“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.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. 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, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love” (2 Peter 1:3-7).

We started this series on Godliness three weeks ago. In the past two weeks, we discussed that just as faith is belief in action, goodness is virtue and holiness in action. In the passage above, we are to “make every effort to add to our faith goodness, and to goodness, knowledge.”

Right off the bat, this tells me that knowledge is not a requirement for faith or goodness. That means that we do not need to wait until we think we know enough in order to receive salvation, or to do or to be good. But knowledge is necessary at some point to continue to grow in godliness. In fact, three separate times, Paul tells his churches: “Do not be uninformed” (1 Corinthians 12:1, 2 Corinthian 1:8, and 1 Thessalonians 4:13).

God would not have given us his Word if He did not want us to learn it, to absorb it. Early on, baby Christians are exhorted to deepen our knowledge in order to grow in discernment: “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil” (Hebrews 5:12-14).

There are many Scriptures about knowledge:

• The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but foolsdespise wisdom and instruction (Proverbs 1:7)
• The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (Proverbs 9:10).
• “Wisdom brings strength; and knowledge gives power” (Proverbs 24;5-14).
• Knowledge is a spiritual gift: “…for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit…” (1 Corinthians 12:8).
• “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18).

Paul gives us a full picture of why God is calling us to grow in knowledge in his letter to the Colossians (what a beautiful blessing this is):

“I want you to know how hard I am contending for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me personally. My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how disciplined you are and how firm your faith in Christ is. So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness” (Col. 2:1-7).

There were two special trees in the Garden of Eden. God forbid the eating of the fruit only the one: the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. On its face, this seems strange, doesn’t it? It is clear that the tree itself was not bad. There is no indication that the fruit was bad–Adam and Eve did not immediately get sick or die after they tasted the fruit. So why did God put this tree there and then tell them they could not eat the fruit? What was the necessity of this tree? God is a God of love. It comprises his entire being. And if he wanted to give humans free will, something a loving God would do, he had to allow for the possibility for them to choose something over him, and therefore, sin. (From Crosswalk.com)

It is true that Paul, while extolling knowledge, warns the Corinthians “…knowledge puffs up while love builds up” (1 Corinthians 8:1). But that highlights the importance of keeping our priorities straight and in balance. Knowledge for the sake of knowledge is meaningless, vanity. Knowledge for the sake of growing in wisdom in order to build up the church is right knowledge. God has given us brains to use for His glory. In our day and time, God has given us access to worlds of knowledge. Friends, there is so much information out there. As the saying goes, “garbage in, garbage out (GIGO).” Use your free will to choose wisely what you put into your brain as you are growing in faith, goodness, and knowledge.

“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14).

In Christ,

Judy

“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.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. 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, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love” (2 Peter 1:3-7).

We started this series on Godliness two weeks ago. Last week we discussed the topic of faith as the foundation of our ongoing sanctification. We discussed believing, and how faith is putting our beliefs into action. In the passage above, we are told to “make every effort to add to our faith goodness.”

What is goodness? What is the standard of good? Jesus gives us a clue in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, all of which speak of the same conversation with a man. Here is the passage from Mark: “As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Matthew reports that the man asked the Teacher, “what good thing must I do…”). In each account, Jesus answers: “Why do you call me good (why do you ask me about what is good? No one is good—except God alone.“ (Mark 10:17-22).

God is the standard for good. It does not matter how you were raised—religion, culture, education level, financial status. Good is not relative. Good is absolutely what God is; it is an attribute of God. “The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble” (Nahum 1:7).

“Moses said, ‘Please show me your glory.’ And the Lord said, ‘I will make all my goodness pass before you’ (Exodus 33:18-9). As Candice Lucey wrote for Christianity Today, “Moses asks for glory. God promises goodness. The two cannot be separated. If glory is the weight and worth of God, then goodness is the blessing and bounty of God. What Moses ‘sees’ is actually a declaration of God’s name and his character.” 

In David’s beloved Psalm 23, verse six tells us that “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life….”  Mercy and goodness are connected.

“Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?” (Romans 2:4). God’s goodness leads to taking action, to changing our minds and our direction, turning back to Him.

“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21). Goodness has the power to overcome evil.

Now that we have defined “goodness,” what should we do to demonstrate it? Here’s a passage from Got Questions, which gives us guidance:

In Galatians 5:22-23, Paul lists the “fruit of the Spirit“. “Fruit,” here, means “beneficial results,” the good things that come from the Spirit’s indwelling. As the Holy Spirit works in our lives, our character changes. Where we had harbored selfishness, cruelty, rebelliousness, and spite, we now possess love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Everything in the list reflects the character of God, and goodness is one that relates directly to morality.

Goodness is virtue and holiness in action. It results in a life characterized by deeds motivated by righteousness and a desire to be a blessing. It’s a moral characteristic of a Spirit-filled person. The Greek word translated “goodness,” agathosune, is defined as “uprightness of heart and life.” Agathosune is goodness for the benefit of others, not goodness simply for the sake of being virtuous.

