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“Perfection Or Honesty?”
Categories: Christian character, discipleship, Midweek FR articlesWhich do you value more: perfection or honesty?
Which type of person would you rather have a relationship with: the one who never makes a mistake and never needs help from you, or the one who is willing to trust you and ask you to be there for them? Which type of friend would you rather have: One who will tell you the truth even when it’s difficult and messy, or one who will bend the truth to keep up good appearances and niceness? Which type of family would you rather be part of: One in which you can confess that you were wrong and hear someone sincerely say, “I forgive you,” or one in which your imperfections and failures are held in perpetuity as indicators that your character is flawed?
This simple dichotomy is one of the ongoing challenges that Christians face. Obviously, perfection is the goal and the calling (cf. Jas. 1:4), but that perfection depends on the ability to be honest, because all have sinned and fallen so far short of perfection (cf. Rom. 3:23). After all, what is the concept of confession but honestly confronting our sin and calling it what it really is? Perfection is not a pretense of no sin having ever existed in our past; it’s the acceptance of God’s grace that forgives the sins of the past. We can’t make ourselves unstained, but we can accept the stain-removing power of Christ in us. It’s not that we hide our sins and even our temptations; it’s that we confront them, repent of them, and turn to God to accept grace that overcomes them.
Obviously, we want to pursue both attributes in our own lives. We’re supposed to be perfect in our love for God, and we’re supposed to be honest about our failures. We’re supposed to be perfect in faithfulness to God, and we’re supposed to be honest that some temptations pull really hard on our hearts. We’re supposed to be perfect in the way we relate to our family and friends and neighbors, and we’re supposed to be honest when we sin against them so that we can repent of it and be forgiven.
Ultimately, we must learn to value both things, as they work in tandem to make us better. We must be people who value honesty even when it reveals unpleasant truth, and we must be people who strive for perfect faithfulness to God. May God help us achieve both.
- Dan Lankford, minister
