Summary:
Before man sinned, human life partook of God’s divine nature because God created man in the likeness of God. But after man sinned, we inherit an ungodly nature. Our new life begins with Christ! And in order for our new life to grow, we need to put in the diligence to bear these spiritual fruits. The sermon expounds on the fruits we should bear as listed in 2 Pet 1:5-8 - Faith, Virtue, Knowledge, Self-Control, Perseverance, Godliness, and Love.

2 Pet 1:3-4

3 as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,
4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Peter says that all these things that pertain to life and godliness have been given to us. This life concerns eternal life that leads to salvation. Godliness here pertains to living a life of godliness and holiness. Life and godliness are the pivotal matters in life. The world educates us to gain the riches of the world and to pursue after them, and to make good use of our time to enjoy the pleasures of the world. But the Lord teaches us, what profits a man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul? What can a man exchange for his soul? Truly, this pandemic has revealed that our life can vanish easily. Where will our spirit go? Hence, the crux of life is about eternal life and godliness.

So Peter continues, saying, the Lord Jesus has called us and given us exceedingly great and precious promises. This refers to the promise of salvation. The grace of salvation has allowed us to escape the corruption of lust that leads to death, so we can be saved and enter into eternal life. Furthermore, the salvation grace of God allows us to be partakers of His divine nature so that we can be transformed from glory to glory.

Initially, human life partook of God’s divine nature because God created man in the image and likeness of God. We know that God is Spirit and He is not like man that has a physical appearance. So when we talk about the image of God, we refer to His nature and attributes. These include God’s love, mercy and righteousness. Man was created in God’s image, so the nature of man would have been similar to God. But after man sinned, this nature began to be corrupted because man had fallen short. We see that Adam and Eve before they had sinned, did not feel ashamed. They were not afraid. But after they had sinned, this ungodly nature appeared. Therefore we see that after they sinned, this nature became corrupted and was no longer good. And continuing to the next generation, this nature worsened. That’s why we see jealousy and murderous intent in Cain. These attributes are not God’s nature but the attributes of evil and sin. Yet, after we have been baptised, the precious blood of the Lord redeems our life. Not only are our sins washed away, what is more important is that the life of Christ is now in us. That’s why Paul states in Col 3:4,

When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

After we have been baptised, we have Christ in our life and this is the new life. Jesus has purchased us through His precious blood and has enabled us to have this new life. This new life hence has a part with God’s divine nature. There is a clear distinction between this old life and this new life. The old life is centred upon one’s own self, to live for oneself alone. It is to prioritise one’s own gains and benefits. However, the new life has God as its centre. The new life not only motivates us to live but to live for God. To not only consider what would profit us, but to seek after God’s favour. The old life is motivated by one’s own interest. The old self thinks like this: ‘If I want to vent my frustration, I will. I will do whatever I wish to do. I will not bother what others say to think, as long as I am satisfied. When I am in a good mood, everything will go well and when I am in a bad mood, everything will go badly.’

But this new life begins from Christ. It will consider the love of God, the righteousness, and mercy of God. One who has this new life will put aside his own self in order to prioritise God. That’s why the old and new life are completely separate.

This transition from old to new is not an automatic process. You need to put in effort to pursue it. We do not achieve this new life by our own efforts. For we cannot receive it just on our own conduct. This new life is only gained through the precious blood of the Lord Jesus that has redeemed us. It is by our faith that we choose to accept this grace of God. It is through that the precious blood of the Lord will renew our lives and allow us to enter into eternal life.

After we have received this new life, it requires growth. For example, childbirth itself may be a natural process, but nurturing a child requires effort. Let us reflect upon this salvation grace that the Lord has given us. Let us think about whether our behaviour truly is befitting one who has partaken of God’s divine nature.

Some people say, I have already undergone such a change. I read the Bible, attend church, and even serve in church! These are things that will never be present in my old life, and so this means I have the image of this new life!

