Receive Faith & Make Every Effort
From the creation of mankind it is important that we know who we are and live the kind of life God designed us to live.
2 PETER 1:1-11
1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours: 2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
10 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
A PARTNERSHIP WITH GOD; RECEIVE FAITH & MAKE EVERY EFFORT
(1) RECEIVE FAITH FOR A GODLY LIFE: A God-like life. Ephesians 4:23-24, “23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”
Faith in God enables you to have the following three things:
- KNOWLEDGE: All the knowledge of God that you need for a godly life is given through the Bible and made alive by the Holy Spirit (John 14:26, Romans 10:17 & 2 Timothy 3:16-17).
- PROMISES: All the promises of God have been given to you for a godly life so you will not live aimless but rather know the will of God.
- NEW NATURE: All the old sinful you has been removed and replaced with a godly you so that you can live a godly life.
(2) MAKE EVERY EFFORT: Grow and develop your faith and you’ll make your calling and election sure, along with never stumbling, and you’ll receive a rich welcome into the Kingdom of God.
Add to your FAITH:
- GOODNESS: To follow the commands found in Scripture and the leading of the Holy Spirit in one’s daily life (2 Thessalonians 1:11).
- KNOWLEDGE: To learn more about God, one’s identity, and the perfect will of God through the Bible and personal experience confirmed with Scripture (2 Peter 3:18).
- SELF-CONTROL: To live free from all sinful, fleshy desires (2 Timothy 1:7).
- PERSEVERANCE: To never give up on the things of God (Galatians 6:9).
- GODLINESS: To live like God in all situations (1 Timothy 4:8).
- MUTUAL AFFECTION (KINDNESS) To love one’s neighbor as one’s self (Mark 12:31).
- LOVE: To display the character of God in self-sacrifice and strong positive interpersonal emotion (John 15:13).
Know, believe, speak and live the faith God gave you!