Clever Stories

Posted on by korgrocker

“For we were not making up clever stories when we told you about the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We saw his majestic splendour with our own eyes when he received honour and glory from God the Father. The voice from the majestic glory of God said to him, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.” We ourselves heard that voice from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.”
2 Peter 1:16-18 NLT

‭‭Peter had been writing, in the previous verses, about his impending death and his desire to leave a legacy of truth by his hard work. And we read on as he provides a reason for his labour – telling them about “the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ”. But he felt it necessary to tell his readers that he hadn’t made it all up. This wasn’t a fairy story of knights of old or heavily embellished tales of a man who had been crucified some years before. Peter referred to the occasion of a visit to a place called the Mount of Transfiguration, and we can read the account in Matthew 17. Jesus, we are told, took with him Peter, James and John, and they went up a high mountain to be alone. Which mountain this was isn’t known but the account of what happened there was no “clever story”. When they arrived, we read, “As the men watched, Jesus’ appearance was transformed so that his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as light. Suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared and began talking with Jesus” (Matthew 17:2-3). This vision that unfolded before them terrified the disciples, but it was Peter, good old impetuous Peter, who spoke out. “Peter exclaimed, “Lord, it’s wonderful for us to be here! If you want, I’ll make three shelters as memorials—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”” (Matthew 17:4). But this is really what scared the disciples – “But even as [Peter] spoke, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy. Listen to him”” (Matthew 17:5). And many years later, Peter, approaching his death and now an old man, still remembered that voice from Heaven. 

Moses had an encounter with God on Mount Sinai and the impact on him terrified the people of Israel. We read in Exodus 34:29-30, “When Moses came down Mount Sinai carrying the two stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant, he wasn’t aware that his face had become radiant because he had spoken to the Lord. So when Aaron and the people of Israel saw the radiance of Moses’ face, they were afraid to come near him.” Today’s generation would probably not be fazed by such an event, but nevertheless, they would take notice of someone with features that are glowing. Sadly, Moses’ radiance started to fade and he ended up wearing a veil to hide his dimming face from the Israelites. But neither he, or those around him, would have ever forgotten the impact of that encounter with God.

Some people, including myself, have never seen God, but, like Peter, we have heard His voice. Many years ago, when my daughter was seriously ill and with a medical prognosis lacking even a glimmer of hope, I was driving along a Scottish motorway summoned once again to her bedside. And as I agonised and prayed, I heard a distinct voice that seemed to come from the back seat saying “Trust Me”. That encounter with God turned my life around, transforming me from a “believer” to a “know-er”. The following weeks were difficult, but gradually my daughter’s condition improved. I now have a story to tell, and even though many years have elapsed since that encounter, I will never forget that voice.

We pilgrims have a story to tell. It may not be as dramatic as Peter’s but it is something real and relevant, and not a piece of clever prose designed to impress. Our stories tell of an encounter with the living God too. That day when we met Jesus and He forgave our sins. That day when the world was transformed from a place of hopelessness and darkness into one of assurance and light. A day when Heaven, not hell, became a future reality. We may not have experienced “His majestic splendour with our own eyes” but through faith we can have the same realisation. Through the Holy Spirit within us, we too can have a daily encounter with God, if we want it.

Father God. You are real and living today. Please help us to share that fact with those around us, with a spirit glowing from a real-time encounter with You. Thank You. Amen.

Our Legacy

Posted on by korgrocker

“For our Lord Jesus Christ has shown me that I must soon leave this earthly life, so I will work hard to make sure you always remember these things after I am gone.”
2 Peter 1:14-15 NLT

Peter included in his letter to his friends in Asia Minor the sobering and sad news that his death wasn’t far away. Not a death due to an incurable disease, but a violent death at the hands of the Romans. And Peter knew this because Jesus had told him. He wasn’t sure of the exact day and hour, but he did know that it was to be soon. However, this knowledge spurred Peter on to make sure his legacy would be remembered. 