But why is it that there are some who zealously serve the Lord but don’t receive God’s favour and instead God’s rebuke? Even other people are not pleased with this person. You often read the Bible, pray and serve God. But at the same time you often show your temper, speak lies, show your arrogance and envy. Do you not see the image of this old life? We are not able to see this person as a partaker of God’s divine nature.

Didn’t we hear in the morning prayer? Many animals have special qualities that can change their colours or shapes. But these are merely momentary changes, these are forms of disguise and not a genuine change of their lives. Let our change not merely be in our outward appearance but let us transform our lives so that we become partakers of God’s divine nature. This true change will be one that God is pleased with. We serve, but let us also change our nature.

2 Pet 1:5-8

5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,
6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,
7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.
8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Peter encourages us here, that because of the reasons mentioned above, we should give all diligence. Since now our new life has a part with God’s divine nature, we ought to cause our new life to grow, so that we are able to bear more spiritual fruits. These fruits are truly a test that we are partakers of God’s divine nature. He also encourages us not to be slack in continuing to be fruitful. If we don’t put in diligence and laze around, the consequence will not be a good one.

V9-11

9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
10 Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble;
11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Peter says, if we do not put in the effort, there will be negative consequences. Firstly they will be shortsighted, they are blind, they have forgotten and they will lose their sight. That is why we need to put in the diligence to bear these spiritual fruits. For if we are able to bear these fruits abundantly, we will be able to enter the everlasting kingdom.

Peter lists 8 attributes we should bear.

1. Faith

The first attribute listed is faith and this is the most important. Before believing in the Lord, the only faith we have is faith in ourselves. Some people have a lot of faith in themselves and naturally they exhibit the things they are good at. And some people who don’t have as much faith in themselves might exhibit their weakness. But after believing in Christ, we put our faith in the Lord Jesus. Because we know we have our limitations, so we trust in our limitless God. That is why faith in God has to be the origin of our life of faith. That is what helps to motivate our faith. We often think that only the Holy Spirit will be able to drive our faith. But in actuality the Holy Spirit helps to drive our faith but it is not the main driver. Because if you’re not willing, the Holy Spirit will not force you. He can only move you. If you choose to believe and take that first step but find that you lack the strength, then the Holy Spirit will become a strength for you.

Faith is the most important to us. Because of faith, we accept baptism. Because of faith, we endure and wait for the second coming of the Lord. Because of faith, we give all diligence to bear the spiritual fruits. Because of faith we will be willing to endure all these obstacles to move forward in our faith.

To a person who does not have faith or when a person encounters doubt in his faith, he will remain stationary and will not move ahead in his faith. He will murmur and will not move ahead. What more coming to church? All the more they would stop pursuing after spiritual fruits. Let us ask the Lord to add on to our faith. If there are doubts that arise in any aspect of our faith, let us not conceal them but let us seek to uncover the source of these doubts. We must ask ourselves, in the beginning why did we choose to believe and why do we start to have these doubts now? Is it because there was a change in the beginning or right now there is a change because of the influence of another? In actuality, what we have believed in from the start to now has not changed. But some people have changed in what they believe. We need to make this distinction clear. It is not that this Christian faith has changed, but the person has changed. If the faith itself is wrong, then we need to change. Because what we are pursuing is eternal life. If the truth we subscribe to is erroneous and does not lead to salvation, then we need to think about it. But if it is some people themselves who have changed, then the next question is, do we follow suit and change with them because of the ties we have with them? Then we are not believing in the true genuine Christian faith. Rather we are merely following the faith of man.

This will happen more so in the end times when people start to interpret the Scripture according to their own understanding, and this is dangerous because this is our faith. Among our church beliefs, some are strongly supported in the Bible, like doctrines but others are supported with verses that may not be so clear cut, like traditions. Clear statements in the Bible must not be changed. Other smaller details not strongly supported or explained then let us not make it absolute. If you make these rules absolute then if the person breaks it then we have to respond accordingly. Then the person might say, “this is not in the Bible, isn’t this merely a form of consensus?”

