LOOKING FORWARD

 "Moreover, brethren, rejoice, be perfect, be comforted, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. 2 Corinthians 13:11

In concluding his Second Letter to the Corinthians, Paul teaches us that the goal of spiritual perfection is a full-time task until the coming of our resurrection. "Seek to be perfect, to exhort one another, to have one thought, to live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you "(2 Corinthians 13:11).

The text we are focusing on is not a commandment. The verb used by the apostle is "to seek," "to do the possible," "to have the goal." But Jesus, when He began His ministry and preached the Sermon on the Mount, gave an explicit commandment: "Therefore be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect" (Matthew 5:48). The common denominator of both texts is "God the Father." In other words: perfecting oneself, in the biblical context, is a project of life, energized by God, our Father.

Accepting the lordship of Christ and being parked in "first love" is the best recipe for anyone who wants to live an unhappy and unproductive Christian life. It is essential that we be true in our self-evaluation. "If we confess our imperfections (sins), He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1: 9). This is the way, let us walk for it.

"This is the way, walk in it, and turn neither to the right hand nor to the left." Isaiah 30: 21b

Pr. Olavo Feijó