The Achievement of Spiritual Perfection
Greetings and good morning brothers and sisters. This is Dr. James Perry continuing with our series
where we seek to explore the deeper meanings of our relationship with Jesus Christ. Over the years,
the heavenly Father has revealed many revelations of spiritual truth to me, and I want to share them
with you. This morning we seek to understand how to achieve spiritual perfection.
And now, sit back and listen to today's message.
The Achievement of Spiritual Perfection
"Be ye therefor perfect even as your heavenly Father is perfect." Matthew, Chapter 5, Verse
48.
Brothers and sisters, achieving spiritual perfection is our supreme goal of human existence.
Perfection is a state whereby all human potentials have been fully expressed though not necessarily
utilized. Another way of looking at divine perfection is to look at it as complete maturity. It is a state
whereby all the components of ourselves are complete and working in harmony. Our physical
mechanism is in complete subordination to our minds, while our minds are completely dominated
by the divine spirit.
Is it possible for us to achieve spiritual perfection, as commanded by Jesus? If so, how is this done?
Spiritual perfection must not be confused with perfectionism. Perfectionism assumes a
perfectionistic attitude without the benefit of the growth process that is taking place in time and
space. This is an impossible position to actualize. Spiritual perfection is the result of growth and
development subject to the delays of time and the handicaps of space. This is earned progress and
unfailingly elevates our status when we achieve this state.
The choice to be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect is a free will choice, the choice to choose
the Father's will over our own. This is the one area where we are free to choose. We can be forced
to perform certain physical acts; we can even be forced to learn certain intellectual facts; but no one
can force us to assume certain emotional states, or make moral judgements or spiritual decisions. We
can pretend to do these things, but they are only valid when we embrace them whole-heartedly.
Somewhere along the line of life, we come to develop a non-growth philosophy. We set our goals
at a mere standard of living, a material level. When we obtain that level we become satisfied and
fixated and begin the process of trying to maintain it. We convince ourselves that we have achieved
a successful life, and there most of us linger until death removes us or some other catastrophic event
happens that knocks us off of our self-satisfied perch. But even then a lot of us still fail to realize the
goal of living should be spiritual perfection rather than material stagnation.
But our whole environment eloquently tells us that growth and development are by-words. The
physical, intellectual, emotional social, moral and spiritual aspects of life teem with problems
screaming to be solved. The very fact that we are swamped with all these problems tell us our growth
is not completed. The very negative emotional response that we have towards these disagreeable
facts testifies to our emotional immaturity.
Now that we recognize the need to continue with our growth, how do we consistently move towards
spiritual perfection? Well, the first step is a change in our attitude. We must recognize that all these
problems that seem at times overwhelming are in fact a blessing from God. It is human nature that
while most of us may like to change our status, without some persistent discomfort, very few of us
will move to aggressively attack problems that cause us no discomfort. In fact, our attitudes are to
maintain a comfort zone, and thus the need for pain and suffering which unfailingly stimulate
change. We must abandon the attitude of problem avoidance and aggressively attack the problems
that beset us. We must change our goal from seeking a standard of living to seeking a standard that
involves a quality of thinking. In short, we must set the goal of spiritual perfection as our purpose
for living.
We can make the effort to understand the real purpose and meaning of life and can adjust our
attitudes and decisions to that purpose and meaning. It is only when purpose and decision are
integrated that we can have real happiness and harmony. Self actualization is only dependent upon
how we react to stimuli, not to the stimuli itself. But whence comes the energy and know-how for
these transformations of maturity?
We are all endowed with a finite amount of internal resources we can use to solve all our problems
while here on earth. In order to solve the problems of the whole as opposed to solving the problems
of the part, we must appeal to the heavenly Father who has created us and ordained that we should
live in this problematic environment, that we should grow and development in response to
environmental stimuli. If our purpose for living has become spiritual, then must we seek the source
of all spirit for help in the solution of our multifaceted problems. But what is the nature of this help
the Father gives us? Experience has taught us that Father does not do anything for us that we can do
for ourselves. He has given us minds that are capable of solving problems. He does not force his will
upon us.
The personal qualities of the Father which we are desirous of obtaining can only be known by having
a personal relationship with him through his Son, Jesus. We can know about patience and tolerance;
we can know about love and mercy; we can know about forgiveness and wisdom, we can know
about faith and trust; we can know about truth, beauty, and goodness, but we can only know and
exercise those spiritual qualities that have become a part of us. And they only become apart of us by
having an intimate relationship with the source of these qualities. The Father is a person and we are
persons; God is our Father and we are His children, and He delights in his children, and He grieves
when we do not live according to our potential, when we do not take advantage of the help that He
so freely gives. Only by infiltrating these qualities into our thoughts and our acts can we solve
problems that will address the whole as well as the part. And we do this by seeking to do His will.
We must begin to view our problems from the viewpoint of the Father who sees us, his children, as
needing to mature. We must begin to realize that all the things that we encounter in this life become
a stimulus to further growth and spiritual development. We must use disappointments as well as
successes to climb the rungs of the ladder of spiritual perfection, crying in every crisis, "not my will,
but your will be done." All fear and anxiety must be abandoned. All doubts must be vaporized. There
is no room for fear and anxiety when following the plan of the Father for our lives. Anxiety and fear
only enter into our minds when we lose faith in the Father's plan for our lives and cease to follow
it or follow it halfheartedly.
And what is His plan for our lives? His plan is that we develop physically, emotionally,
intellectually, morally and spiritually in response to our multifaceted environment. His plan is that
we learn how to cooperate with each other, and that we learn to love each other even as he loves us,
that we develop faith and trust in response to the uncertainties and inexplicable events of life. There
is no room for doubt in our relationship with the Father. Deep down in our souls, the urges of the
Father instruct us that to doubt the reality of his love for us or his existence would be the untruest
thing that we can do. As we continue to submit to the plan laid out for our growth (environmental
and personal stimuli), refusing to avoid that which is in front of us, adjusting our emotional reactions
to such stimuli, and making decisions based upon our highest understanding and highest wisdom (the
Father's guidance), our growth and development reach supreme levels where we experience spiritual
perfection.
This concludes today's message on understanding how to achieve spiritual perfection. We hope you
find something in this message to ponder and pray about as you go about your day. Until next time,
this is Dr. James Perry.
Inspirational Messages
By Dr. James Perry
Your Kingdom Come, Your Will Be Done!
The Achievement of Spiritual Perfection
