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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

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– Matthew 5:48 (NRSV)

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REFLECTION…

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Strictly speaking,

it is quite impossible for a created being to be as perfect as God.

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What our Lord means here

is that God’s own perfection should be the model which every faithful Christian must try to follow

…even though we realise that there is an infinite distance between ourselves and our Creator.

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However, this does not reduce the force of this commandment;

it sheds more light on it.

And yes, the call to holiness is not a recommendation

but a commandment of Jesus Christ.

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It is a difficult commandment to live up to,

but along with this we must take account

of the enormous help grace gives us

to go so far as to tend towards divine perfection.

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Certainly, the perfection which we should imitate

does not refer to the power and wisdom of God,

which are totally beyond our scope;

here the context refers primarily to love and mercy

…and Jesus is our perfect example.

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Our Lord knows what is good for us,

and it is therefore our duty to sanctify ourselves.

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We are all called to be saints.

We are all called to be merciful.

We are all called to be holy.

We are all called to be perfect.

We are all called to put off the old person and put on Christ.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Lord, I so want to be perfect. Yet I know that I am not.

Guide me, my Jesus,

and help me to draw closer to You, to become more like You.

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