A Faithful People

3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

12 Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.

Golden Text: According as his divine power hath given unto us all thingsthat pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of himthat hath called us to glory and virtue.—2 Peter 1:3.

How to Say It

Alexandria. Al-iks-an-dree-uh.

Elijah. Ee-lye-juh.

Galatians. Guh-lay-shunz.

Gnosticism. Nahss-tih-sizz-um(strong accent on Nahss).

gnostics. nahss-ticks.

gnosis. no-sis.

heresies. hair-uh-seez.

Judas. Joo-dus.

Pentecost. Pent-ih-kost.

Silas. Sigh-luss.

Silvanus. Silvay-nus.

Home Daily Bible Readings

Monday, Nov. 16—Trustworthiness (Luke 19:12–26)

Tuesday, Nov. 17—Integrity (Psalm 101:1–4)

Wednesday, Nov. 18—Truthfulness (Proverbs 14:2–5)

Thursday, Nov. 19—Courage (Daniel 6:6–10)

Friday, Nov. 20—Readiness (Matthew 24:42–47)

Saturday, Nov. 21—Willingness (Acts 8:26–39)

Sunday, Nov. 22—Godliness (2 Peter 1:3–15)

When I was in high school, I hurt my knee playing football. The X-rays showed the damage, which was eventually corrected by surgery. The X-rays also revealed something else. In technical language that I did not understand, the doctor said my knee was fully formed. This meant that I would not grow any more.

In other words, I was about as tall as I was ever going to get, even though I was only 15 years old at the time. I would never reach 6' in height. Instead, I would have to settle for 5'11". This was a difficult pill to swallow, because my older brother was 6'2", and I had always assumed I would match or exceed him. Furthermore, my favorite sport was basketball, but I knew that my success there would be limited because of my lack of height.

All of us eventually quit growing vertically (although we seem to retain a propensity for horizontal growth). This is a simple fact of life, and it is largely determined by our genetic makeup. It is tragic, though, that some Christians cease to grow in spiritual stature. An early growth spurt may give them modest spiritual height. But then, for some reason, they remain stagnated at that level. They reach the point of not having new spiritual thoughts or insights for many years. The great truths of the faith become commonplace and stale for them.

Other Christians, however, seize the opportunities for lifelong growth that the faith affords. They become spiritual giants, continuing to add to their growth until death takes them. Peter was one of these. He seemed to have been a giant already when he preached the first gospel message on the Day of Pentecost, shortly after Jesus’ resurrection (Acts 2:14–36). We do not know how old Peter was at that time, but our best guess is that he was in his mid-30s.

By the time Peter wrote the second letter that bears his name, over three decades had passed. Peter was surely near age 70. He had no regrets, and his primary concerns were to remain faithfully obedient, to keep growing in Christ, and to pass those challenges along to others.

Whatever our physical age today, we do not have to settle for stunted spiritual growth. The spiritual life is such that it can be renewed and refreshed. Growth can begin again, even after a long period of inactivity.

The book of 2 Peter includes some interesting features. First, it is written in a style of Greek very different from 1 Peter (although this may not be apparent to readers of English translations). Peter notes that his first letter was written with the help of Silvanus (1 Peter 5:12), whom we may know better as Silas. Silas, a companion also of Paul, seems to have been an educated Jew from a privileged background, for we know he was a Roman citizen (Acts 16:25, 38). We speculate that his help with 1 Peter provided the polish to that letter.

Peter’s second letter, however, seems to have been written quickly, under great duress, and with no help from anyone like Silas. Peter himself wrote down the words rather than passing them over to someone else to edit. The style of 2 Peter is terse and direct, with few literary niceties.

A second thing to notice is the remarkable eyewitness recollection of Jesus’ transfiguration found in 2 Peter 1:16–18. Here we find the same basic elements included in the Gospel accounts, but without the part about Peter’s clumsy suggestion to build three “tabernacles” or shrines for Moses, Elijah, and Jesus (Matthew 17:4). It is not too surprising that this embarrassing detail had faded to the background for Peter!