It is sometimes fascinating to walk around a graveyard in the grounds of an old church and read the inscriptions marked on the ancient gravestones. Names and a few words are all that is left, in most cases, of the memory of the person buried beneath the crumbling headstone. The letters might be difficult to read, as the weathering of wind and rain have gradually taken their toll over the years, but the writing remains. Within the church building itself there may be a few plaques embedded in the walls or floors that describe a person of note in the parish. Perhaps a benefactor or public servant. But little remains of details about who the person really was. There is a tendency to write a few words about what a person did, or how they were a much loved member of a family, but it is rarely the case that we learn much about their legacy.

Peter’s legacy is clear – he left behind him two letters that have had a significant impact on generations of believers ever since. But what about ordinary people who just continue with their life, bringing up their children, working for a living, being good neighbours, and plodding along quietly in their pilgrimage through life towards the promised land? True believers are mainly faithful people who don’t leave a high-profile legacy for others to read, but instead, by their influence at the time, make their communities, families and society in general a better place. These are believers who work out their lives as members of God’s family, in His Kingdom. Jesus said, as recorded in Luke 17:20b-21, “ … The Kingdom of God can’t be detected by visible signs. You won’t be able to say, ‘Here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the Kingdom of God is already among you“. God’s Kingdom isn’t noticed by our secular politicians. It isn’t recognised with a passport or some other record of citizenship. Instead it is a spiritual Kingdom, and our legacy is bound up within it. 

One day we will leave behind us the earthly kingdom in which we live, and our opportunities for leaving an earthly legacy will cease. At the end of our lives we may even doubt we have left any lasting impact. But we may be surprised one day to find out that, in fact, we did leave a legacy after all, as we find other believers in Heaven who are there because of us. We were faithful in living our natural lives God’s way and because of our witness and testimony they too became believers. 

How we pilgrims live our lives on Planet Earth is important. Jesus told a parable of three servants, to whom he entrusted a sum of money. The sums that each received were different (Matthew 25:15, “He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip“), but the money in itself wasn’t important. What mattered was that each servant had an opportunity to invest what they had been given. We each have different capabilities, gifts (talents) given by God, but the important thing is that we are faithful and obedient in doing with our lives what God intends. In the parable, the master returns and finds that two servants have faithfully invested their money but one just buried it and did nothing with it. The first two servants heard those wonderful words from Jesus – “ … ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together‘” (Matthew 25:23). The third servant heard words that he didn’t want to hear, because he had wasted what God hd given him..

A life full of faithful investment, sharing God’s gifts with those around us, in our families, communities, workplaces and all, is the legacy we need to leave behind us. And as we do that, these gifts are multiplied in the lives of others. All our legacies will be different – in Jesus’ parable no sum of money was the same. There is no right and wrong in the way we live our lives. But we pilgrims are faithful people who shine with our faith, illuminating the dark corners in other people’s lives.

Dear Father God. Please help us not to waste what You have invested within us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

A Timely Reminder?

Posted on by korgrocker

“Therefore, I will always remind you about these things—even though you already know them and are standing firm in the truth you have been taught. And it is only right that I should keep on reminding you as long as I live.”
2 Peter 1:12-13 NLT

We all need Peters in our lives. Faithful men and women who are diligent in reminding us about the wonderful truths and promises in the Bible, and how we must be equally as diligent in applying them to our lives. But do we know a “Peter” who has a spiritual input into our lives? Are we listening when a fellow believer provides some encouragement? Or have we cut ourselves off from contact with other Christians, adopting an “I’ll do it my way” attitude? Peter said to his readers that they, of course, know the truths he is reminding them about, and that, although they probably don’t need any reminders, he is doing so anyway.