This is an example. The Lord Jesus has made it clear that the speaking of tongues is the evidence of the Holy Spirit. This is an absolute truth. When you receive the Holy Spirit do you speak in tongues? In the Bible, the apostles all spoke in tongues when they received the Holy Spirit. Hence today when we receive the promised Holy Spirit, we will speak in tongues. This is irrefutable.

When we talk about speaking into tongues, the Bible only explains it as a language we cannot understand. But it doesn’t go into detail about how tongues speaking should be like. Some people posit that because it is a language, it should be spoken in clear articles and not a continuous tongue. To them, if they hear a person speaking and and it sounds like continuous rolling, then they will say it is not the Holy Spirit. This opinion would incur dissension and even disagreement. But the Lord Jesus did not explain in detail what the speaking of tongues sound like. And the apostles also did not write in detail what it should sound like. What IS recorded is that it is a language we cannot comprehend. So let us just cling to this belief. This is the danger - when someone puts out certain conditions for the tongue speaking to be genuine. This had resulted in such a split in Malaysia and is a regrettable incident. Let us learn from history.

Therefore today as we continue to study our church beliefs, certain things may not be in detail. But let us not fill these up. People only naturally respond that these are details not found in the bible. You might have certain verses to quote from but these are your own explanations of the bible. Are we merely interpreting the verse to understand it in the way we want to? Then others can do the same.

When we read the apostles explaining faith, we see an emphasis on believing in the words that Jesus has spoken. This faith isn’t one where we just believe Jesus will heal the sick and cast out demons. If we only pursue this narrow view of faith, this can bring us some benefits but not lead us into salvation.

Some Christians believe in Christ only for the belief that God can heal and cast our demons. But when Jesus no longer performs miracles in their sight then it becomes hard for them to believe. What is our faith built upon?

2. Virtue

The second fruit mentioned is virtue. “Add to your faith virtue”. It may seem that having faith alone is insufficient and therefore you need to add virtue. It seems that faith and virtue are separate matters. But faith and virtue are the same thing. It is not like the mother hen lays eggs to a chick and then adds a duck egg. Though they are two eggs, the chicken and duck are different. Rather, it is like the mother hen that lays one egg, then lays another egg. Both are chicken eggs. Which means to say that virtue is not a separate component to faith, but rather is a component within faith.

True faith will result in a manifestation in the form of our beliefs. Just like what we mentioned earlier, it is because of our faith that we turn to God, and so we have to be a new man. Because of belief and faith, we worship God. And virtue appears in the form of our behaviour, as a natural consequence of our genuine faith. Genuine faith will naturally bear forth virtuous behaviours. This is an important thing for us to consider - if we say we have faith but this faith is not accompanied with virtues like fearing God, then we have to consider if our faith is genuine.

There are some Christians that reassure themselves that their faith has not changed. But they don’t go to church to worship God. They continue to lie, scold and beat others. They say their faith is the same. But can this faith truly save such a person? Will this faith truly bring favour to God and man? Yes there will be one that might be pleased with him. The devil himself would be most pleased. The devil also believes in God! It’s genuine. But will he repent? No. So we have to add virtue. It is not a separate component but will naturally surface as a result of our faith.

3. Knowledge

Next, “to virtue, knowledge”. When we talk about the knowledge of God, it doesn’t refer to knowing what God knows, because that’s impossible. When we talk about God’s knowledge, it refers to what God wants us to know. There are many complicated and deep mysteries that are not for us to uncover. If we seek to uncover these mysteries, the devil will take us along and lead us astray. But everything that God wants us to know has already been written down by his servants. That is why we need to read the Bible so that we know what God wants us to know and keep.

Hosea 4:6

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also will reject you from being priest for Me;
Because you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.

