Maturity

The first chapter of 2 Peter is an amazing chapter. I have really come to appreciate the depth of Peter’s thought in the last month or so. In this chapter, he defines Christian maturity and places great emphasis on what makes Christian growth possible.

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. (2 Peter 1:3-4 ESV)

He begins with an all-encompassing indicative, namely that through the knowledge of Jesus Christ God has granted us all we need. It is our knowledge of what God has done for us through Christ that allows us to escape worldly corruption and partake in the divine nature. This knowledge is the very foundation of Christian maturity. As Paul states in Romans 1:16 and 1 Corinthians 1:18, this knowledge (the good news of the gospel) is to us the power of God.

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. (2 Peter 1:5-7 ESV)

He then moves on to the imperatives of Christian maturity, very clearly tying them to the indicatives of verses 3 and 4 in stating “For this very reason”. He wants us to understand that the process of maturing is completely dependent upon God. While we are to make every effort, the power behind our effort is the gift of knowledge which allows us to become partakers of the divine nature.

For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. (2 Peter 1:8-9 ESV)

Here he sandwiches the imperatives with indicative again. If we lack these qualities, it is because we have focused on our maturity to the exclusion of the very thing that makes our maturity possible. If ever we forget that we have been cleansed from our sins, if ever we cast aside the gospel power in our lives, we lose the ability to move forward. It is in looking back to the first things that we find the ability to see the second things come to fruition in our lives.

Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. (2 Peter 1:10 ESV)

Indeed it is the first things that we are to be diligent in confirming. Our calling and election are what set us apart from this world where such things as faith, virtue, knowledge of God, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection and love are rare commodities. These are fruit of the Spirit, and without the Spirit reminding us to abide in Christ and what he has accomplished, we cannot bring them about. To be fruitful, we must embrace “the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence”. We must walk in the gospel truth.

God Bless