We pilgrim believers in our journey through life are constantly dealing with conflicts between two kingdoms. The Kingdom of God, and the kingdom of the world. God has provided all the resources we need in these situations, but sometimes we get a bit wobbly in our faith. The enemy will seek out our weak spots and try and capitalise on them to destroy our faith. The Holy Spirit will guide us to the right truths and promises of course, but we have to go and look for them, examining the Scriptures if we are not sure about something. And sometimes the Holy Spirit will use a “Peter” to help us, particularly if we have gone a bit spiritually deaf.

At the present time, with war in Eastern Europe and, as I write, the conflict in Palestine, we can lose sight of the fact that God is in control of His creation, His world. To think that human beings can destroy something that He created is arrogance in the extreme. In our community Bible Study yesterday we read Psalm 2, and came across verses 4-6, “But the one who rules in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. Then in anger he rebukes them, terrifying them with his fierce fury. For the Lord declares, “I have placed my chosen king on the throne in Jerusalem, on my holy mountain.”” This is the reality – God will rebuke the nations who fight against Him, and He will one day in the future instal Jesus in His rightful place as ruler of the world. 

We pilgrims must always be open to the “Peters” who cross our paths. Our loving Heavenly Father is very faithful and He will often lead us to green pastures where we can find the spiritual nourishment we need. A word from a brother or sister at just the right time will often help us when we need help, but we must keep our spiritual ears open. One practical help is the use of a notebook. When we hear a sermon, write down what we are hearing and go over it afterwards. If the preacher quoted Scriptures, check them out. and the truths and promises we find may be just what God wants us to hear. And we must pray for discernment, to filter out the noise that so easily can divert us from the course. If we find a “Peter”, we may want to journey with him for a bit. But in it all, God loves and cares for us, just as He did for the people who read Peter’s message all those years ago.

Father God. Thank You for the faithful men and women who so often provide a word of encouragement when we need it. We pray today for them, and ask for Your blessings to be with them. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Falling Away

Posted on by korgrocker

“So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”
2 Peter 1:10-11 NLT

So we must start in asking what these “things” are, that Peter is recommending. Again we go back to earlier in the chapter where we are told that God has “given us everything we need for living a godly life”. This will happen as we get to know God more and respond positively and proactively to His promises. But Peter includes a warning, that if we fail to do what he advises, then we are in danger of falling away. In other words, if we stop pursuing God, then we will become side-tracked into doing other things.

I know of several believers who became casualties of the Covid lockdowns here in the UK. Churches stopped holding Sunday in-person meetings and went on-line using video conferencing facilities such as Zoom. This was too big an ask for some people and they stopped participating in a techno-church. But, worse, when the churches I have in mind restarted their Sunday services, these people remained at home. Of course, a Christian doesn’t have to attend a church, but it helps if they do. Hebrews 10:25, “And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near“. Without meeting with other Christians we will miss out on mutual encouragement and much more. A lone Christian becomes an easy target for the devil. Those enticing whispers, that sound so right, saying things like it doesn’t matter if you don’t attend a church service. After all, God will still love you, the devil says. 

I have met people in the past who neglect to read the Bible, because, they say, they don’t understand what it says. In Peter’s day, the people lacked a Bible such as we have, relying instead on Jewish Scriptures, someone to expound them, and the teaching of the Apostles and others who knew Jesus. It was only much later that the Canon of Scripture was put together in the form that we have. But Peter’s encouragement to the believers in the Five Provinces in Asia Minor also applies today. In 2 Peter 1:5a he wrote, “In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. … “. 2 Peter 1:10a, “So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove … “. Understanding what the Bible says and applying it to our lives will take personal effort. It will do us no good to place a Bible under our pillows at night, and hope the truths and promises contained therein will somehow leap into our minds.

The New Testament contains several warnings about “falling away” from the faith. Revelation 2:4-5, “But I have this complaint against you. You don’t love me or each other as you did at first! Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first. If you don’t repent, I will come and remove your lampstand from its place among the churches“. This warning, in a vision through the Apostle John, came directly from Jesus and was intended for the Ephesian believers. In 1 Timothy 4:1a, Paul wrote, “Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith … “. And then we have the ominous warning in Hebrews 6:4-6, “For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened—those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come— and who then turn away from God. It is impossible to bring such people back to repentance; by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nailing him to the cross once again and holding him up to public shame“. 

