Jesus had revealed to Peter that His death was imminent. Peter also knew that the Christians, in what is now modern day Turkey, were suffering persecution because of their faith. And so he wrote this letter to encourage, warn, and give them his final instructions before he was called home by the Lord.

One of the major themes of Peter’s letters is the importance of spiritual growth. From the beginning, God intended our lives as Christians to be ones of perpetual motion. Far from being our only step, receiving Christ as our Savior is just the first step in a lifelong trek of maturity and renewal; with the goal of becoming a perfect reflection of Jesus. So how do we grow spiritually? Peter tells us God gives us everything we need to become more like Him saying, “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.” (vs. 1:3-4)

What Peter is saying is that right now, we are each fully equipped to lead the lives that God has called us to lead. “As believers, we are partakers of a divine nature by which Jesus abides in us, and anything is possible by His power. We are also given awesome promises through which He develops His character in us.”...Dr. Charles Stanley. 

Yet even though it is God, through the work of the Holy Spirit, who transforms us into His image, it isn’t His plan to do it alone. He wants us to work hand in hand with Him to reach the level of maturity that lets us live a life that not only glorifies the Lord, but protects us from the corruption of the world. “So that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes” (Eph. 4:14) So what part does God expect us to play? Peter tells us that our part includes not only faith, but seven other Christian qualities that when applied to our lives, allow us to mature spiritually. They include diligence, moral excellence, knowledge, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love.

“The grace of God demands diligence, (doing one’s best) as believers grow. It leads to moral excellence, (fulfilling our designated purpose). But the Christian life is more than faith and practical goodness. There is also knowledge, which Christians need not fear; for truth will lead to understanding. Next is self control, which follows when believers submit to the control of the indwelling Spirit. From self control springs perseverance, the ability to endure difficult things. To persevere is added godliness or reverence toward God and fellow men. This leads to brotherly kindness, the outworking of the previous quality. The crowning Christian progress is love, a deliberate desire for the highest good in the one loved.”....Louis Barbieri

Peter goes on to warn that those of us who lack these qualities will be useless and ineffective servants of God, as blind as unbelievers, having forgotten our forgiveness from sins. But to us who use those qualities to grow Peter is quick to encourage saying, “as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.” (vs. 1:10-11)

We’ve all heard the expression, “the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” And that’s just what the Christian life is all about. Its not a single step, it’s a journey. A journey of moving forward and growing in maturity in our walk with the Lord. It’s about working on deepening our relationship with God, and living a life that glorifies Him. It’s about allowing the fruit of Spirit, “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23) to shine through us for the world to see. God promises to do His part. Shouldn’t we promise to do ours?

In Hebrews 5 we are given a description of a priest.  Under the Old Testament, the priests came from the line of Aaron and met the following criteria:

1. They were human.

2 They were chosen by God.

3. They represented the people to God.

“For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.” (v1)

 The OT priests were not perfect and therefore they also had to offer sacrifices to God for their own sins.  Because they were sinners, they were expected to have compassion and empathy for other sinners.  We also, as sinners should have compassion and extend love to other sinners.

“He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people.” (v2-3)

God designates who will be a priest, a mediator on behalf of man.  God appointed Aaron and God appointed Christ.  But notice that Jesus did not come from the line of Aaron, but instead was referred to as being of the order of Melchizedek.  Melchizedek is a priest mentioned in Genesis 14 and Psalm 110.  Chapters 6 and 7 will give us more particulars about why Melchizedek's priesthood was superior to Aaron's.  The important focus of this chapter is that the priesthood of Jesus was an eternal one. Jesus, unlike the OT priests was not a sinner in need of offering sacrifices.  Instead, he offered himself, perfect and unblemished as the eternally accepted sacrifice to atone for all sin.  No longer would the priesthood of Aaron be needed.  Jesus became the perfect representation of man to God  once and for all.  

“And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.” (v 9-10)

The author closes this chapter expressing frustration because he does not see the Hebrew people growing in their spiritual understanding.  In kindergarten you learn your ABCs and then in 1st or 2nd grade you use the letter sounds to understand simple words like "cat" and " ball". You then progress to making sentences, then paragraphs, then essays, term papers, etc.  God wants us to study His Word and to gain over time a more mature understanding of spiritual principles.  He doesn't want us to stay spiritual babies. In fact, He wants us all to eventually be able to teach the knowledge He gives us to others.

“For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” (12-14)

May I encourage you to keep studying God's Word with us so that you can grow alongside of us and we can learn from each other. Next year we will be going on a journey through the whole Bible in a year.  We want to reach as many women as possible who are seeking to learn about God and grow more spiritually mature. Help us get the word out and pray for this ministry to be used for God's glory and purposes.