His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 2 Peter 1:3-4
God has given us all that we need through Christ. Too often I forget this, or at the very least I push it to the back of my mind. I was reminded of this as we continue in our sermon series through Romans. Paul makes clear in Romans 6:5-11 that Jesus has won the victory over sin. Not only has Jesus won the victory but He also enables us to share in that victory. Through faith we are unified with Christ, and because of what Christ accomplished, we can have victory over sin.
Peter reminds us that we have all that we need through the knowledge of Him who called us. Not only do we have what we need, He has given us precious and overwhelming promises. Through Christ we are made right before God. He has also allowed us to become partakers of the divine nature. He dwells in us. We can escape from the corruption that sin has caused is in this world. God gives us the ability through Christ to walk in victory. Peter is reminding us of things we have heard before. This is because we need to be reminded of truth. We need to dwell and meditate on the fact that God has given us all we need. That He has granted us great and precious promises. That He keeps His promises. That He is at work within us.
When we dwell on the truth of God that He has revealed through His Word, we will have the right mindset. And the right mindset will lead us to right actions.
Peter then goes on in 2 Peter 1:5-7 to tell us to take steps to grow in our faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. Knowledge needs to lead to action. It is possible to have true knowledge of Jesus and yet be ineffective and unfruitful. Peter makes this noticeably clear in verses 8 -9:
For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.
Our natural state is to be unfruitful and ineffective. Peter states that if we are not actively working towards growth, we will be unfruitful. Knowledge without action leads to forgetfulness and ineffectiveness. Peter states that if we lack these qualities, we become nearsighted to the point that we can forget that Jesus cleansed us from our sins. This thought can seem overwhelming, yet this passage was given to us for our good. If we find ourselves ineffective or unfruitful, then we need to start at the top. We need to reflect on what Jesus has accomplished and on what God has promised. He wants us to grow and be fruitful. Then we need to take a step of obedience and growth. Remember who God used to write this section of scripture. Peter knew Jesus personally, and saw great miracles and promises. However, when Jesus was arrested, Peter denied Him three times. Peter failed at the moment of crisis. However, after Jesus rose from the dead, He lovingly restored Peter.
Peter knew what it was like to fall, to be ineffective. And he knew what it was like to be reminded of God’s goodness and to be restored. Therefore, God used him to remind us of these things so that we could live fruitful lives. May our knowledge be active.
I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things. 2 Peter 1:13-15
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