In Genesis 11 we find the story of Terah, Abraham’s father. Just a few verses but Terah heard God’s call to move to Canaan, but he never arrived there because he settled in a place called Haran, about half way to his destination, and he eventually died there. Perhaps in this brief episode we can read a warning about failing to reach the goal towards which God has called us. There is no half way house in God’s Kingdom. We pilgrim believers must be diligent and make every effort to stay faithful to God. If we find ourselves slipping away from the faith, then we must get on our knees once again and pray for forgiveness and the strength to stay on track.

Heavenly Father. Please help us to stay the course, and remain faithful to You. For Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Work Hard

Posted on by korgrocker

“So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”
2 Peter 1:10-11 NLT

‭‭”Work hard” Peter writes, implying that there is a need to work for our salvation. But wait a minute! Aren’t we saved by grace alone? Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8, “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God“. In Titus 3:5 we read, “he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit“. But to find out what Peter meant we have to look earlier in the chapter. He started by writing that we have to do something in response to God’s promises. 2 Peter 1:5a, “In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. …”. For example, God has promised to give us wisdom but we won’t receive it unless we ask for it. James 1:5, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking“. We may be going through some difficult times and wonder where God is, but again there is something we must do to find Him. Deuteronomy 4:29, “But from there you will search again for the Lord your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him“. 

So when Peter wrote that we must “work hard”, he was referring to the fact that we pilgrims must take an active role in our salvation process. Paul wrote, “Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him” (Philippians 2:12-13). I read somewhere that the Greek verb for “work out” means “to continually work to bring something to completion or fruition”. Salvation is a process, often called sanctification, whereby we become more and more like Jesus as we pursue obedience to God’s promises and instructions. In Philippians 3:12-14, Paul wrote, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us“. Paul pressed on towards his goal. He worked hard at trying to become perfect, achieving what Jesus called him to be.

Unfortunately, some might say, there is not a manual of instructions with check boxes for the things we need to do and have completed. Sanctification is a continual, multi-facetted process and I am reminded of the plate spinners in a circus – they start a plate spinning, then another and then another, and so on, but they always have to go back and keep the earlier plates spinning. Our lives as believers can feel like that sometimes, well, that is until we realise that we have a Helper, the Holy Spirit, who I’m sure does a bit of plate spinning on our behalf when we forget. Each plate represents something in our Christian lives that we have overcome. Perhaps an addiction, or a wrong habit. Perhaps some sin or other, that has blighted our lives. However, we have become an overcomer, but always conscious that we could find ourselves lapsing back into our old ways. Thankfully, after a while, we find that God has helped us get to a point where a particular plate doesn’t need to spin any more. But there’s always a new plate ….

Jesus said that when we involve Him in our lives, things are not as hard as they otherwise could be. He said, “Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light” (Matthew 11:29-30). Romans 8:26 reminds us that the Holy Spirit is actively on our case, “And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words“. So Peter reminds us that we must “work hard”. But it isn’t a drudge to respond to God’s promises and grow in the knowledge of Jesus. In fact, it is a joy to know that we are so close to God as we journey through this life.

Father God. Thank You for Your presence in our lives. Where would we be without You? Amen.

Myopic Believers

Posted on by korgrocker

“The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins.”
2 Peter 1:8-9 NLT

We need to go back a few verses in 2 Peter 1 to verse 3, “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvellous glory and excellence“.  And I wrote in response, “the availability of His Power is intricately related to our knowledge of God. As we delve into the depths of understanding Him, we unlock the reservoir of His power available to us. Peter then wrote in verse 9 some strong words, implying that if we don’t grow in our knowledge of Christ, we have become forgetful by not remembering that day when we were saved, that day when we made a decision to follow Jesus for the rest of our lives.

