Matthew 5:43 – “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. 44 But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! 45 In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. 46 If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. 47 If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. 48 But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect. (NLT)

Hollywood spends a lot of time and money entertaining millions of people with love stories.  Most of these love stories would teach us that we can only become complete as a human when we find our one true love.  Today’s passage teaches us just the opposite, we can only become complete when we truly love others as God loves all. 

In this passage, Jesus speaks about loving all people, not just those who love us.  Then, in verse forty-eight, Jesus says: “you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.” Almost every English translation out there has the word ‘perfect.’  I’m not a big fan of translating the Greek into ‘perfect.’  First, it confuses many Christians, for we are taught that no one is perfect but Jesus.  Second, I think we miss the richness of the word. 

The Greek word that we translate as ‘perfect’ is τέλειος,{tel’-i-os}.  The word literally means: 1) brought to its end, finished;  2) wanting nothing necessary to completeness.  Loving others unconditionally completes us.  Perhaps, this is human perfection, but it does not mean we live without sin, for we have plenty of Scripture that teaches us otherwise – and we know all too well from our own experiences!

Today, let us love all others.  We don’t have to approve of everyone, or even enjoy their presence, but let us love.  Let us be complete!

Posted by Ramón Torres