Now That's Perfection!

This past Saturday evening, Phillie's pitching ace, Roy Halladay threw a perfect game. For you non-baseball people that means 27 batters came up to bat against him and 27 batters went down (i.e. not a single batter made it to first base either via a walk, hit or error). That is such an accomplishment that in all the years of Major League Baseball there have only been 20 such masterpieces. And when you consider there are 5,184 games played each season (not including the post season playoffs) AND when you consider that MLB has been around since the late 1800's - there have been a pile of games played. Only 20 of them were perfect!  That puts Halladay's performance in perspective, doesn't it?

Halladay is the second Phillie's pitcher to accomplish this feat. The first to do so was Jim Bunning back on Father's Day in 1964. Unfortunately I missed watching Halladay's gem on Saturday. However, I did see Bunning hurl his perfect game! Yep. I was 8 years old and watching the game on television with my dad and twin brother. Although I did not totally appreciate Bunning's perfect game when he recorded the final out - I did realize it must be special from the way my father was shouting (and he was, on the whole, a quiet man!).

Now a MLB hurler might have the ability to throw a perfect game (Halladay's was the second this season!), but when it comes to living a perfect life - that is beyond every single one of us. And that's a problem. If we want to enter heaven, the entrance requirements set by God himself is a perfect life. So are we doomed to an eternal existence outside of heaven in that place the Bible calls hell? NO!!! And this is the good news of the gospel. Jesus Christ lived the perfect life that God requires. A life we could never live. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, he took our sin upon himself and paid the penalty that a just God demands. And when we place our faith and trust in Christ (his death, burial and resurrection), God credits to our account Christ's perfection. The Scripture speaks of this "Great Exchange" in the following verse:

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5:21). 

Have YOU placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, asking him for the forgiveness of sins that only He can give and the new life that only He can offer? 

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj