“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” – Hebrews 12:1-2
(Bible verses are from the NIV unless otherwise indicated.)
The problem of perfection–it’s what we’ve explored the past couple of weeks (see here and here). How remarkable that God perfected Jesus to be our Savior. This doesn’t mean the Lord had flaws the Father had to remove. Far from it! But Jesus became one of us so He could satisfy and supersede the regulations and rituals of the Law of Moses. Christ accomplished what the priests never could. By offering Himself as a perfect sacrifice, He dealt with our sins in definitive fashion.
Furthermore, He shares His perfection with us; He doesn’t leave us out! That’s why Hebrews 12:2 identifies Christ as “the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”
How does He carry out this work?
In one sense, He already has.
“For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” – Hebrews 10:14
This verse has two verbs. The first one is in the perfect tense, which means it describes an action in the past with ongoing results. The death of Jesus on the cross, accomplished 2000 years ago, has effects down to the present day. And these are eternal; they’ll never wane!
The second verb is in the present tense. God continues to sanctify those who follow His Son. Rather than striving to keep the requirements of the Mosaic law, we need only cooperate with the working of His Spirit.
The idea of perfection as a process suggests we can interpret it as maturation. There are two other verses in Hebrews which lend credence to this viewpoint.
“But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.” – Hebrews 5:14
“Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.” – Hebrews 6:1-2 (NKJV)
In 5:14, “the mature” refers to “perfect ones” but I couldn’t find any Bible version that translates it this way. They all go with the idea of maturity.
I don’t think that’s a mistake because the verse points out how Christians develop. They train themselves by constant moral and spiritual practice. That sounds like growing up!
The other passage also emphasizes the notion of process. We believers must move past a fixation with basic Christian principles so we can advance toward spiritual perfection. The former is a decision; the latter involves a lifelong dedication to maturity.
So the teaching in Hebrews is clear. Perfection is a process of maturation overseen and conducted by Jesus Christ in the lives of His disciples.
But I have to throw a monkey wrench into the machinery!
“These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, 40since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.” – Hebrews 11:40
The Old Testament saints, those lionized in chapter 11, lived and died in faith. Yet, they didn’t receive the fulfillment of the promises God gave them because of us. Those under old covenants had to wait for the new order before they could receive the ultimate gift of perfection.
And it looks like their wait is over.
“But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.” – Hebrews 12:22-24
According to this passage, we Christians have arrived at a spiritual destination inhabited by God, Jesus, angels, and Old Testament saints. The author of Hebrews claims that this latter group of people have already been perfected. But they were under the old covenant; they didn’t know about Jesus Christ and His grace. How did that happen?
The last verse in Hebrews mentioning perfection sheds light on this issue.
“But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation.” – Hebrews 9:11
Jesus fulfilled His role as priest by offering Himself as the sacrifice for sin. He suffered before Pilate and died on a cross outside the walls of Jerusalem. But His ministry exceeds the boundaries of this world. He also served within a tabernacle in heaven.
And He did something else, too. In an event the ancient church calls, “the harrowing of hell” (see passages such as Zechariah 9:11, Luke 23:43, Ephesians 4:7-10, and 1 Peter 4:6), Jesus delivered the righteous dead out of Hades and ushered them with Him into the presence of God. They now enjoy the beatific vision.
“Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters. 12He says, ‘I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters; in the assembly I will sing your praises.’ 13And again, ‘I will put my trust in him.’ And again he says, ‘Here am I, and the children God has given me.’ – Hebrews 2:11-13
In Christ, we’re all now one family. Jews and Gentiles, Old Testament believers and New Testament saints are one family of God.
This was God’s intention all along. He calls us to believe in Jesus the perfect Savior and to grow in Him. As we do, we experience the realization of the divine plan. And this is perfection.
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