2 Peter

Climbing Faith's Ladder {2 Peter 1}

12:00 AM

Just as with Paul in writing his 2 second letter to Timothy, we find Peter writing to all of us, knowing he hasn’t much time left on this earth (2 Peter 1:14). for that reason, I tend to view his words here as weightier, since he knows these are most likely his last. After all, if you knew you had only days left to live what would your conversations key on? What would be of greatest importance to you?


For Peter, it seems he’s most concerned about false teachers with their bogus doctrines and sinful lifestyles leading believers astray, and Peter has determined the best way to combat all of that is to make sure we are growing up in our faith! Notice:

“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by his own glory and goodness.Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
“For this very reason, be diligent to add to your faith goodness;
and to goodness, knowledge;
and to knowledge, self-control;
and to self-control, perseverance;
and to perseverance, godliness;
and to godliness, brotherly kindness;
and to brotherly kindness, love.
“For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.
“Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall,and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” -2Peter 1:4-11

I borrowed this from my HCSB study Bible: Because of God's generous provision in Christ, Peter encouraged his readers to build upon their foundation of faith—their initial acceptance of God's love—with the Christian virtues of goodness... knowledge... self-control... endurance... godliness... brotherly affection, and love. These graces, sometimes called the "ladder of faith," are the fruit of sharing in the divine nature. Each successive quality seems to spring from the previous one.

Did you also notice that his exhortation to us also includes a great promise? “...be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall,and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”- 2Pt 1:10-11

With all this in view, I thought it would be wise to break down our “building blocks” of faith to make sure we’re applying each to our lives today, for we must always be growing, and not merely talking about it. After all, according to James- faith without works is a dead faith.
I thought it would be best to begin by defining the word diligence- which basically means, “come up with all the determination you can muster...be persistent, earnest, painstakingly pressing on”. (Hmm… can you see why Peter may have felt the need to add a promise? No slacking allowed in the Christian faith!)
Be diligent to add to your faith...
Goodness or Moral excellence- a quality by which one stood out as excellent, fulfillment of purpose. Found in the Proverbs 31 women and can’t be produced without faith, for it is also a fruit of the Holy Spirit -(Gal 5:22-23)  
“His death saved us but His life transforms us; Everyone has a standard of virtue- humanists say-“you can do it; Jesus says “I’ll do it thru you, with your cooperation” Mjr. W. Ian Thomas in The Saving Life of Christ:

Knowledge- understanding, a recognition, or an acknowledgment. To “know” something is to perceive it or to be aware of it. Many times in Scripture, knowledge carries the idea of a deeper appreciation of something or a relationship with someone. It can only develop with moral excellence and comes as we obey the Word of God.

Self-control- physical and emotional self-mastery, particularly in situations of intense provocation or temptation (1 Cor 9:25) and arises from our knowledge which comes from obedience to the Word of God, out of the faith God has given us.

Perseverance- The ability to bear up under and deal with circumstances and with others; long-suffering in dealing with people. (Rom 5:3)

Godliness - is the reverent awareness of God's sovereignty over every aspect of life, and the determination to honor him in all one's conduct. "Godliness" and "holiness" denote one reality (the terms are joined in 1 Tim 2:2) In Rom 12:1 and 2 Tim 3:5, godliness is evident in deny ourselves (desires, rights, opinions, etc.) and laying down our life to Christ's supremacy.

Brotherly Kindness- The Greek word for brotherly kindness is transliterated "philadelphia," a compound word involving two words: "phileo" (love) and "adelphos" (brother). Therefore it is a love for the faithful and a by-product of true godliness.

Love is agape love (God’s love) and is an action, not a feeling. It’s defined in 1 Cor 13:4-8.

Peter wants us to understand that growing in the knowledge of Jesus Christ is a process- sort of a spiritual construction project. We were all saved by faith, but that’s just the beginning to this new life in Christ! God plans for all of us to be conformed to the image of His Son (Rom 8:29). Therefore, He begins by adding to our faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, and godliness, which will become evident through our brotherly kindness and love towards others.