Someone with agathosune will selflessly act on behalf of others. Confronting someone about a sin demonstrates goodness. So do giving to the poor, providing for one’s children, visiting the sick, volunteering to clean up after a storm, and praying for an enemy. Expressions of goodness are as varied as the Spirit is creative.

Goodness is not a quality we can manufacture on our own. James 1:17 says, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights.” This certainly includes a life characterized by goodness. In letting the Holy Spirit control us, we are blessed with the fruit of goodness. As others see our good works, they will praise our Father in heaven.

Just as faith is belief in action, goodness is virtue and holiness in action. Following through; putting our money where our mouth is. God, help us to add goodness to our faith, as we pursue godliness in our ongoing growth in sanctification.

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

In Christ,

Judy

“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.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. 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, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love” (2 Peter 1:3-7).

We started this series on Godliness last week. The opening passage assures us that God’s 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. God has made promises to us that we can escape the corruption of the world caused by evil desires, so that we can participate in the divine nature. There is a truth in these words that is borne out by other Scriptures—God’s divine nature is incompatible with evil desires. Frankly, that scares me, because I confess that I have evil desires. You may not see me often acting on them, but they are there. I’m human.

But God has promised us an escape from these evil desires. Picture that language of escape—running for our very lives! We must realize the danger and flee!! It is said that if we do not sense the corruption of the world around us, we have already been swallowed up in it. Again, that is such a scary thought. I am thankful every day that God has rescued me through His mercy and by the grace of Jesus.

We will dive into this topic of godliness, beginning with the doctrine of faith. Faith is the foundation of our ongoing sanctification. Jesus Christ once and for all provided the atonement (payment) for all our sins. By believing in him, we receive this gift of salvation, and are immediately set right with God. From this point forward, we know our souls are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, and we are citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven for all eternity. We will never experience the second death. Can we just stop for a moment and shout praises of gratitude for our loving God!?! “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15).

We started this explanation of faith by talking about believing. Note that our salvation is predicated first on the work of Jesus on the cross, and secondly, on our belief that He did this for us. Jesus himself tells us through his word to his disciples: “Then they asked him, ‘What must we do to do the works God requires?’ Jesus answered, ‘The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.’” (John 6:28-29).

Jesus himself proclaimed “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

An English idiom states: Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. Cambridge Dictionary interprets the meaning of this idiom as “to advise someone not to refuse something good that is being offered.” That is wise advice. Jesus has offered himself as the Resurrection and the Life. When the jailer asked Paul and Silas, what must he do to be saved, “They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household” (Acts 16:31).

Faith is simple, but it is not easy. In the letter to the Hebrews, faith is described as “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1). Believing is the first step to faith, to seeing. “Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” (John 11:40). We have God’s Word, which contains many fulfillments of prophecies, which bear witness to the truth. Jesus himself says, “I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me” (John 8:18). We have the testimonies of the disciples, ordinary men who walked and talked with Jesus and saw him crucified, buried, resurrected, felt his wounds, and saw him ascend to heaven in the clouds. We have the testimonies of all the saints who have gone before us, many of whom died for their faith. They put their beliefs into action.

Faith takes belief to the next level. You can believe that your chair will hold you up. But until you sit down on it, you are not putting your belief into action; you are not demonstrating faith. Paul lists faithfulness as one of the fruits of the spirit. In his letter to the Romans, he writes, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[a] Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). And he reiterates in his letter to the Ephesians, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Faith is simple, but it is not easy. The father witnessed Jesus performing a miracle of exorcising an unclean spirit from his son, and still prayed “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24). If you have doubts, pray to God. He will answer your prayers. And pray that He will guide you to put your beliefs into action according to His will.

“Beyond all question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great: He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory” (1 Timothy 3:16).

In Christ,

Judy

“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.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. 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, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love” (2 Peter 1:3-7). 

I love lists. I am a list-maker. Lists help me to organize my thoughts, my agenda, my daily and life-time goals. I like to think I am organized and need to believe that I am productive and progressing. My husband just calls me obsessive. 

Anyway, for that reason, I have always been attracted to this passage in 2 Peter, because it is so logical and progressive. One way to read it would be: Do not just have faith but demonstrate the fruit of your faith by doing good things. Do not just do good things but gain knowledge. Do not have knowledge just to have knowledge but use it wisely and be self-controlled. In being self-controlled, be persistent and constant; and in doing so, be godly. In being godly, have good relationships with others; and last but certainly not least, do all in love. 

It is assumed that we start with faith, which is the gift of God for those who believe. In the first part of this passage, Peter tells us that through the power of the Holy Spirit, we have everything we need for a godly life. By knowing God and Jesus Christ our Lord, we can participate in all His promises and overcome the corruption of the world. Who would not want that? Our part is to make every effort to pursue a godly life; in other words, follow Jesus as His disciple, obedient to His will. 

