Thoughts From 2 Peter - Day 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 ...

                They say, "Never meet your heroes". Why? Because they will inevitably let you down and then you will have to find new ones. The more you get to know them personally rather than just knowing about them, the more their "glory" will disappear. My dad had a rare opportunity to go to a Bible conference in Florida where his well-known hometown pastor from the Midwest was speaking. Figuring that they would have something in common, the preacher would be alone, and after all my dad sat under his ministry for years, my dad invited him out to lunch. My dad was turned down in what he thought was a discourteous manner and the glory was gone. I had a similar experience being invited over to a friend's house who was friends with a famous theologian, who I soaked up all his teachings, who was having dinner at their house. I found him to be coarse and found out he smoked and drank (in moderation). My hero had lost his glory.

                This passage talks about the more we get to know God, not just about Him but on a personal level, just the opposite happens - His glory increases. He becomes a greater hero. In fact, our only logical response is to want more and more to be in His presence and emulate Him and please Him. How do we emulate Him? By being good. 

               God has so many qualities like justice, righteousness, truth, love, life, light, etc., why goodness? When Moses asked to see God, God responded to him, "My goodness will pass before you"... Isn't it interesting that none of those other qualities passed before Moses. Goodness is also translated in some versions as moral excellence. Do you consider yourself to be morally excellent? Where are you lacking?

           This passage tells us that

1. we should be known for our morality and exemplary behavior both in public and private. 

2. the motivation is out of being completely consumed with the goodness of God and wanting to be like Him and hear Him say, "Well done!"

3. we can't do it.  (More on Day 2)