Becoming 'whole'

Matthew 5 : 43 - 48

....that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.....

God has mercifully spared most of us in this country from any form of severe persecution. But I think most of us have 'enemies' that is, people whom we (at best) cannot see eye to eye with, keeping a cool distance, and at worst are actually antagonistic towards (hopefully few and far between). It is inevitable that even among Christian brethren there are times when one person's inner 'baggage' knocks against another person's and results in strife.

It is easy to quote Scripture in order to solve such strife in churches. But when the exhortation becomes moralistic, it is usually only external obedience that takes place. Transformation that does not take place at deep levels will not stand a chance of lasting. And so we grow discouraged about the possibility of real change in our communities.

It is interesting to focus on an aspect of this passage that I missed before. Jesus reminds us that true and lasting change in 'loving our enemies' means we are growing to be 'sons' of our Father. There will be a family likeness. Not only so but there will be a growth in wholeness or completeness (which is the meaning of 'perfect' in Aramaic). The usual way we understand 'perfect' gives a perfectionistic slant to this - and makes it all seem unattainable; all hard work. But wholeness and completeness gives a more restful sense of being drawn into the circle of the Trinity, of being part of that loving community, relating both to God and to others in ways that we have learned from our Father. God seeks our highest good, and even that of the 'unjust' and the 'evil', who may never turn to him. Our Father models what he asks of us and is ever inviting us to wholeness and completeness in Him.