Matt 5:48 You therefore shall be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect. John 1:12 But as many as received Him [Christ], to them He gave the authority to become children of God... (13) Who were begotten not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
[Part 1 of 2] Consider a brother who has four children. The more these little ones grow, the more they live like their father. These children are not four monkeys trying to imitate a human being. No, they are children of their father who are growing into the image of their father. The more they grow, the more they live their father's life. Likewise, we are not monkeys-we are children of God. Although some of us may be rather babyish or childish, we are growing nonetheless. I am so happy that all the saints in the churches are not monkeys, but dear children. Let these children be naughty for a while. Eventually they will grow. We are not trying to imitate God. Rather we are the Father's children growing in the Father's life. This is the reason the Lord Jesus said that we should be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. Now we can understand why in Matthew chapter five the Lord refers to us as the children of God or the sons of God. He was not giving a word to unbelievers, to those who were merely God's creatures; He was giving a word to the sons of God. God is no longer merely our Creator; He is also our heavenly Father. Because He is our Father, we have His life and nature. Eventually, through our growth in life, we shall be the same as He is. Wait for another period of time, and you will see that many of us will have become perfect as the Father is perfect.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study of Matthew, 1986, pp. 254. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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