“A deeper knowledge of the Person of Jesus is the surest safeguard against false doctrine.” - Michael Green. Therefore we should make sure that we are “diligently” following Peter’s advice and building on our faith daily! So let me ask you,
__Do you possess the faith in Jesus that Peter has written about? Have you trusted in Him as your only means of salvation?
__ Are you submitting/surrendering to Him as the Lord over your life?
__Are you growing in your knowledge of God through knowing Jesus as Lord?

These are the foundations of our faith! As you look back over each try to determine just where you would place yourself in your walk with Him? Which one are the two of you working on just now?


1 Corinthians

The Blessed Knowledge of God {1 Cor. 7}

10:30 PM


By Mari Sandoval
In the previous chapter Paul writes to the Corinthians about the importance to flee from immorality. I believe we should focus on this following verse for today’s study: 12 Everything is permissible for me, but not all things are beneficial. Everything is permissible for me, but I will not be enslaved by anything [and brought under its power, allowing it to control me].(6:12 AMP) And he continues to explain that our body is not ours anymore: It’s the Lord’s.  I like what M. Henry comments:  “The body is for the Lord; is to be an instrument of righteousness to holiness, therefore is never to be made an instrument of sin. It is an honor to the body, that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead; and it will be an honor to our bodies, that they will be raised. The hope of a resurrection to glory, should keep Christians from dishonoring their bodies by fleshly lusts. And if the soul be united to Christ by faith, the whole man is become a member of his spiritual body. ”
In our reading today Paul answers several questions regarding marriage and sexuality: “Now as to the matters of which you wrote: It is good (beneficial, advantageous) for a man not to touch a woman [outside marriage].2 But because of [the temptation to participate in] sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband.” (7:1-2)
More and more we hear of the breaking of marriages that were meant to be a commitment for life!  And not only those marriages are broken, but families are torn apart! Satan has done a great job here!
When my parents divorced, my brother and I were in our adolescence years. It was very painful! We were both to live with my mother and over the time I was convinced their marriage broke not because of anyone’s fault, but because God was not the core… the foundation of this marriage! My parents had a religion but they didn’t know God or His Precepts! When I grew older I had the opportunity to live for half a year with an extended family on my father’s side, as I was taking a job training in that city. There I saw what made a great difference in this family: they prayed and studied their Bible together. Was their marriage perfect? No, it wasn’t, but they were commited to God and to each other! I realized how badly I needed God in my life and in my family’s life! So God put a deep desire inside me and I prayed He’d grant me the opportunity to know Him and to have a family like this. I praise our Father for over the years, He answered my prayers!
There is this great resource by John Piper on today’s study. I really encourage you to read it and even take notes. ( http://www.desiringgod.org/messages/satan-uses-sexual-desire).
Here are the final words from John Piper’s message:
“Let me close by directing your attention to a passage in 1 Thessalonians 4, namely, verses 3–5. Here Paul shows the crucial difference between those governed by their passions and those who are governed by a sense of holiness and honor. "This is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from immorality; that each one of you know how to take a wife for himself in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like heathen who do not know God."
The key phrase is "who do not know God." If you ask Paul, What can I do so that I am protected from Satan's power to deceive me into sexual sin? his answer would be, Get to know God. Devote yourself to the knowledge of God. Pursue an ever-expanding vision of God…”
“In Galatians 4:8 Paul said, "Formerly when you did not know God you were in bondage to beings that by nature are no gods." Deliverance from the bondage of Satan and his forces comes through knowing God.

Or as Peter put it in his second letter (1:3, 4): "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." The better you know the glory and excellency of God, the less power Satan will have over you. You cannot be easily deceived that Satan's way is better when you really know the way of Christ.

The only way to fight the lie of sinful pleasure is with the truth of righteous pleasure. When you come to know God fully—that "in his presence is fullness of joy and at his right hand are pleasures forevermore"—then you will have conquered Satan once for all. He is a liar and has no power over those who know God in truth.”