Repentance – Fullness of Joy and Peace- 2 Peter 1:1-11
10:00 PM
Friday October 4 -Please read: 2 Peter 1:1-11
When we
first surrender our lives to Jesus, confessing our sins in repentance,
something awesome happens!
“…even when we were [spiritually]
dead and separated from Him because of our sins, He made us
[spiritually] alive together with Christ (for by His grace—His
undeserved favor and mercy—you have been saved from God’s judgment). 6 And He raised us up together with Him
[when we believed], and seated us with Him in the heavenly places,
[because we are] in Christ Jesus,” (Ephesians 2:5-6)
This
great miracle occurred in our lives and we begin to live with renewed strength,
joy and boldness, sharing with every one of our New Faith! But time goes by
with its challenges and difficulties and sadly, many of us tend to forget those
first years of “spiritual effervescence”!
“Our walk
with God often encounter memory challenges. We forget that his promises to care
for us are not conditional. We quickly forget that prayer does work, that as
Peter expresses it, God has cleansed us from our old life of sin.” (iWorship
Bible)
But what
are we to do, to keep experiencing the fullness of grace and peace in our
lives? (2 Peter 1:2)
“5 For
this very reason, applying your diligence [to the divine promises, make every
effort] in [exercising] your faith to, [e]develop moral excellence, and in moral excellence,
knowledge (insight, understanding), … 8 For as these qualities are
yours and are increasing [in you as you grow toward spiritual maturity], they
will keep you from being useless and unproductive in regard to the true
knowledge and greater understanding of our Lord Jesus
Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is
blind—shortsighted [closing his spiritual eyes to the truth], having become
oblivious to the fact that he was cleansed from his old sins.” (2Pe. 1:5,8,9
AMP)
We begin
our walk with the Lord with faith – exercising
our Faith, not just keeping it to ourselves-; but faith should progress
into virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly
kindness, and love - love
being the most important of all God's work in us.
We are
called to give all diligence to these things, working in partnership
with God to add them to our Christian walk.
Peter
tells us that if we have these things, and abound in them, then it
will be evident to everyone that we are not barren, nor unfruitful in
our knowledge of Jesus.
But if we
lack these qualities, it is because we lack in the knowledge of God. We should
yearn to know Him, and seek Him in an increasingly fuller and deeper sense!
“According
to Blum, the ancient Greek word knowledge doesn't refer to a casual
acquaintance. It means an exact, complete, and thorough knowledge.
We come
to knowledge of Him as we learn of Him through His Word, through
prayer, and through the community of God's people. It is true that we need God
alone, but God does not meet us only in our "aloneness" but also in
the community of His people.” (David Guzik)
Some may
feel good that these qualities are seen in us from time to time. But Peter says
they should abound in
us. If we lack these qualities we become blind, shortsighted,
forgetting the lost sinners we were!
"Such
a man sees the things of time, and fails to discern those of eternity… he sees
himself and his fellowmen, but not God. This nearsightedness is destructive of
a true Christian experience, and therefore makes advance impossible." (Morgan)
So, let me ask you,
do you feel you are stuck, immovable in your spiritual life? Do you feel barren
and unproductive? Come to your Heavenly Father and open your heart to Him and
confess you’ve failed Him. Bring all your “arguments and…every thought into
captivity to the obedience of Christ”
regarding the matter, and He will lift you up (2 Corinthians 10:5), for His
mercies are never ending!
Father, forgive me for
taking for granted ALL you have given me through Jesus’s Sacrifice. Help me to live in obedience and deal with
the issues in my life, which have brought me to a barren and unfruitful life in
You! May I experience again joy in my
heart and fruitfulness in my spirit! In Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen
Mari
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