Many people are knowledgeable in the ways of the world but not of God. As a result they will die. Including priests. Priests are responsible for speaking and teaching words of God but end up twisting it because they infuse their own understanding. The words of the Bible are not for us to put under scrutiny, but for us to obey. There are many who want to research the Bible further. But their faith is not accurate or genuine. The irony is that they teach theology in universities but don’t believe in the words of the bible. The Bible is not given for us to research and scrutinise, but for us to submit. The purpose of reading or researching the bible is for us to ponder and reflect upon our own lives, and not just to support our own beliefs.

Peter encourages us to grow in our faith. Many of us hope that the grace of the Lord will only grow and grow. But when we talk about knowledge of God, we don’t put in that much diligence. Yet we have to be clear about this. If we are doing something that goes against the knowledge of God, then He will take the grace of God back. Not only should we seek to add on or pursue God’s grace, but to add on knowledge of His grace so we won’t stray. That is how we can preserve His grace that He gives to us.

4. Self Control

Self control is mastery over ourselves. Many a time we find that we lose control and do things that we cannot take back. We might have said things that have hurt others and hence we regret. Though we say sorry at the end, the words spoken would hurt. What is worse is that in a moment of impulse we do something we shouldn’t do. In court, we might say we did it on impulse and we won’t do it again. But the judge would still give us ten years in jail to reflect. Even if it was a moment of impulse, we still have to pay the price. We must exercise self control. For example if we drive, and lose control of our vehicle, we not only cause hurt to ourselves but also other passers-by. When we drive, we always have to maintain control. When driving, it is a matter of life and death. Let us put aside distractions. What more when we think about life of faith? Should we not also steer it in a proper direction?

5. Perseverance

“To self control add perseverance”. He who endures to the end will be saved. There will be times we have to suffer and encounter misfortunes. We need to persevere. Sometimes, we say we lack endurance. In truth, everyone has a strong sense of endurance. You might say no, that’s not the case. Because you give this example of a person who has an outburst every time he hears something he doesn’t like. He is impatient. This is true. But this in itself does not prove that this person lacks endurance. Because when you see him in another setting, when his boss scolds him, he will not scold his boss in return. For the sake of his rice bowl, he would endure to the very end. And he actually has a strong capacity for endurance. His endurance seems to depend on who he is dealing with. Therefore it is not that we lack endurance. What are we willing to endure for? If we are willing to endure for salary, how are we not willing to endure for our faith and salvation?

6. Godliness

“To perseverance, add godliness”. There are those who only come in the appearance of godliness. One with true godliness is one who truly fears God. One who genuinely lives out the word of God. We know that training our bodies is how we see results in our physical appearance. When we put on these muscles, we will have sufficient strength. We know that we have to train our body physically to get these muscles. But our muscles lack strength as we grow older. There are people who are supposedly godly but cannot live out the word of God. He has the form of godliness but does not have an internal form of godliness. This person has never trained himself up.

Peter, when he talked about Lot, called him righteous. We may find it strange. Was Lot truly righteous? Yes he was. To others he indeed appeared righteous. But he lacked this power of godliness. He did not train up his godliness, hence he continued to live in Sodom. At most, he would lament over the wickedness of Sodom, saying, “Oh God is going to punish us.” These are manifestations of godliness, however this is only in appearance. Let us not only be satisfied with a form of godliness. Let us train ourselves in godliness that we may have the power of godliness.

7. Love

Finally, love. It is easy to love people close to us and not those who are not. It is easy to love a cute child. We always subscribe to our own view of love so we find it hard to love others. How do we love men? With the love of God. If we are truly partakers of God’s divine nature, what comes to mind is that He was willing to die for sinners. Then with this love in mind, we are able to forgive and help those which we might dislike. We have many shortcomings and we need to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to help us. Let us continue to be partakers of God’s divine nature. So that an entrance will be supplied to us to His everlasting kingdom.