The Pursuit of Kingdom Character -1

 

 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.  

2 Peter 1:5-7 

 

People know you better by what they see, not necessarily what you say.  In the kingdom of God, we have a distinct set of characteristics that set us apart from the world because they are spirit-infused; that’s what makes the difference; not that we are better than the world although we are better off in the sense that we are on the path to eternal life.  So, we have these character traits that we are to pursue and there are promises that come with.  We’ve all heard some incredible promises in our lifetime. Most often, advertising promises far more than what they actually deliver. But the promises of our Lord are completely reliable.

God’s promises are true and we can depend on them.  True enrichment comes from the blessing of the Lord, with rest and contentment in knowing that it all comes from Him.  He tells us this in His word:  

The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.  Proverbs 10:22

The benefits of heeding Peter’s words is rich and adds no sorrow but on the flip side, the consequences of neglecting them, are great, he says:  

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.  But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.  Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:  For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.  2 Peter 1:8-11

 Let me break this passage down:

 ®   Heeding Peter’s words keep us from being useless and unfruitful in our relationship with Jesus Christ (vs 8) and

®   enables us to live in the present in light of our past conversion and our hope for the future (vs 9). 

®   Doing as Peter instructs can keep us from stumbling and assure us a triumphant entry into the kingdom of our Lord. (vs 11)

®   On the flip side, neglecting Peter’s instruction diminishes our perception and confidence in the salvation God has provided and sets us up for a fall.  (vs 10)

Peter’s words should convince us to pay careful attention because the benefits pertain to our past conversion, our present walk, and our future hope.

Spiritual Observations – Let’s be clear in our understanding regarding what Peter wrote in 2 Peter 1:

Ø   Peter is writing to those who are saved and serious about their sanctification, he’s not talking to the unsaved about their lack of salvation.   Peter doesn’t challenge us to work hard in order to be saved, but to strive diligently because we are saved (vs 1).  There’s a difference.

Ø   He calls for diligent, disciplined, life-long effort on the part of the believer (vs 5). This is a discipleship text which requires discipline and self-denial. It’s a challenge to all of us that believe for all the days of our lives.

Ø   Our efforts as believer’s are based on the sovereignty of God and the sufficiency of His provisions.  Peter has already laid the foundation for our exertion toward our pursuit in kingdom character.   In 2^nd Peter 1:1-4, he emphasizes the sovereignty of God in regard to salvation.

Salvation has been accomplished by God, through Christ, this is aside from any human
works or merit. Don’t ever be fooled into thinking it was something we did to earn
salvation. The bible says

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:  Ephesians 2:8

We find in 2^nd Peter 1:1-4 where:

Ø Peter stresses the sufficiency of God’s provisions for our salvation and sanctification. God has provided all that is necessary for life and godliness (vs 3).

Ø Verses 5-7 contain a list of character qualities for which God has made provision and for which all of us as believers should strive. This is not a list of imperatives, duties, or activities. Peter is not writing about “how to,” but about the kind of person we should strive to become.  Pursuit of Kingdom Characteristics.

Ø The character qualities we are to pursue are also the character traits of God. Peter wrote in verse 4 that God has provided for us to become “partakers of the divine nature.” These character qualities he then lists are the particular character qualities of God which should also be evident in our lives.  

ØPeter gives us a list unlike any other list in the Scriptures. In Galatians 5:22-23, Apostle Paul lists the “fruit of the Spirit.”  These are qualities that should be evident in our life.  In 1 Timothy 6:11,  Apostle Paul gives yet another list of godly qualities we should pursue. None of the New Testament lists are exactly alike, which suggests that Peter has given us a selected list and that there are other character qualities to pursue. It also implies Peter’s list was compiled for a specific reason; namely to inherit the promise identified in verse 11.  The character qualities of verses 5-7 are also the attributes of God. 

ØA purposeful order and relationship is evident in this list of character qualities. This list of character qualities is not presented in a way that suggests a random order. Each quality builds upon the qualities before it. The sequence of qualities begins with faith and ends with love. These qualities are similar to the ingredients in a cake recipe where all the ingredients are needed, but they have to be added in the proper order.

So, the first ingredient listed in the pursuit of kingdom Characteristics is:

Ø 1.         Faith. 

 It’s the first characteristic of the Believer and it has a uniqueness to it—as believers, we’re not instructed to supply faith. According to Peter, faith is given by God and is something upon which we build.  The readers of this epistle were those who “have received a faith of the same kind as ours”.  Faith is something we have received, not something we are to supply—because faith is a gift from God (Romans 8:28-30; Ephesians 1:3-6; 2:8).

Faith begins as saving faith and then becomes the faith without which it’s impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6); whatever does not originate through faith is sin (Romans 14:23). Our faith is based upon the revealed word of God (2 Peter 1:4; see Romans 10:8, 17). Our faith is tested, proven, and strengthened by the trials and adversity God allows to come into our life; faith building experiences (1 Peter 1:6-7). Faith is not only the basis for belief but also the basis for our behavior (the faith chapter:  Hebrews 11).

 Jesus is the object and the source of our faith; He is also the model for our faith. It’s easier to think of Jesus as the object of faith than to think of Him exercising faith. But His faith was exercised when He submitted to the will of God, the Father, by taking on human flesh, suffering and dying at the hands of sinful men:

Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: (1 Peter 2:23)

If we haven’t come to a personal faith in Jesus, we can’t possibly pursue the course Peter prescribes in the text. To enter into that “faith,” which is of the same kind as the apostles, we have to know God through Jesus and find the righteousness we desperately lack in none other than Jesus (verse 1).

[2 Peter 1:1-11]:  Knowing Jesus brings grace and peace (verse 2). Only by His power are we granted everything necessary for life and godliness (verse 3). The basis of our salvation is the work of Christ, and the basis for our future hope is the promises of God. All we need to know about these is recorded in God’s Word (verse 4a). Trusting in God’s provisions, as revealed in God’s Word, makes us partakers of the divine nature and delivers us from the corruption of fleshly lusts (verse 4b). Taking on the divine nature does not happen quickly; it happens by the process of sanctification (verses 5-11).

While this sanctification is individual, it also takes place through the body of Christ, the church (Ephesians 4:11-16).  The process of sanctification is completed not in this life, but when we are with God in glory (Philippians 3:8-14; 1 Peter 5:10; 2 Peter 3:13; 1 John 3:1-3).

 

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