I once knew a man whose testimony was based on a decision he made for Jesus many years ago. But since then his times of private prayer and Bible reading have been sadly lacking. Yes, he would stand up in church and read a passage of Scripture or say a prayer, but for the rest of the time, as he openly confessed, his life carried on as it always had done. “I’ve always been a good person” was his belief. Peter said that such a person was “shortsighted or blind”, because becoming a believer is the start and not the end, of the process of sanctification. It has been said that in terms of our faith, we either go forward, developing “in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” or we go backwards “forgetting that [we] have been cleansed from [our] old sins”. Standing still is not an option. 

Myopia is an ocular condition more commonly called short-sightedness. A person with this condition finds that they can focus on objects near to them, but things further away become a blur. But there is a condition called spiritual myopia, where a myopic Christian fails to see God’s truths clearly enough to use them in their own lives. The Apostle James wrote about this, and we read, “But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves” (James 1:22). He expands this theme in the following two verses, “For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like” (James 1:23-24). We find his conclusion in James 1:25, “But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it“. We find that the remedy for natural myopia is a pair of glasses or spectacles. We can find a remedy for spiritual myopia by reading God’s Word, the Bible, and applying it to our lives, so that we will grow in the “knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ”. Spiritual myopia, according to Peter, can develop to the ultimate condition of blindness. In this case, the sufferers, even if they read the Bible, or sit under the ministry of many preachers, will fail to connect with God’s truths. They prefer to remain in the domain of their old sins and nothing will change them otherwise, because they cannot see that they are failing in obedience to God’s Word.

James 1:22-25 makes uncomfortable reading because we pilgrims are guilty of doing what he warned against from time to time. We find a cul-de-sac, or backwater somewhere where we find comfort and freedom from the constant slog of journeying to our promised land. We put our spiritual lives on hold for a time, but even when we behave like lost sheep, God is always there for us. Always willing and able to welcome us back into His arms. Jesus said He will always seek us out. Matthew 18:12-13, “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away!” What a Saviour! If we find ourselves failing to see Him clearly today, God’s prescription for our condition is waiting for us to open it up and start reading. 

Father God. You have the Words of eternal life, written for all time in Your Book, the Bible. Please help us to see clearly what You have for us, as we read it day by day. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

God Qualities

Posted on by korgrocker

“In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.”
2 Peter 1:5-7 NLT

Peter lists a number of qualities to supplement our faith. He started with “moral excellence” and then added “knowledge”, “self-control”, “patient endurance”, “godliness”, “brotherly affection”, and “love for everyone”. But again we notice that these qualities, hallmarks of good Christians everywhere, are to be “supplements”, to be sought after and added to our faith in Christ. How will that happen? Well, the “university of life” is a good environment for working out all that God has for us. As we rub shoulders with humanity around us we find many opportunities to behave in God-ways, and not our selfish ways. 

There is a process that we follow, and it starts with God’s grace and our faith in Christ. The qualities that Peter listed are not automatically present in a new believer. They may be to some extent, but we acquire them principally by searching the Word of God diligently and applying what we read and learn to our lives. Then the qualities God demands start to emerge. We note also that faith on its own is not the ideal position for a believer. We read in James 2:17, “So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless“. We get the picture that the qualities Peter listed are to manifest themselves in “good deeds” for the benefit of our fellow believers, friends and neighbours. In fact, the Apostle James was quite blunt in what he wrote. James 2:19-20, 24, “You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless? … So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone“. 

Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8-10, “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago”. There is a balance between our faith in Christ, and the qualities we learn from Him being outworked in our lives by “good deeds”. We are not saved by what we do but we are saved for the good works that Jesus planned for us.

