Perfection

"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love."

1 John 4:18

Often times we hear this verse spoken, yet what is the true passion behind these words. Fear is something I, as a human, am all too familiar with. For me, fear comes out of a desire to be perfect. I hope to attain perfect in my relationships, in my work, in my recreation. Why? Because I fear being punished with disappointment, shame, or abandonment. Yet, this verse reminds me that when we embrace our identity in Jesus, we have nothing to fear. He has no reason to punish us because he has paid the price for our lack of perfection. If we lend our fears to Jesus, he makes us perfect. We do not strive to be perfect for human accolade but rather we humbly ask Jesus to let his love cover us so that we can be seen as perfect in His view. Some may say we can never be perfect, only Jesus is perfect. But, when he looks at us with our humble hearts exposed, we are perfect to Him.