Our Gracious Resources in Christ
2 Peter 1:1-4
INTRODUCTION:
This great adventure of the Christian life often involves stepping out in obedience and service before you see the miracle, the provision, and the power—before you ‘see’ divine resources being exerted on your behalf. This is a great lesson He is teaching us—we have to learn to step out in the strength of Another—the strength of Christ. It is a process of learning to rely on the resources provided by Another—when we obey we are appropriating those resources.
Our willingness to step out in obedience in spiritual service and ministry depends upon knowing about the divine resources that are ours—and that is our purpose in this message.
V. 1 – Peter writes this epistle during a time when false teachers were taking advantage of widespread confusion, uncertainty, and instability. During those tumultuous conditions when people are worn down and worn out, it is easy for unbelief to take root. This epistle aims to stabilize the reader—giving the needed ballast in the pitching seas of the age. The Apostle’s aim is to make certain his readers understand their foundations so they can grow in grace.
Peter identifies himself as the Lord’s BONDSERVANT. The bondservant was duty bound to obey his master whatever the cost. Every true believer is a bondservant of Christ—we are God’s possession. We live to do His will—our rights are surrendered to the One who died on our behalf.
Our text says, “Who have received a FAITH of the same kind as ours.” Peter is stressing that faith is a gracious gift of God wherein the sinner consciously depends upon Christ for salvation from sin.
It is a FAITH of the same kind—there are not degrees of Christianity—Peter as an Apostle has the same precious faith as his humble readers—a faith equal in validity (Asia and pastors).
God’s RIGHTEOUSNESS is the source of salvation; His righteousness is not merely a ‘holy standard’ enshrined in heaven—His righteousness in our salvation is active and dynamic, and joined to His zeal for His Name—it is God graciously giving His right-standing to us in Christ. This is the amazing glad tidings of the Gospel so contrary to religious intuition—God is clothing unrighteous sinners in a God-provided—God-approved righteousness (2 Cor 5:21).
V. 2 – ‘GRACE’ is the Father’s favor and acceptance of us in His Son. BUT, we perceive this grace of God’s infinite favor ONLY in proportion to our measure of faith. No wonder we are constantly enjoined in the N.T. to excel in faith—for by reliance upon Christ, the love of God is confirmed to our hearts; and, the more happy, holy, and useful you will be (Rom 15:13).
The Christian’s faith is founded upon the true KNOWLEDGE of God which comes only through the knowledge of Christ (Matt 11:27). The object of saving knowledge being—God’s revelation of Himself in Christ (2 Cor 4:4-6) (Jn 17:3).
The N.T. word for knowledge here is the strengthened form (epiginosko)—it implies larger, thorough, intimate knowledge—to know exactly, completely in a more personal way. This means that the believer knows Christ by walking with Him, rather than just knowing about Him (i.e. the ‘facts’ of His life, death, and resurrection). To know Christ savingly is to know that His saving work is directed at me in particular in a covenantal relationship. The true believer does not imagine that Christ will share the believer’s heart with idols.
The more you progress in the knowledge of God, the more the blessed sense of His favor. The deeper and wider one’s knowledge of the Lord; the more grace and peace is multiplied to the believer. Growth in the knowledge of God is dear to Peter’s heart (remember 1 Peter chapter one?). You’ve heard it said, “knowledge puffs up; love builds up,” but Peter did not tout a false dichotomy between knowledge and love. The pursuit of the knowledge of God never brings pride; the knowledge of God is how He makes us like Himself (2 Cor 3:18). ADD Jay and Mark R. here.
APPLICATION: Keep a book about the Person of Christ on your nightstand. Study the saving work of God toward you. Meditate upon Christ’s offices. Meditate upon all that God is toward you in Christ. Investigate what your riches are by union with Christ. Contemplate God’s saving work toward you—meditate upon the passages which describe how God sees you in Christ— joined to Him.
V. 3. – Christ’s POWER is the source of the believer’s sufficiency (2 Cor 12:9). Christ is our source of power to persevere in Christian living—for He grants us everything pertaining to LIFE and GODLINESS. Salvation is the bestowal of spiritual LIFE. True salvation is the impartation of a life that is to be lived in a godly manner. Godly living is God-ward living that is obedient, loyal, and reverent. In Christ there is total sufficiency available for life and godliness—you are complete in Him. Peter exhorts us on the basis of this well-founded assurance—he builds the foundation; then exhorts to growth.
This “LIFE” is bestowed through the TRUE KNOWLEDGE of Him who CALLED us. Intimate knowledge—as of your own marriage partner (it is doubtful that you would be quick to die for a complete stranger).
Jesus Christ, our GOD AND SAVIOR (vs. 1b)—it is His deity that is in view—He is our “Source Person”—the Fountain of Life. He has all the things needed for the successful completion of the Christian life. He has everything needed for growth, development, perseverance, sanctification, and service.
How we need to hear this! For now we know what we were in our state of nature; in the spiritual state in which Christ found us. In that state life and godliness were foreign to us; but now they are freely granted to us in/by UNION with Christ. They belong to us by virtue of the fact that He has CALLED us. That calling is a ‘spiritual resurrection’ in which we are “begotten of God” (1 Pet 1:3). God’s CALLING us is how these gracious resources became ours.
