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II Peter 1:5-8, 10-11: For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, Godliness; and to Godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ…Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
This passage begins by saying we have been given everything we need for life and Godliness to participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
I have already laid out a basic plan for a day-to-day use of time to help us prepare for whatever calling God has for us. Added to that plan, on the days specifically set aside for meditation, thanksgiving, and praise, would be the ideas you will see here. What value might it be for one in ministry to others to be able to assuredly live a life not touched by the “corruption caused by evil desires”. And is that even possible.
Well, if the Bible is what it claims to be, it is possible. And since I believe the Bible is what it claims to be, that is the inerrant, inspired Word of God, then I must believe it to be possible.
In order to “escape corruption”, “make our calling and election sure”, and “never fall”, the Bible has told us to do certain things. In order to do them, we must also learn about them, and make them an ingrained part of our life.
We are told to add to our faith goodness. To that we are to add knowledge. Then add self-control. On top of that put perseverance. Then add Godliness, brotherly kindness, and love in order. And we’re not done yet. We are to continue to add these things in increasing measure.
Make every effort to add… This indicates we are supposed to pursue these virtues with all degree of seriousness. And to add them lavishly to our life. So let’s look briefly at these virtues.
Add goodness. What is goodness? Oh, the easy answer is goodness is being good. But easy answers don’t suffice here. What is goodness according to the Bible?
According to Easton’s Bible Dictionary, goodness is “not a mere passive quality, but the deliberate preference of right to wrong, the firm and persistent resistance of all moral evil, and the choosing and following of all moral good.” In the Greek, this refers to moral goodness, excellence, and virtue. From the NIV Compact Bible Dictionary we read, “Although in themselves, because of their sin, human beings have no goodness that is acceptable in God's sight, they can receive and become channels of the goodness of God. When they respond positively to the grace, love, gifts, and providence of God, then what they do, enjoy, and become may be described as good.”
So, then, we are supposed to add to our faith a Master’s Degree in Moral Excellence.
To that we are to add knowledge. In this case, what we are talking about, according to the Expositor’s Commentary, is “advancing in the will of God” for our life. I will talk more about the Biblical Doctrine of Knowledge in a later essay.
To knowledge add self-control. This is more than our self-will to do what is right, although that is a part of it. It is also showing a dependence on the Spirit of God to enable us to do what is right. One great way to do that is through a regular habit of fasting. Not just fasting food, but anything that may take your time and attention away from the pursuit of this list.
Next is a “bad word”: patience (or perseverance). To wait on God’s schedule instead of setting your own. I struggle with this now. I have a strong idea of what God wants for Karen and I to be doing, and I even think I know where and how. But waiting for it to be accomplished correctly is not proving to be easy. And I am not even talking about the development of this ministry, Destination God. I know it is still somewhat in the future. But we are where we are to help plant a church. And I think we are being aimed at helping plant several churches and satellites. But waiting for that opportunity to completely open is difficult, in my own strength.
But in this case, perseverance (or patience) also takes on the idea of continuing in faith (which is what we are adding patience to) in the face of the mounting worldly pressures. It takes on the meaning of allowing God to determine when to punish sin, and not trying to take it on ourselves.
Godliness is perhaps the easiest to define, and by far one of the more difficult to do. Godliness is recognizing and obeying God in every aspect of life. The title to a very well known Christian literary classic says it like this, Practice the Presence of God.
If we are practicing the presence of God in our lives, then brotherly kindness should be a natural outgrowth. We should have, and show, a warm affection for other believers. Good ‘ole southern hospitality. You know, the stuff that says to your fellow Christian, “sit a spell, kick your shoes off, y’all come back now…” (my apologies to Jed Clampett). Lemonade on the back porch. Sunday dinner for anyone who wants to come. That’s brotherly kindness.
The final element of our list is love. And this is the highest form of love, agape. God Himself reached down to the world, through Jesus, with this kind of love. This kind of love is a self-sacrificing love. You give up something of value in order to provide something of value to someone else. And it is not just among fellow Christians, as was brotherly kindness. This is practiced to all human beings. When you see someone in need, this love does what is necessary to meet that need.
This passage ends with a great promise. But like all promises, there is that great, big word “if” attached to it. The promise is we will never fall. The “if” is, if we do these things, meaning, if we continually keep adding to our faith goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, Godliness, brotherly kindness, and love, we will never fall. These things must be the constant pursuit of our life if we are to not fall.
That is why, in the framework of Destination God, I am adding this list to the day of mediation (see Destination Transformation for an explanation) in my weekly plan, which I call the Transformation Journal. I have not posted the complete journal yet, because it is a work in progress. But I likely will sometime in the near future.
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