based on the Love God Greatly Study, Triumph over Trials / w5d1
THE JOURNEY (SCRIPTURE AND OBSERVATION)
Scripture: 2 Peter 1:1-4 and SOAP: verse 3
I can pray this because his divine power has bestowed on us everything necessary for life and godliness through the rich knowledge of the one who called us by his own glory and excellence.
2 Peter 1:3
How many times and different ways can I say it? This is one of my top ten encouraging verses and it has made such a difference in my walk with God. Why? Because He used it to stop my excuses. You know, the ones like “peace is not my virtue” as an excuse for losing your temper or not wanting to make an effort to live at peace with someone difficult to deal with. Or there’s the excuse of gluttony that sounds something like – “I just have no self-control when it comes to pizza (chocolate or a myriad of other vices). We’ve all got weaknesses when it comes to living a godly life – and for every weakness, there is almost always an excuse just waiting to be offered up. The thing is the excuses don’t hold any credibility in the light of Peter’s teaching and God’s gift. For, If God has called us to ‘it’ then He has equipped us for ‘it’ – whatever ‘it’ may be.
I love the following explanation by bibleref.com. Check it out and ask God to help you use the spiritual tools He has supplied through His divine power, which He gives to all of us who are in Christ.
We are fully equipped. But we have a choice about whether or not we’ll really use those spiritual tools. This requires effort on our part.
How are we equipped? It didn’t happen naturally. We weren’t born with it. We didn’t earn it through hard work or good behavior. For those in Christ, God’s divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness. Like salvation, all of this was ours when we came to know God (through faith in Christ). As Peter will make clear, knowing God, the source of all life, is the only path to being fully equipped to live as God calls us to do.
And how does He call us? By His own glory and goodness, meaning “moral excellence.” Jesus sets the standard for what is good and glorious, calls for us to follow, and fully equips us to make the journey. 1
LIVING THE JOURNEY (APPLICATION)
Live a godly life, a life of “moral excellence.” Let this verse be your mantra when tempted or weary of battling sin.
- We must choose to apply the power, whether it is to do something or abstain from something.
- i.e., do you struggle with listening to gossip or spreading it? Either way, God’s Word makes it clear that it does not align with His will/pleasure, (Romans 1:29b-32).
- So we must be intentional about putting off the old (gossip) and putting on the new (encouragement, truth, love, …)—(Proverbs 21:23). Those who guard their tongues keep themselves from calamity. So we must guard our tongues and refrain from the sinful act of gossip. If we surrender our natural desires to the Lord, He will help us to remain righteous. May we all follow the Bible’s teaching on gossip by keeping our mouths shut unless it is necessary and appropriate to speak.2
- We must rely on God’s divine power, given to us through the knowledge of the one who called us by his own glory and excellence.
- Let the promise be an anchor of hope and strength. God has given us everything we need, including the power we need for a godly life. This power enables us to overcome temptations or deal with any weaknesses we may have.
Question FOR THE JOURNEY
Where are you on your journey of spiritual growth? In what area do you need to take ground: surrender, knowing God’s Word, trusting in God’s timing, etc.?
PRAYER FOR THE JOURNEY
Father, Spirit, and Son, we are weak without You. We are dependent, as always, on You, and we are encouraged to know that, in Your goodness, You have given us everything we need to live a godly life. Help us when we are weak to remember You are strong and able to keep us from all wrong. You have promised to show us a way of escape when we are tempted and have filled us with Your Spirit, equipping us to live lives of moral excellence! We pray and thank You in Jesus’ name – Amen –
THE MORE WE KNOW
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