Welcome to Hank’s Place –
We have experienced two hurricanes in two weeks – I do not recommend you do this! By His grace we are well. I suggest Samaritan’s Purse or a local church if you wish to support relief efforts.
In 2nd Peter, Peter says he is writing to those who have RECEIVED a faith of the same kind as ours. Hear that? Faith is something we receive, not produce. It is a gift from God that comes from hearing about the love of God that has been revealed to us through Jesus Christ.
Also, it’s a faith the SAME as Peter’s. That’s the faith that receives the GIFT of Christ’s righteousness. Hallelujah! It is the righteousness God gave us because He loves us. We did nothing to earn it. Remember Peter’s denial of Jesus? His faith wavered, but he did not fall because Jesus was praying for him. We are not kept safe by our faithfulness to Christ but by His faithfulness to us!
This Good News continues! Verses 3 and 4 read: “Everything we could ever need for life and godliness has already been deposited in us by His divine power. For all this was lavished upon us through the rich experience of knowing Him who has called us by name and invited us to come to Him through a glorious manifestation of His goodness. As a result of this, He has given you magnificent promises that are beyond all price, so that through the power of these tremendous promises we can experience partnership with the divine nature, by which you have escaped the corrupt desires that are of the world.”
What? Partakers of the Divine Nature? This is one of the great mysteries of our faith, that God would share His nature with us. We were given birth by the Holy Spirit and are God’s true sons and daughters. Christ lives in us and transforms us into His very own likeness.
As such, the promises found in verses 5 thru 7 are OURS. Friend, claim these powerful promises as YOURS! The Passion Translation has a footnote that reads, “It is possible to view this passage like an unfolding of faith. “Out of your faith will emerge goodness, and out of goodness will emerge understanding (of God), and out of understanding (of God) will emerge inner strength (self-control), and out of inner strength will emerge patient endurance, and out of patient endurance will emerge godliness, and out of godliness will emerge mercy toward your brothers and sisters, and out of mercy will emerge love.””
Because we have the Divine Nature within, these promises, these virtues, are already planted deep within us. Peter says they make us fruitful in this life. Then he warns that if we forget we can become unfruitful and ineffective.
Forget what? He tells us. Forget we have been forgiven he says. Forget who and whose we are in Christ.
So today dear friend, dwell on these precious promises. They are ours for Christ is in us. REMEMBER, we are forgiven, REJECT any voice that says otherwise, and REJOICE in the grace of God.
You’ll ALIVE victoriously!
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