Not Called to Perfection

I can delight in the fact that I don’t have to be perfect. I am not called to perfection. I am called to point to God even when that means repenting when I do wrong. God brings delight even in repentance. That delight is called grace. If I repent, I have God’s forgiveness and the grace to go on and do better.

There’s also a delight and a freedom that “rules” can be altered a bit as long as I don’t change the “principles” of God’s word. Peter, the Jewish disciple, was called to go to the home of a gentile named Cornelius. Peter always ate what was kosher–approved and prepared by God’s rules—but Peter ate what Cornelius set before him–even though it wasn’t kosher. He learned that the principle of loving others and preaching the gospel to them was more important than what he ate (Acts 11:7-9). Sometimes it’s not what I do, it’s my mindset as I do it. God’s love and forgiveness work in me to change me and I need to apply that same grace when dealing with others.