For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. Hebrews 10:1
The woman who was in charge of the courseware department where I worked had a favourite word that she used as a synonym for almost anything good. If I told her I had finished an instructional unit, she would respond, ‘Perfect!’ If I told her the forecast for tomorrow was for sunshine, she would respond, ‘Perfect!’ If I told her the writers were having a meeting, she would respond, ‘Perfect!’ I often thought that she had a very broad definition of the word ‘perfect’, because our normal definition of perfection refers to that which is flawless. And yet, the Bible has more than one definition of perfection, in fact, different Greek words are translated ‘perfect’. for example, in 2 Timothy 3:17, which says ‘That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works’, the word translated ‘perfect’ is the Greek word ‘artios’. This word means fully developed or mature. That’s not the meaning that we normally use today, although my former boss might have gone along with that. But there is a different Greek word for the ‘perfect’ in our text today; it is ‘teleiōsai’. This word is closer to the meaning we use today, and indicates completeness. That means our text is telling us that there was nothing complete about those who relied on the sacrifices of the law. So we are thankful today that we have something better than the law and its sacrifices.
You and I don’t feel perfect today. We know how easy it is to slip up and say the wrong thing, to have a sinful thought, to make a choice that is outside of God’s will. No matter how much we read the Word and pray, spend precious time in the company of the Lord’s people, and faithfully serve our Lord in our daily testimony, we feel the weakness of imperfection. In fact, we feel like those ancient Israelites who had to keep coming back to bring another sacrifice for their sins. But there is a big difference. Those people needed to keep making sacrifices because they did not have a perfect standing before God. We don’t need any more sacrifices, because our standing before God is perfect, in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Even if we don’t feel perfect, God sees us as perfect before Him.
Oh, God is not blind to our weaknesses; He knows better than we do how we stumble and falter and slip and slide in our Christian walk. That is why so much of the Scriptures urge us to Godly living and service, and a right dividing of the Word of truth. The Holy Spirit’s work in our lives is to bring us ever closer to the image of the Son. He is grieved when we slip up. And so should we be. But as far as our eternal standing before God, that is perfect. It can never be anything less than perfect, because God is forever satisfied with the sacrifice that He made for us. As long as He is pleased with what the Lord Jesus has done for us, all of those who have trusted in Him are eternally secure.
We are not trusting the works and ordinances of the law, because those things could not make us perfect. And although we don’t feel today like we are perfect, we know that the day is approaching when we will realize how perfect God has made us. -Jim MacIntosh