Salvation is a process and not a once in a lifetime event. God loves us of course, right where we are at, warts and all, but as has been said many times, He loves us too much to leave us there. At the point of a heart-felt and genuine decision for Christ, we receive the Holy Spirit and He then continues the process of sanctification throughout our natural lives. We read in Ephesians 5:22-23, “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!” We notice that these include the qualities that Peter wrote about. We now put aside our worldly sinful lives and live God’s way through the power of His Spirit. 

So are we taking our “supplements” or are they absent, bottled up in our selfish ways? Are we being “generous” in our “provision of moral excellence”? Is our faith balanced with “good deeds”, as James wrote? On our journey through life we have much to do, but we will find great rewards in the process.

Dear Father God. Thank You for loving us, even when we are unlovely. Please help us, as we journey through life, to become more like Jesus, day by day. Amen.

Moral Excellence

Posted on by korgrocker

“In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.”
2 Peter 1:5-7 NLT

So we have “great and precious promises” and “divine power”. And through all God’s resources, we live a Godly life as we come to know Him more and more. It gets better – we have the opportunity to “share His divine nature” and “escape the world’s corruption” as we embrace all that God has for us. 

Peter makes an assumption that his audience has faith and he has just been writing about “God’s promises”, faith-building pearls of God’s provision that we can find scattered throughout the Bible. The faith of his readers would have been strong because choosing to live God’s way was not an easy option in that culture. But to develop a siege mentality was the wrong response to the persecution they suffered. Peter encouraged them to find our more about God and His promises, and then do something with it. “Moral excellence”, or, as we find in other translations, “virtue” or “goodness”, must be an outworking, with “every effort”, of their faith. In their society, evil and sinful practices predominated, much as today. There was no morality standard that conformed to what God had in mind when He created human beings. Typically, we read the extent of the problem in Genesis 6:5, “The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil“. We know that God eliminated that generation with the Flood, but the problem didn’t go away. There was a conversation between Abraham and the Lord about Sodom and we read in Genesis 18:20-21, “So the Lord told Abraham, “I have heard a great outcry from Sodom and Gomorrah, because their sin is so flagrant. I am going down to see if their actions are as wicked as I have heard. If not, I want to know””. And we know what happened next.

In our societies today we see the consequences of immorality working out, for example, on the battlefields, in abortion clinics and law courts. We see a society tearing itself apart in pursuit of hedonistic and wicked practices, some so vile that they don’t bear repeating. But we believers know what “moral excellence” means, because God has told us all about behaviour and morality through His Word, the Bible. And Jesus taught, as we read in Matthew 5:14-16, “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father“. The “moral excellence” Peter was writing about was, I believe, something that shows the world around us what true morality is all about. The Bible shows us the way to live God’s way, and there are very few situations we are likely to meet in society today that haven’t been covered by an appropriate verse or passage of Scripture.

Living a moral life isn’t just following a list of do’s and don’ts. It is a lifestyle that will positively impact those around us. That takes effort, hence Peter’s exhortation to “supplement” our faith. So today, as we look around us at our neighbours and friends, we pray for opportunities to work out “moral excellence” in a way that helps them see God.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word and the wisdom it contains, all to bring us closer to You. Amen.

Faith Supplements

Posted on by korgrocker

“In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.”
2 Peter 1:5-7 NLT

Just to recap, we have read in the two previous verses of how God’s power provides “everything we need for living a Godly life” through our knowledge of Him. This thought in itself must be sufficient to drive us pilgrims to a detailed study of the Bible with faithful prayer, enabling us to try to grab hold of God and all that He is. We need to know Him and know Him more. And in that knowledge we need to extract the resources that result in personal changes leading to the Godly life, that is so elusive at times. Peter also mentioned God’s “marvellous glory and excellence”, attributes of God that have driven His gifts of promises, “great and precious promises” into our sphere of knowledge. Meditation on these promises elevates us above the “world’s corruption caused by human desires”. 

