2 Peter 1, Part 1

 2 Peter 1

'Simeon Peter, a servant, and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

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. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of a reminder since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things.

For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased,” we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit." 2 Peter 1

This is what we will be talking about for the next few weeks. Peter is writing this to the Jewish people that have become Christian. Or God's chosen people who have accepted the truth, that Jesus, is indeed the Messiah they have been waiting for. The Messiah is told about in their Scriptures. Remember, Peter was sent to the Jews, and Paul was sent to the Gentiles, or us. However, since we have been adopted into the family of God?

"There is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free, no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Galatians 3:28

Therefore, this also applies to us and is something that we should all take to heart. This is something Peter is writing to those that have already accepted Jesus and those that were trying to live a Godly life. Look how he begins.

"Simeon Peter, a servant, and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:"

Simply put, he is talking to those who have said this prayer.

"Oh heavenly Father, Lord God. I am a sinner. I know this. I know there is nothing I can do to change that. But I know you can. I accept Jesus's sacrifice for me. I repent my sins. Please send the Spirit of Adoption into my life. Help me to get to know the real you. Save me. Please. In the name of Jesus, Amen!"

The Word tells us that when we do that, we

"have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him."Colossians 3:10

Remember, God's Word tells us that this is open to all. Look here.

"And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Acts 2:21

Now I know, I recently discovered that this is one of those "contradictions" that so many non-believers love to try to point out. They say that this does not jive with Matthew 7:21. Jesus actually says,

"Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."

In my opinion, that is one of the scariest passages in the entire Bible. However, actually, read what Jesus said here again.

"but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."

This means that whoever appeals to and yields to, the authority of the Lord will be saved. Yet? You cannot claim a right to something the Lord authorized while going against what the Lord commands. You cannot say Jesus is my lord, and live a life of sin and death. Jesus even said this here.

"Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?" Luke 6:46

When Jesus tells us that not everyone who says Lord or calls Him Lord will be saved, He is talking about those who use His name but do not do His will. Religious folks that produce no fruit. People that use His name to scam other people. Even the demons know His name. They know God. This does not mean they are saved. They have to accept His sacrifice and seek out what His will is in their life. I do have a clue for you. {Whispers} It's not about you.

If you have said the prayer, and believe in your heart, that Jesus came and died for you, more importantly, was resurrected and He is the paid substitute for you and your sins, then you,

"have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ"

Then, as a child of God,

"May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord."

You see why this is going to take some time. We are almost out of time today and we are still in the greetings. This is extremely important to understand though. We can lay claim to that. We can say that we have peace, and grace, that surpasses all understanding and that the world cannot obtain. We can call the Lord of lords, and the King of kings, our friend. We can call the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning, and the end, the Creator of all that is, was, or ever will be, "Daddy."

You are a grace-covered, peace-filled, blood-bought, child of God. What do you have to fear of this world or any in it? You have nothing to fear. Look here in Romans 8.

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified." Romans 8:28-30

God foreknew YOU. He created you in your mother's womb. You are the way you are because God made you that way. Psalm 139:13-16. Then He sets up a destiny. A plan and purpose for your life. which then brings you to the day, maybe today for some of you, a day when He calls you.

You are not here by accident. You did not go to your friend's church by happenstance. You did not see that Bible verse by coincidence. You are not reading this for no reason at all. God is calling you. You accepted His plan for salvation, now ask Him to show you His plan for your life. Then? Then He justifies you. It is a time of preparation. Look what Paul said he did after his conversion.

"But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him for fifteen days." Galatians 1:15-18

It was after three years. First, he got saved. Blinded, healed, and his entire life changed, yet? He did not do much of anything until he was ready and justified by God. He took the time to prepare. Three years in this case. God knows better than us, when, where, why, how even. Too many times when get saved, and we get on fire for God for this or that and we want to run out and save the world, or whatever. However, this can be dangerous if we are not prepared and or equipped to do it. We all need a time of preparation.

Then we have the last step in an anointed life. Glorification. Whatever it is God calls you to do, will not come back to you void. You will face obstacles. You may face persecution. But if you endure to the end, you will be glorified by God Himself. All you have to do is be obedient to Him and His Will. There is nothing that can compare to having God glorify you for completing what HE asks you to do. Nothing. Nothing can compare to appearing before Jesus Himself, when your time is up here on earth, and hearing Him say...

"Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." Matthew 25:34

Again, the five steps of an anointed life are these. God foreknows you. He sets up a plan and purpose for you and your life. He calls you to accept that. He justifies you. He glorifies you. The question is, what are YOU going to do? Be blessed. Be at peace. Enjoy the fact that God is your daddy. If you do?

"May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord."

Until next time, be blessed, be a blessing, and Jesus IS the Lord of all!