A third prominent feature of 2 Peter is its frank discussion of what has been called “the delay of the second coming” (see 2 Peter 3:3, 4). The earliest church apparently expected Jesus to return very shortly. Peter, writing from the perspective of more than three decades after he first met Jesus, has come to grips with the distinct possibility that the second coming may not happen during his own lifetime. This will be discussed more fully in next week’s lesson.

We should treasure these words of Peter, for they are the unrivaled message of a veteran believer at the end of his ministry. He brought to the table his experiences about the Lord Jesus as few in his generation could do—and certainly no one can do today. May we listen to him carefully.

3. According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue.

As the apostle Paul faced his death, he celebrated the fact that he had “kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7). In a similar vein, Peter begins his letter with a reminder of the importance of remaining faithful to Christ, no matter what the future may bring. There is no other option in Peter’s view.

In this light, Peter wants to talk about the nature of God’s gifts. Peter divides those gifts into two categories. First, there are gifts that provide life. For example, Jesus had taught Peter and the other disciples to give thanks for daily bread (Matthew 6:11), the necessities for living. Second, God has granted us what we need for godliness. The Christian does not need to guess about what constitutes the godly life. We have been provided with Scripture and teachers to guide us in this area. God gives us what is needed for physical and spiritual nourishment. [See question #1, page 104.]

Peter also discerns two purposes for God’s gifts to us. First, there is the issue of God’s call in relation to His glory. Thus our call is not an issue of personal fame or status in this life. Also, this is a glory yet to be revealed (see 1 Peter 5:1). It is this hope of glory that makes it possible for us to endure present sufferings (1 Peter 4:13).

Peter also commends the gifts of God that contribute to virtue. This is closely connected with the godliness already mentioned. Peter develops this theme further in verse 5, below. Peter reminds us that these gifts come through our knowledge of Him. He is not talking about book-learning, but about knowing the Lord through a personal relationship.

4. Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises; that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Although not well known, this verse identifies one of the greatest of God’s gifts to believers: the Holy Spirit. Peter describes our relationship with God’s Spirit as being partakers of the divine nature. As Paul put it, the Holy Spirit is God’s “earnest” or down payment toward our full redemption at the end of life (Ephesians 1:13, 14).

Some Christians are very cautious in this area of doctrine. While we don’t want our discussion of this to become too convoluted, we should not miss the tremendous significance of what Peter is saying. As believers, we receive the promise and the experience that we are directly plugged into God at the spiritual level. He is not distant from us or foreign to us. This indeed is an exceeding great and precious promise.

For Peter, the practical aspect of the gift of the Holy Spirit is that it allows us to escape the corruption and lust of the world. This describes the longing for ungodly things, preoccupation with pursuits other than God. If we have claimed the promises and gifts that come through faith, our primary focus will be on God and on doing His will. All other things pale in significance to this glorious relationship. It is this strong faith that allows Peter and his church to remain faithful through the horrible persecution by Rome. [See question #2, page 104.]

My wife and I enjoy watching old movies. Recently we were watching You Can’t Take It with You, one of the well-known movies directed by Frank Capra, done in 1938. At one point in the film, Anthony P. Kirby, a powerful banker, is in the midst of pulling together an amazing business merger. He decides to make his son the president of the new corporation, but one of his subordinates had promised that role to another businessman in order to get his signed proxies.

Promises are precious things. All parents remember those distressing times when we make a commitment to our children, and then we are unable to fulfill our commitment because of extenuating circumstances. Our child’s “But you promised!” becomes an uncomfortable prick to our conscience, perhaps for years to come.

How blessed we are that God’s promises are surer than all human promises! When God makes a promise, we don’t have to worry about whether He will honor His word. It is impossible for Him to do otherwise. In addition, He controls all extenuating circumstances, so nothing can deflect Him from fulfilling His promises. —J. B. N.

