perfection

[Seminarysnoozer]

I had a friend tell me that they believed that because we are commanded to "be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Matt 5:48) that it is possible for us to become perfect in this life.

I'd like a little feedback from others on this forum for comments on either side of this topic (Yes, we can be perfect in this life or No, we can't be perfect in this life). Feel free to quote scripture, talks, sermons, books and such in your argument for either side but please stick with "generally recognized as good" references.

I'm probably not going to argue either side but I might ask clarifying questions to things I don't understand. And if we get the kinds of responses one of the other threads got earlier, I'm excited to see what people have to say on either side. :)

Joseph Smith: "When you climb up a ladder, you must begin at the bottom, and ascend step by step, until you arrive at the top; and so it is with the principles of the gospel--you must begin with the first, and go on until you learn all the principles of exaltation. But it will be a great while after you have passed through the veil before you will have learned them. It is not all to be comprehended in this world; it will be a great work to learn our salvation and exaltation even beyond the grave." (History of the Church, 6:306-307)

[mrmarklin]

I had a friend tell me that they believed that because we are commanded to "be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Matt 5:48) that it is possible for us to become perfect in this life.

I'd like a little feedback from others on this forum for comments on either side of this topic (Yes, we can be perfect in this life or No, we can't be perfect in this life). Feel free to quote scripture, talks, sermons, books and such in your argument for either side but please stick with "generally recognized as good" references.

I'm probably not going to argue either side but I might ask clarifying questions to things I don't understand. And if we get the kinds of responses one of the other threads got earlier, I'm excited to see what people have to say on either side. :)

We are told that Adam was perfect in his day. But he lived over 900 years!!! You and I are not going to live that long.

For the average person of this generation, I think perfection is going to come in the afterlife.

[heatwaveo8]

I had a friend tell me that they believed that because we are commanded to "be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Matt 5:48) that it is possible for us to become perfect in this life.

I'd like a little feedback from others on this forum for comments on either side of this topic (Yes, we can be perfect in this life or No, we can't be perfect in this life). Feel free to quote scripture, talks, sermons, books and such in your argument for either side but please stick with "generally recognized as good" references.

I'm probably not going to argue either side but I might ask clarifying questions to things I don't understand. And if we get the kinds of responses one of the other threads got earlier, I'm excited to see what people have to say on either side. :)

In the days of Jesus, the meaning of the word in Greek implied completeness. The correct interpretation of the scripture would therefore be: "Be ye therefore complete, even as your Father which is in Heaven is complete."

Complete in what? All of the spiritual attributes. This, however, requires learning to be exactly obedient at all times.

Is this possible in mortality? The chances of that are pretty much nil, not because we've sinned in the past, but because we won't become humble enough to achieve it before we die.