All this sounds basic, fundamental, and therefore, perhaps a “no-brainer.” However, when we ponder God and His great love for us, along with and his Holy, Holy, Holiness, we might begin to see some contradictions in ourselves. Especially if we are honest with ourselves and really seek to be convicted of anything that would be displeasing to God. That is because God, who loves each of us with an unfailing love, absolutely hates—cannot tolerate—sin. And we are all sinners.  

My husband, our sons, and several of our grandchildren like to bow hunt, and in doing so they practice with targets. In shooting an arrow into a target, the goal would be to hit the bullseye, the very center of the target. Anything off center is missing the target, the mark. That is a particularly good definition of sin. The target is perfection, holiness, sinlessness. Anything off center is missing the mark; it is sin. It can be sin of commission—doing something you should not do, or it can be a sin of omission—failing to do something that you should have done. God is three-fold holy, perfection. He says to us: Be holy, as I am holy.  

Speaking to believers now: if we love God, and if we desire to pursue holiness, we must, therefore, hate sin just like He does. We must, as Paul explains, make every effort to put off our sin. But it is important to distinguish between the sin and the sinner. As believers in and followers of Christ, we are sinners saved by grace. We are covered by the blood of Jesus. When the great day of the Lord comes, as described in Matthew 25, we will be counted among the sheep, destined for heaven, only because of the grace and love of our God and Lord and Savior. And when we come before Jesus at the Great White Throne of Judgment, we will not be at risk of eternal damnation, but we will be accountable for what we have done and we will be eligible for rewards, crowns, again because of His love and mercy. 

To circle back around, all this is not a pass. We cannot freely sin, make up our own rules, rationalize our behavior, or condone sin in any way, just because we have received Christ as our Savior. Paul writes in Romans 6:15 “What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means!”  So, in our pursuit of holiness, obedience, and desire to please God, I am beginning a series on the topic of godliness. And my prayer is that everything that I write will be truth, that it will be written with love for God and love for each reader, and that it will be received in love, for that is my intention. 

In Christ, 

Judy 

“Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord” (Psalm 27:14).

Last week we talked about waiting. Waiting assumes a space in time between two events. I have finished my grocery shopping and now I am waiting in line to check out. I have had some medical tests and now I am waiting for a diagnosis. Sometimes the waiting is just that: some space in time. Today is Wednesday, and on Friday you will get paid. The difficulty here may be that you have bills to pay in the interim and you do not know how you will manage. The really challenging kind of waiting assumes some unknown factor. The doctor says he will have test results in three days, but you do not know what the diagnosis or follow up treatment will be. A really good friend of ours has just been told that his cancer has metastasized, and he has at most six months. This is a particularly challenging time of waiting for him, his family, and for all of his friends.

The question is: what will we do while we wait? Last week we talked about prayer, the first and foremost way to ensure we are living God’s plan for our lives, even during the waiting.

In the interim, we struggle to know what, when, and how to speak and act. When is it best to listen, and when should we speak up? When is it best to act, and when should we wait patiently? When should we accept the situation, and when should we fight? All questions, and no ready answers. So, when we pray, we pray for discernment. When we have these choices to make, we should ask ourselves:  Would our words or actions align with biblical teaching. For example,

1. Praying that God be glorified in our words and actions is never wrong.
2. Showing compassion and kindness is never wrong.
3. Sitting with and listening is never wrong.

In many cases, it is in the waiting that real leadership surfaces. When everyone else is just sitting around complaining and being anxious, the real leader assesses the situation and takes charge.

In Acts, we see Peter begin to demonstrate his “take charge” approach that will lead him into a leadership role in the early church. “During these days, Peter stood up among the ‘brothers” – the number of people who were together was about 120 – and said: ‘Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled that the Holy Spirit through the mouth of David spoke in advance about Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. (Acts 1:15-16). Taking his direction from the Book of Psalms “Let his dwelling become desolate; let no one live in it; and let someone else take his position” (Psalms 69:25, Acts 1:20), Based on the Scriptures, Peter proposed that they choose someone to take Judas’ place to round out their number once again to twelve.

Lastly, it is all about perspective. Actually, when are we NOT waiting? Isn’t life all about waiting, in a sense? Parents learn that they are pregnant. Waiting. It is an expectant time, full of preparation for the new life to be born. We look at a gravestone with a date of birth and a date of death. The dash in the middle—waiting. Sometimes waiting with expectancy, sometimes with dread, sometimes with impatience, sometimes with resignation. We are always waiting.

Let us resolve not to waste a minute on unproductive waiting. God has made us fruit-bearers. So, whether we have just been planted, the flowers are blooming, the buds are setting, or the fruit is maturing, let us be productive. Praying, praising God, teaching, modeling, showing love and compassion.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23).

In Christ,

Judy