Everything We Need 2 Peter 1:1-9
In these weeks after Easter I like to spend some time on the letters that are included in the New Testament. I find that when people study their Bibles, they will read the four gospels, and this is good, but I bet a lot of people just don’t read the letters of Paul or James or Peter. These letters were written by the early leaders of the church and included in the Biblical text by the Holy Spirit, so they must be important.
Last week we looked at Peter’s first letter and we learned that trouble and suffering will be in the life of every follower of Christ. We’re taught this so we will not abandon our faith when hardships come. This letter, Peter’s second, is written to the same audience as his first. As we examine this scripture, we will see there are several things packed into these verses.
“Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ.” We know as I’m sure those early Christians knew, exactly who Simon Peter was. Why does he add “a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ? Could it be like John Smith, MD, or Peter Jones, Attorney at Law? It could be. It could be how Peter defines his life and work. I think Peter wrote this out like this due to the Holy Spirit. God knew we would be alive in this time. And because of where and when we live, I see a warning layered in Peter’s salutation.
We are bombarded with information; the internet, TV, I’m told some still even read books. And among all that is put in the public realm, there is a lot that has to do with faith in God. Sunday mornings before I leave for church, I can find at least eight different channels with Christian programing and ministries. I’m not saying they’re all bad, but I am saying we need to be careful. Are they a servant of Christ? How do we know? Listen, do they use scripture? Do they preach salvation through Jesus? Do they just give feel good messages with no real Biblical teaching? We must ensure who we are listening to is a servant and apostle of Christ, teaching of Christ, and not just saying things that make us feel good about ourselves. Not just saying things that make Jesus out to be our buddy and not our savior.
What message is Peter giving; verse 3, “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life…”
Everything we need for life. God has given us the earth, the sun, the wind; plants and animals to feed us, water to drink, and an intellect to make things better than we find them. All this is true, on one level, but I think there is more to see, I think there are more levels in this scripture for us to look at.
As we live out we can see them as having several compartments; work, family, pleasure, interactions with those around us. How does God give us all we need to live in each of these compartments? He gives us what we need through his Word.
Let’s look at work. Work can be fulfilling; it can also be quite frustrating. God tells us in Colossians 3:23, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord…” Our work doesn’t just serve men, it serves God. Whether you’re a doctor, a financial advisor, a garbage collector, or working in Walmart; you are doing a service for others, and by doing that, you are doing a service for God. Jesus tells us to love our neighbors and we do that in part through our work.
One of the frustrations I contended with was wanting to do something else besides being a clinical scientist; Psalm 90:17, “May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands…”
What we do is what God wants us to do. He may move us to something different, but by remembering God put me where I am, and my work serves him, eliminates the frustration I had in my job.
How about family? We love our family, but they can also cause us frustration. Ephesians 5:22, “Wives submit to your husbands, as to the Lord.” Ephesians 5:22, “Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” Know what I see here? Husbands and wives each putting the other above themselves. Imagine what the divorce rate would be if husbands and wives held each other above themselves; where would the anger, the frustration, the desire outside of marriage be?
What about our interactions with others? People can be infuriating at times. Maybe friends want to do things we don’t like. “I want it my way, I want to be first.” Philippians 2:3-4, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather in humility, value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests, but each of you to the interests of others.”
Hold others above yourself, notice a running theme here? If I put a friend’s, or a stranger’s needs above my own, I can’t get frustrated or angry over what doesn’t go my way.
Being jealous of others also causes us anger. “Why did he get a promotion? How come they’re making a fortune posting You Tube videos?” I struggled with that one. I was struggling with money and watching others make thousands just posting short videos about their life. Hebrews 13:5, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have because God said, “I will never leave you…” I had to relearn this. When I did, I began to see God wanted me to use what I had to help others. Now instead of worrying about what I have in the bank, I began to give a lot away to a variety of charities and missions, and my life’s been blessed for it.
As to how to treat others. Paul writes in Galatians 6:9, “Let us not become weary of doing good…” Love our neighbors as we love ourselves, putting others needs above our own, never tire of doing good; God’s instructions for living with each other.
So we can see God gave us a world that supplies everything necessary to maintain our lives. And in his Word, God gives us everything we need to live happy and productive lives with our spouses, our families, and all others in the world. All these things support us as physical beings. But we are not just physical beings. We are spiritual beings as well. Our reading says God gives us everything we need, so he must give us what we need for our spiritual selves. He does, and Peter describes it here. “To those who through the righteousness of our God and savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours.” (2 Peter 1:1) We are given righteousness, and this righteousness is indispensable for our spiritual life.
Why can we have trust in this righteousness? First, because it’s not earned, it’s given as a gift. Second, because of who it is given by; verse 1 again, “…the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ…” Here Peter spells out one of the truths of our faith, Jesus is God, God is Jesus.
We cannot have confidence in ourselves because we make mistakes, but our spirits have confidence in Christ, the perfect one who gives us his perfection. This confidence in Christ gives nourishment to our spiritual selves because through it we see Jesus is with us through all our trials and temptations. Jesus is our savior, Jesus is God, this is all we need for the perpetuation of our spiritual selves.
Verse 4, “Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature…”
Peter is talking about our union with the divine, our union with Christ. Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” We share in the divine nature because the divine nature lives within us.
God really has given us everything necessary. God’s divine power has given us everything we need to live. It has provided us with a place to live that provides what we need to sustain our physical life. God’s divine power gives us information and instructions on how to live in our world. It gives us the tools to live with each other as God desires. And God’s divine power gives us Christ and all he offers us so we may live our spiritual life eternally with him. Our God and savior truly gives us everything we need.
Amen.