The Christian Life: A Life of Perfect!

Thursday morning, April 10, 2008
Several years ago, some golfers got together and wrote a book they chose to label with this title: “Golf is not a Game of Perfect”. You can rest assured that those of us who play the game (even Tiger Woods) are well-acquainted with the truthfulness of their thesis. I played just yesterday and my doing so reminded me of what I already knew—golf is NOT a game of perfect!
If you choose to watch the Masters this week, the tournament where the best-of-the-best will be playing, you will see for yourself that golf is NOT a game of perfect. Even those who are the cream of the crop cannot hone their game anywhere near perfect. The tragedy lies not only in the fact that imperfect shots will be made, but also in the fact that the entire “world” watches them being made—no hiding, no cheating, no covering-up, no denying.
To top it all off, several scoreboards are placed around the course so everyone, even the TV audience, can see just how imperfectly the golfers play the game. To be sure, there will be some incredible scores; some will score much better than others, and, yes, one will finally outscore the rest of the field and win the tourney. Finally, after four days of intense competition, the winner will receive that coveted Green Jacket and walk away “smiling ever after”!
One of the things that has intrigued me about golf is the fact that there are no referees or umpires who police the game. Every golfer is expected to report his own transgressions and penalize himself accordingly, and, I might add, the rules are plenteous and exacting (If you aren’t familiar with the rules of golf, get a copy and read them; they make the Law of Moses look like “leaves of gold in setting of silver”!). Yes, there is a rules committee on hand, whose primary purpose is to do just that—make you aware of the “rule” that applies to any and every situation.
Anyway (my space is running out), I think it is time for some Christians to get together and write a book and entitle it: “Christianity IS A Life of Perfect!” Unlike golf, where the one with the lowest score (the one who makes the fewest mistakes) wins, God’s standard is perfection; consequently, the ONLY ones who “win” in the Christian life are those with perfect scores! “You are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).
It goes without saying that every one of us is in desperate need of the Savior, the only One who has met God’s standard of perfection. Thankfully, He imputed His “score” to us and God accepted it, as if it were ours! Wow!