The Practice of the Christian Life (2 Peter 1:5–15)
The foundation of the Christian life is grace—so how do we build on it? In 2 Peter 1:5–15, Peter answers with an urgent call to practice the faith: “make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue,” and virtue with knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. Authentic faith is active and productive.
This sermon traces Peter’s three exhortations: grow in faith, confirm your calling and election by these increasing qualities, and walk towards glory—the richly provided entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As Luther put it, we “prove our faith by our good works.”
Introduction
What’s the foundation of your Christian life again, brothers and sisters? Grace! You’re called to live a godly life on the basis of what Jesus has already given you: eternal life, his promises, and participation in him.
Theme
Today we’ll look at how Peter says to build on that gracious foundation as you and I practice the Christian life.
Grow in Faith
How do I practice the Christian faith? In verses 5–7, Peter says grow in faith. Let me read you a quote before looking at the verses: “They should prove their faith by their good works.” Who do you think said that? Probably a Roman Catholic or some moralist, right.? It was Martin Luther. Why did he say that? Because of what Peter says here:
“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.”
Authentic Christian faith is active, it’s productive. That word supplement (epichorēgeo) was used in the ancient world of the person who provided money for the chorus in a theatrical production. By the time of Peter, it was used for a generous benefactor or donor. We are to freely give back to God by growing in our faith. I’m not sure if you’ve ever been in a drive-thru coffee shop where you pull up to pay and the person tells you, “The car in front of you already paid for your drink,” but it’s pretty cool. How does it make you feel? “I want to pay it forward for the car behind me.”
Grace begets gratitude; new life in Christ begets growth. Faith leads to virtue or goodness, virtue leads to knowledge between what is good versus what is bad, knowledge leads to self-control, self-control leads to steadfastness or perseverance, steadfastness leads to godliness, godliness leads to brotherly affection (philadelphia),and brotherly affection leads to love (agapē).
Note how verse 8 describes continually growth in these practices: 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. And we want to be effective and fruitful! Amen? Weed the garden of your heart; aerate it; water it; fertilize it.
In verse 9, Peter says it negatively: for whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Blindness (not being able to see), nearsightedness (not being able to see in the distance), forgetfulness (not seeing what’s behind). But don’t forget that you’ve already been cleansed.
In other words, as we like to say, “Remember your baptism.” Why? Baptism is the outward and tangible sign and assurance to us from our God of grace that he’s already cleansed, forgiven, and washed us.
Loved ones, grow in your faith; be fruitful; recall your baptism to do this.
Confirm Your Calling
How do I practice the Christian faith? In verse 10, Peter says confirm your calling. Therefore, brothers, [remembering your baptism that you were cleansed from former sins and growing in a fruitful faith] be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. Right off the bat, let me say that knowing God has cleansed you of your sins leads to diligence in the Christian life. The verb Peter uses be…diligent is in what’s called the middle voice, which signifies the one being spoken of is active. Don’t ever use any Christian doctrine—election, justification, forgives, whatever—to make you say, “I’m done! Just let go and let God.” No, no, no a thousand times. No, a thousand and one!
The second thing to say is we are called to confirm our calling and election. As we saw in our previous passage, it’s God who sends out the general call but more importantly the effectual call. It’s also God who predestines, elects, and choses. It’s not about you. You didn’t call yourself or elect yourself, so stop thinking you’re God! Instead, let God be God. At the same time, you and I are called to confirm them. How? Again, by growing, being fruitful and effective in our Christian faith.
Note the benefit of this: if you practice these qualities [in verses 5–7] you will never fall. When there’s fruit, that’s evidence that there’s roots. But more than that, as we know from the cliffs along the coast, the roots keep the fruitful tree up and standing.
So, be diligent and practice faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love because these confirm your calling and election into God’s eternal glory, which leads to our last point.
Walk Towards Glory
How do I practice the Christian faith? In verse 11, Peter says walk towards glory. For in this way [of growing in faith and confirming calling and election] there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
In one of our Reformation confessions of faith called the “Canons of Dort,” we read about the doctrine of election being one and the same for all those saved from Old through New Testament. Then there’s this beautiful line:
“Scripture declares that there is a single good pleasure, purpose, and plan of God’s will, by which he chose us from eternity both to grace and to glory, both to salvation and to the way of salvation, which he prepared in advance for us to walk in” (1.8).
Did you hear that? God hasn’t just chosen us to salvation so that we, again, can just take a siesta and wait for heaven to come. He’s also chosen for us the way of salvation that we are to walk in, echoing Ephesians 2:10.
What is the way of salvation? Walking on the path of growing in faith and confirming calling.
What’s the goal of the path along the way of salvation? Entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen?
So, beloved, walk on the straight and narrow path of godliness that is a result of God’s amazing grace to you in Christ.
Conclusion
In conclusion, as Peter reminded his readers, so I remind you:
“I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have…I think it right…to stir you up by way of reminder…I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things” (vv. 12, 13, 15).