According to Genesis 17:1, when God first establishes a covenant with Abraham, God tells him, “Walk before me, and be tamim.” It’s one of those ancient Hebrew words whose meaning has been debated for centuries. No one really knows for certain what the word implies.
However, since it is used elsewhere in the Bible to describe an animal fit to be offered as a sacrifice, because it is without flaw or blemish, the word is usually taken to mean “perfect” or “blameless.” “Walk before me, and be perfect.” The problem with this translation is that, if God’s covenant requires us to be “perfect,” then it would seem as if the Almighty is asking something of us that we will never be able to achieve. After all, none of us is perfect, nor can we be.
But more recent interpreters, for a combination of linguistic and theological reasons, have backed away from the notion of God demanding that Abraham—and by implication, the rest of us—be perfect and without flaw. Contemporary scholars take the word tamim to mean something more like “whole-hearted.”
In other words, it’s not perfection that God desires from Abraham, it is integrity. God wants us to strive to be true to the core of who we are. Thus, God is not saying “Be flawless,” or “Don’t ever make a mistake,” what God is saying is “Be whole” … “Be complete” … “Be who I created you to be.”
Think of it this way—when we do something wrong, or when we make a mistake, we do not cease to be human. What we lose in those instances is our integrity, our sense of wholeness. Sin creates a situation where our hearts are divided, and we are at war within ourselves. As Paul writes to the Romans, “I do not understand my own actions. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it.”
This is where grace enters the picture. Through Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, we are made whole once more. That is why it is often called the atonement, because we experience “at-one-ment” again—both with God and within ourselves. Therefore, we can stand before the Almighty with all of our faults and frailties and know that we are already loved and accepted. “To be whole” means that we don’t have to pretend that we are perfect, and we don’t have to fear that we will be rejected for falling short of that standard.
The point is that life is not a trap set for us by God, so that God can then condemn us for failing. Neither is it a spelling bee, where no matter how many words you have spelled correctly, if you make one mistake you are disqualified. God is not against us, God is for us. And if we are brave enough to love one another, strong enough to forgive one another, and generous enough to reach out to others in times of need, then we will have achieved exactly what God has asked of us.
However, since it is used elsewhere in the Bible to describe an animal fit to be offered as a sacrifice, because it is without flaw or blemish, the word is usually taken to mean “perfect” or “blameless.” “Walk before me, and be perfect.” The problem with this translation is that, if God’s covenant requires us to be “perfect,” then it would seem as if the Almighty is asking something of us that we will never be able to achieve. After all, none of us is perfect, nor can we be.
But more recent interpreters, for a combination of linguistic and theological reasons, have backed away from the notion of God demanding that Abraham—and by implication, the rest of us—be perfect and without flaw. Contemporary scholars take the word tamim to mean something more like “whole-hearted.”
In other words, it’s not perfection that God desires from Abraham, it is integrity. God wants us to strive to be true to the core of who we are. Thus, God is not saying “Be flawless,” or “Don’t ever make a mistake,” what God is saying is “Be whole” … “Be complete” … “Be who I created you to be.”
Think of it this way—when we do something wrong, or when we make a mistake, we do not cease to be human. What we lose in those instances is our integrity, our sense of wholeness. Sin creates a situation where our hearts are divided, and we are at war within ourselves. As Paul writes to the Romans, “I do not understand my own actions. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it.”
This is where grace enters the picture. Through Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, we are made whole once more. That is why it is often called the atonement, because we experience “at-one-ment” again—both with God and within ourselves. Therefore, we can stand before the Almighty with all of our faults and frailties and know that we are already loved and accepted. “To be whole” means that we don’t have to pretend that we are perfect, and we don’t have to fear that we will be rejected for falling short of that standard.
The point is that life is not a trap set for us by God, so that God can then condemn us for failing. Neither is it a spelling bee, where no matter how many words you have spelled correctly, if you make one mistake you are disqualified. God is not against us, God is for us. And if we are brave enough to love one another, strong enough to forgive one another, and generous enough to reach out to others in times of need, then we will have achieved exactly what God has asked of us.
posted by Dr. Robert Crilley at
11:58 AM
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