The New Testament writers elsewhere present the path of spiritual development as a series of steps. As such, one step builds on another (see Romans 5:3, 4; James 1:3, 4). Peter does not minimize God’s role in our spiritual formation, but Peter also expects his readers to give diligence in these matters. Spiritual growth is not an automatic thing for the Christian. [See question #3, page 104.]

For Peter, this sequence necessarily begins with faith. We add to this virtue, which Peter has already listed as a gracious calling of God (v. 3, above). The virtuous life was sought by the ancient Greek philosophers, but it is truly realized only through faith in Jesus Christ.

The third step on this growth journey is knowledge. This is the ongoing expansion of one’s familiarity with the ways of God and the elements of godly love. We cannot obey if we are ignorant of the expectations.

Clement of Alexandria was one of the key individuals in the church around ad 200. As an intellectual leader of the church in Egypt, he was concerned about fighting one of the most serious heresies facing the church at the time: the false teaching of Gnosticism.

The Gnostics taught that the most important thing in Christianity was knowledge (in Greek, gnosis, thus their name). If you had the correct intellectual understanding about spiritual things, then it did not matter what you actually did. Knowledge was salvation. The body was physical and therefore corrupt; of course it was going to do evil things. But knowledge was salvation.

Clement felt he had to fight this misconception. But at the same time, he wanted to make Christianity appealing to the intellectual classes of Alexandria, those inclined toward philosophy, even Gnosticism. Clement emphasized the importance of faith. He affirmed that even the simplest believer is saved. But the believer given to intellectual inquiry will want to go beyond simple faith to more advanced understanding. Thus Clement denied Gnosticism (“knowledge is salvation”) while rehabilitating the concept of knowledge in true Christianity.

Clement did this by building on the stair steps of 2 Peter. “Add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge.” We are not saved by knowledge; we are saved by faith in Christ. But knowledge becomes an important mark of spiritual maturity and development as we advance beyond the elementary basics. Your knowledge of God and His Word is either stagnant or growing. Which is it?

6, 7. And to knowledge, temperance; and to temperance, patience; and to patience, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, charity.

Christian knowledge should lead us to temperance, sometimes translated “sobriety.” This is more than physical soberness resulting from avoidance of alcohol or drugs. Peter is speaking of a general attitude of self-control and moderation, of not being controlled or carried away by the things of the world (compare Galatians 5:23).

When we have made this separation, we patiently move toward godliness. This refers to the lifestyle that conforms to the expectations God has for His holy people. Living the godly life should imitate the great, merciful nature of God himself. The life of godliness will be evident in our kindness and care for our brothers and sisters within the church as well as acts of loving charity for those outside the body of Christ.

8. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

All of these steps work together. When we begin to see loving-kindness and acts of mercy flow naturally and effortlessly in our lives, we have begun truly to live the mature, spiritual life that Peter wants for all of his readers. This is the level of faith that Peter knows to be necessary to survive the onslaught of persecution and testing that comes to each believer. This is just as true today as it was in the first century.

The gifts of God that Peter has described come to the faithful. Now Peter comments on the other side of the coin, the faithless. These are the blind, who have no capacity to see afar off.

This is an interesting illustration, for faith is the requirement for trust in that which cannot be seen (see Hebrews 11:1). Here Peter is talking about those shortsighted members of his church who fail to see the goal, the ultimate prize of faith (see Philippians 3:14). These folks have forgotten that their sins have been purged by the blood of Christ, and that salvation has been given to them, even eternal life (see Jude 21).

10. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall.

How can we know for sure that we will be saved (that is, never fall)? For Christians, this is where the doctrine of assurance comes in. While we may have not yet experienced all the promised outcomes of our faith, that faith allows us to be assured of their trustworthiness.

The teachings of the New Testament say with one voice that we cannot earn salvation, because salvation is a gift. Yet we are also taught that acceptance of this gift comes with responsibilities and expectations. We have chosen to make Jesus the Lord of our lives and to live for Him. It is by giving diligence to our side of the gift that we make our calling and election sure. [See question #4, page 104.]

