“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.
Being a Pilgrim 