perfection is the beauty of what has been made, the wonder of creation. He is reflecting that the words of The Lord are perfect, they are filled with wonder and beauty and like we gaze in awe at the beauty of creation, we too should approach the Word with wonder and awe, seeking to find the beauty in what He seeks to bring to our lives.
So often we look at the Word with fear... I mean it is the LAW isn't it? We grow up learning rules, we are taught lessons, we are taught to obey and we are slapped with punishments when we do not. And as adults we follow the laws of the land, often because of the consequences that come to us when we do not - fines, hassles, jail time, etc. Here, the Psalmist (I assume it's David), is instructing us to look at the Word with awe and wonder and seek out its perfect beauty.
When we understand that God's words are here to guide us, that he has given his Spirit to help us understand his words and that he longs to bless us, not to punish us, we can see his words with hope, not fear, with joy, not sadness, and with awe instead of guilt. We can look to them like we look to the Sunset and appreciate the work of his hand in our lives.