We create the assurance of salvation that our hearts crave by living out our faith; notice that vital word if in the phrase if ye do these things, ye shall never fall. We are not caught between faith and doubt; we choose faith. Peter knows this from his own commitment and life experience. He testifies with great personal credibility that such a life will not fail.

Peter reminds his readers yet again that we never need doubt God’s side of the gift of salvation. For those who have true, obedient faith, a way into the everlasting kingdom (Heaven) has been provided. This portal was forged by our spiritual trailblazer, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (compare Hebrews 2:10).

For Peter, the assurance of this salvation lies in the fact that Jesus is already there waiting for us. Peter can remember vividly that on the night Jesus was betrayed He promised His disciples that He was going to “prepare a place” for them (John 14:2, 3)—a place in Heaven.

12. Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.

Peter knows that the great truths of the faith that he has been rehearsing are not new; his readers already know them. This does not make them less important, however. We are strengthened when truth is repeated. This is why we repeat pledges frequently. This is why we have favorite verses of Scripture that we quote again and again. This is why we have confessions of faith that may be repeated in unison by a congregation. [See question #5, page 104.]

Peter has just reminded the readers that persecution becomes more tolerable when we remember that our ultimate destination is Heaven. He is careful to tell them, however, that faith must be based on the known, not speculation about the future. We have a sufficiency in the present truth that God has provided, the truth that we already have of our salvation, which was won through the cross and empty tomb of Christ.

13, 14. Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance; knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath showed me.

Peter’s tabernacle is his earthly body, the current housing of his person (compare 2 Corinthians 5:1, 4). Peter writes with full awareness that his life on earth is nearly finished, for this has been revealed to him by the risen Christ (compare John 21:18, 19).

While Peter is at peace with this future, he is not content to ride out his last days in idleness. He is determined to use every remaining minute in ministry to encourage his flock with the great truths and promises of the faith. In so doing, he understands his influence as a great example to the believers (compare 1 Peter 5:1–4).

The New Testament does not always paint a flattering picture of Peter (example: Galatians 2:11–14). There is a sense in the Gospels that Peter’s denials of Jesus after His arrest constitute a betrayal that is somewhat of a parallel to the act of Judas. The parallelism ends, however, as Judas commits suicide and Peter is restored to ministry by the Lord in the threefold question about his love (John 21:15–17).

Following that, Peter never lost his faith in Christ and passion for service to Him. These Peter maintained until his death, for he, as Paul, was truly “crucified with Christ” (Galatians 2:20).

Products and services to delay or mask the effects of aging are a multibillion dollar industry. One of the most amazing of these is the Botox^® phenomenon. This technique involves injecting small quantities of a powerful, paralyzing poison to decrease wrinkles and other aging signs. This and other things have caused some to say that “age 60 is the new 40.”

Even if some of the effects of aging can be postponed or hidden, the march of the years ultimately cannot be stopped. We all grow older every day. One of the most startling things in life is the realization that other people think you are old.

We have all met people who seem to be elderly when they are still quite young, however. Their souls have fossilized long before their bodies have begun to decline. We have little control over the aging of our bodies, but we do have control over the decline of our souls. Peter promised that the Lord would provide “times of refreshing” if we put our faith in him (Acts 3:19). Even when we are ancient in body, our relationship with God can be “new every morning” (Lamentations 3:23), for He is ever faithful. He is both the “Ancient of days” (Daniel 7:9) and the immortal “King eternal” (1 Timothy 1:17). In Him the obedient Christian’s future is secure.

Merciful God, we are humbled when we consider the enduring faithfulness of Your servant Peter. What an example he both was and is! He loved Your Son Jesus until the end. May our lives too have the evidence of Peter’s dogged faithfulness, since his faithfulness never gave in, never gave up, and never gave out. We pray this in the name of the pioneer of our faith, Jesus Christ our Redeemer. Amen.