So, Peter continues in his communication, looking forward into a practical application of God’s power and promises. On the foundation of a knowledge of God, Peter encourages his readers to do something. His advice might sound a bit radical to a Christian today, to encourage a personal life-change, or even to cast aside preconceived notions of who God is, so that this new knowledge of Him can turn us into the person God wants us to be. Has anyone ever noticed the number of times a Scripture has been read, only for it to disclose the next time something about God that we didn’t know or had forgotten, something that explodes into our minds and spirits anew, bringing a revelation of Him that threatens to blow apart our pre-conceived assumptions?

But Peter continues with the exhortation “make every effort to …”. This isn’t an optional, if-you-feel-like-it type of suggestion, but an instruction that we cannot avoid or rationalise our way out of. If we pilgrims accept that the Scriptures are inspired by the Holy Spirit, then this is something we must do. And to do it, we must apply the life-changing process of increasing our knowledge of God.

Peter assumes that our faith is sound and well established, and he calls us to “supplement” it. He lists a number of factors that are of value to our faith. Some people call it developing our faith muscles, and the process involves applying life’s lessons to our journey in the Kingdom. Of course, this will not be an overnight process, but as we work our way through his list of suggestions, the Holy Spirit will help us.

We pilgrims are perhaps standing on the edge of a spiritual cliff looking into the distance and seeing where we are needing to go. But finding the courage and motivation to take a jump over the edge into what is perhaps uncharted territory for us may be too daunting an ask. Thankfully, God is there holding our hands, urging us on. And we remember that He will never leave us. 

Dear Father God. As we venture into unknown territory, please lead and guide us every step of the way. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Divine Promises

Posted on by korgrocker

“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 ESV

In the previous verse in 2 Peter 1, Peter wrote about how God’s power can help us live a Godly life. He now moves on to considering God’s promises. We read what Peter wrote about God’s divine power, accessed through our knowledge of Him, and leading to His divine promises. 2 Peter 1:4 includes an awe-inspiring revelation – that we are “partakers of the divine nature.” This is a staggering concept that calls us to recognize our profound connection with God. It suggests that as believers, we are not merely recipients of God’s blessings; we are invited to share in who He is. This divine participation transforms the identity and purpose of us pilgrims, calling us to live in a way that is reflective of our life to come In Heaven. And we note that this is not a future event – it is available to us in the here and now.

But there is a significant benefit coming from God’s power and promises – to “escape the corruption that is in the world caused by evil desires.” In a world marked by decay and moral decline, God’s promises offer a way of escape. This escape is not an evasion but a transformative journey. It implies a departure from the corrosive influences of the world and an entry into the transformative power of God’s promises.

So what are these “precious and very great promises”? If we read the end of the previous verse, we see that they are connected with God’s “glory and excellence”. God has made promises to His people in His Word because He is glorious and because He is excellent. Peter was writing to those early Christians in Asia Minor, but his words apply just as much today, to us pilgrims. We can’t just gloss over these promises, though. We have to understand that they are of considerable value, coming as they do from God’s divine nature. And to find out what they are we have to read the Bible. God’s promises are all contained within this precious Book, and we will have to read it. And as we do, we will find out more and more about our wonderful heavenly Father. We will find too that the Bible is full of surprises, that will transform the way we think and behave. 

Let’s just pluck from the Bible some promises; each of these will give us a glimpse of what life with God is like now and what it will be like in the future. 
Psalm 23:6, “Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever“.
Isaiah 1:18, ““Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool“.
Ezekiel 36:26, “And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart“. ‭‭
Matthew 11:28-30, “Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light“.

These are just four God-promises and there are many more. But they are not just warm, fuzzy words on a page in a dusty tome. Applying these in our lives will lead to the abundant life that Jesus spoke about. “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). But we have to take these Scriptures on board and chew them over in our minds and spirits. And apply them to every aspect of our lives. There is no other way.

Dear Heavenly Father. Your ways are the only ways to find the abundant life You have promised to us. We thank You for each and every Word that is contained in Your Book. Amen.