We were called by His own GLORY and EXCELLENCE (and not by any merit in us). The Lord’s GLORY and EXCELLENCE placed the promises of the Gospel in our hearts. We will see in verse 4 that these promises are mighty because God’s attributes stand behind them—these promises will take us all the way from dust to glory. God has lavished these divine resources upon us (everything needed for life and godiness)—our resources in Christ are sufficient to meet all of life’s demands (Phil 4:19).
Think about how essential it is to know about our resources in Christ. What resolve, stability, and comfort in our setbacks, our sins, our declines, times of unfruitfulness, battles with indwelling sins. (EX. running the race in the strength of Another.)
Christ’s divine power never fails—He keeps restoring us—He is the Lord of 10,000 times 10,000 restorations in the life of the believer. In Him, you have received everything pertaining to life and godliness. In Christ you have the resources necessary to pursue godly living—to persevere to the end and finish well. And it is THROUGH THE KNOWLEDGE OF HIM that we experience the fullness of our resources in Christ—power to persevere in trials, set-backs, difficulties, inadequacies, and struggles. The more you know Him; the more you will utilize your resources in Him.
APPLICATION: Verses 3-4 are in reality a description of the Christian life—literally the N.T. standard of normalcy in the Christian life. Do you see how much these promises are intended to stabilize and establish the believer? Peter is not just giving us Christian principles, he is giving us God—look at verse 4.
V. 4—For BY THESE He has granted us His precious and magnificent PROMISES. By “THESE” is meant His own glory and excellence (v. 3b). God has, in effect, poured His perfections—His excellence, His glorious attributes into the mould of Gospel promises. He has harnessed His infinite perfections and attributes and put them to work in saving and perfecting the saints. (EX. These precious and magnificent promises were ‘cast’ in the foundry of His divine attributes—your salvation puts God’s perfections and excellence on display! How He is taking you from dust to glory IS the theme of glory and the subject of endless fascination to the holy angels—see 1 Peter.)
Now the intended outcome of these promises is that we might be PARTAKERS of the divine nature. The promises in Christ and the Gospel are the means by which we become partakers of the divine nature. (Every part of our salvation has been thought out by our all-wise Father.)
By the indwelling of God’s Spirit, we are PARTAKERS of the divine nature (not little ‘gods’; but sharers in the moral nature of God. Sharing in God’s moral nature means that we are destined to be conformed to the image of Christ—Rom 8:29; Eph 1:4—we are being developed into this new life after the image of the One who created him—Col 3:10. Christ is the Creator, Architect, the Contractor, and the Blueprint for the new man—you are being constructed into His likeness—that is what these precious promises are able to accomplish because God’s mighty attributes stand behind them and energize them). We are being fashioned after our Head.
This sharing in the moral nature of God enables us to have communion with God and to ultimately to be a unified with God and His glory—as much as a creature could possibly be! (We will share His holiness—Heb 12:10.) (And it was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ—2 Thess 2:14.)
A true Christian is one who is a PARTAKER of the divine nature. Are you conscious of this incredible spiritual reality; that the divine life has been communicated to you in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit—that you are the eternal habitation of God’s Spirit—Eph 2:22?
The bestowal of the divine nature in the believer demands that you continue in communion and obedience. The elect are predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ (Eph 1:4). This promise is a source of resolve—to be done with the evil remnants of the old life; to turn your back on the immoral filth and pollution of the world. When God contemplates you in Christ; He sees you as HAVING ESCAPED. You live in a different sphere now—you are a set apart, ‘devoted thing’ to God—CORRUPTION is what the world is by lust—that is decay, bondage, death, and dissolution.
By the divine PROMISES you have been delivered from the tyranny of evil cravings and lusts. They once held you in their grasp and ruled over you—you could not free yourself. The unregenerate world around you still lives under their control. But by God’s sovereign grace in Christ, you have ESCAPED. You have been radically identified with Christ—His death was your death to sin (Rom 6). His resurrection is your resurrection to newness of life in Him. How can we go back to the cesspool we once drank from?
Therefore our only logical, reasonable response is to renounce the WORLD entirely—there is not a thing in the world for your regenerate soul to feed upon. Therefore smash your heart idols; trample the world’s lying offers. Press on; answer the upward call—pursue an experiential heart knowledge of Christ—for the image of God has been “reborn” in you. This is nothing less than God’s plan to permit you to share in His eternal blessedness; His plan to glorify Himself by making you eternally happy in Him.
CONCLUSION: We have been called to a supernatural life. We’ve seen that the knowledge of God is the ‘door’ to holy living. But here is the wealth promised to us—what God requires; He has promised. He has imparted a new divine life to us. We are joined to God the Son. The full sufficiency of His divine resources are there to mould us into His likeness (He is exercising His power toward us—Eph 1:19-20.) God’s glory and excellence have been cast into gospel promises which shall surely mould us to the likeness of God’s Son.
Everything we need we have through a true knowledge of God in Christ. LUST is what I was by nature, but now the divine nature lives in me—this is not only a heavenly promise; but a present reality which is to characterize my entire life.