“Now be ye not stiffnecked, as your fathers were, but yield yourselves unto the Lord, and enter into his sanctuary, which he hath sanctified for ever: and serve the Lord your God, that the fierceness of his wrath may turn away from you.” 2 Chronicles 30:8

The teachings on judgement have however never been palatable to the human mind, who sees life as a ball: one fairy tale after another, always with happy endings. That’s why no matter what the human being faces, hardly will he scowl for long, because he’s always looking beyond the problem to the euphoria at the top of the mountain.

The immediate fall-out of this mindset is that man generally is earth–centric. His life revolves around today and a wealthier tomorrow, no matter how farther that looks. He hardly thinks of eternity – where he will spend his eternity as he meanders through the valleys and jungles of this world.

Paul writing to the Corinthians debunked this kind of mindset. He said, examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ in you, except ye be reprobates 2Cor. 13:5.

This single instruction can save you from going to hell, if adhered to; after all who knows you better than yourself: who cursed, who hated, who sinned? You; and you were there to record it. (Ezekiel 43:10)

That’s why you are the one that can make things right, by your confession, your accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, and then subjecting yourself to learning the word of God. (Psalm 119:1-11; 2Tim. 3:16; Matt. 11:28-29).

Perfection or proficiency in things doesn’t come easy or at once, it takes being taught, over time. It is the same with spiritual things. Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount-what has been called the Beatitudes – God’s Constitution or code of conduct for us (Matt. 5-7) spent a lot of time talking about various aspects of Christian living, but knowing the impossibility of the Christian harnessing and practicing them in a day or even a short period went on to tell us how it could be done in the word perfect – “Be ye perfect, even as the father is perfect” (Matt. 5:48)

The word perfect in English is translated from the Greek word, Teleios, not sinlessness which would have been anamartesion. It means among things, Adult, full grown, of full age, as opposed to little children-babes in Christ (1Cor. 2:6; 1Cor. 14:20; Eph. 4:13; Phil. 3:15; Heb. 5:14).

Adulthood doesn’t come in a day; it takes a process of time. It takes nourishment and a good environment to grow and maintain good health: the presence of God and the easting of His word – constant prayerful study will maintain you on the wilderness that leads to the promised land.

It can be used in a relative or absolute sense (e.g. Matt. 5:48; 19:21), that is, God’s perfection is absolute, man’s is relative, reaching the goal set for him by God, with each individual differing according to his God-given ability. (Thayer’s Concordance of Greek)

The scripture in Colossians 3:10 gives us further insight. It says, “And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:”

That means it is not a static position but an everyday learning about Christ and the everyday practicing of the new things learnt. Kind of like shedding skin to grow new one-dropping bad habits (the nature of the fallen man) and adding new (good) ones learnt.

The New Testament words are “PUT OFF”: meaning

1. Wholly put off from one’s self,

a. Denoting separation from what is put off

2. Wholly to strip off from one’s self (for one’s own advantage)

And “PUT ON”: meaning, to sink into (clothing), put on, clothe one’s self. This is in the sense of you disappearing and the clothe you put on becoming the visible you! That’s what it takes to get to the city of God. Born again alone won’t do it – that’s not the pattern in the Bible – it’s going to take reformation of character: what theologians call sanctification-being cleansed out from inside to become the vessel that God would use: 2Tim. 2:21-22.

2 Corinthians 4:17. “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;” Why? Because we were born into a fallen world. Like God unlearned from Moses the wisdom and nature of Egypt to teach him the qualities of a Shepherd, so must we unlearn the wisdom and nature of this world to be equipped for service in the Lord.

That is the end of learn of me in Matthew 11:28-29. Take my yoke is work with Me. the yoke is an instrument that you put on the necks of two oxen working together to till the land. It is after you drop the old man – the unregenerated/carnal you that you become an Ambassador of Christ. 2Corin. 5:17-20

That is our job as we journey on to the city of God. Acts 1:8; Mark 16:15-16

Character upgrade ensures you fellowship with God (Isaiah 57:15; Psalm 15). That’s where you get the strength to be productive as you journey on: How happy are those who live in your Temple, always singing praise to you.How happy are those whose strength comes from you, who are eager to make the pilgrimage to Mount Zion.As they pass through the dry valley of Baca, it becomes a place of springs; the autumn rain fills it with pools.They grow stronger as they go; they will see the God of gods on Zion. Psalm 84:4-7 (GNT)