Growing in Grace

Intro

Fruit trees and growth

Purpose of 2 Peter vs. 1 Peter-Persecution vs. False Teaching; problems outside the church vs. problems inside the church

2 Peter 3:1–9 ESV

This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

2 Peter 1:3–9 ESV

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. 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. 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.

We are going to look at 3 big ideas today and then see how we can walk in them.

What is the ground of our growth as Christians?

What does a fruitful Christian life look like?

What helps us continue to grow into Christlikeness?

I. The Ground of our Growth

A. The knowledge of God through His Son is foundational and essential for any spiritual growth.

The chief end of man is to know, love, and glorify God. It is in this knowledge that we find our escape from our childish lusts. In our text we see that God has called us to his own glory and excellence and given us all things we need pertaining to life and godliness through our knowledge of Him.

B. This knowledge is not merely knowing facts about God but it is knowing Him in such a way that changes our whole lives.

Brother Lawrence quote

300 Quotations for Preachers from the Reformation The More We Know God, the More We Love Him

Let all our business be to know God; the more one knows Him, the more one desires to know Him. And as knowledge is commonly the measure of love, the deeper and more extensive our knowledge shall be, the greater will be our love: and if our love of God be great, we shall love him equally in grief and in joy.

BROTHER LAWRENCE

C. What a marvelous truth to live out of: we have been given everything we need for life and godliness-spiritual life and practical holiness which can both seem very daunting; knowing God-the one who made all things and hung the stars and knows them by name gives His children the opportunity to know Him!

D. J.I. Packer gives four evidences that point to a person knowing God.

a. Starts with knowing how little you know of God.

Those who know God have great energy for God.

Those who know God have great thoughts of God.

Those who know God show great boldness for God.

Those who know God have great contentment in God.

b. This is not through self effort but through faith in his great and precious promises to us:

that there is no condemnation

that we are forgiven completely: past, present, and future sins!

that we are positionally righteous before God

that God will finish His work of making us like His Son

that we are united to Christ and become partakers of the divine nature

There are just under 5500 promises of varying degrees and purposes but all point to our faithful and kind God who keeps them all.

Not only does He keep them but through them provides escape from the corruption of the world.

How do we come to know God?

Through a fruitful and effective person that lived and spoke the Gospel.

It is only through the Gospel that we know who we are, how much we need God, and how Jesus makes the way clear for us to be rightly related and know God.

II. The Growth of our fruitfulness

A. There is a call on each of our lives to grow in Christlikeness so others might see and hear from us what knowing Him is all about.

B. Here Peter says that it is amazing to have come to know God. But he insists that that is our starting point and not the end of our journey.

We are to make every effort to grow. This is like so much of what we find in the New Testament: we can’t grow ourselves but we are to make every effort to not just stay where we are spiritually, we are to make every effort to enter the rest God has won for His people; it is seemingly paradoxical but it reminds us that we are contingent creatures, we need God’s help in all things.

But this challenge that Peter lays out has incredible goal to it: that our knowledge of Jesus would not just be theoretical or merely intellectual, but it would be fruitful and effective.

Fruitful-for the good and reproduction of this in others-spreading the kingdom

Effective-our words and lives all have an effect. But this is referencing making a difference for the glory of Jesus, so that others would see him more clearly and see his power at work in the life of a real person.

This is the goal in this list.

We are to grow inwardly and outwardly in Christlikeness.

These items in this list Peter uses are not sequential or isolated as though we could only pursue one at a time or they had to be in that order. These are both observable practices and inward understandings.

But they do seem to build on each other. Even the way Peter states each virtue-to your…add …, and to your…add ...

These are not merely another Benjamin Franklin type of self help list. We can see the similarities between this list and the fruit of the Spirit.

This helps us know that we even though we are involved in this work of sanctification, we cannot produce it on our own.

John 15:4–5 ESV

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

So the things that should be growing in our own self evaluation as well as others experience of our fruit are:

Virtue-moral excellence

Knowledge-ever deepening understanding of God and the Gospel

Word and Spirit

Self control-not living for self

Steadfastness-not giving up easily, fighting well for faith

Godliness-displaying communicable attributes of God

we have become partakers of the divine nature

Brotherly affection-love for each other

Love-this the crowning principle

especially for neighbors and enemies

Shows the greatest growth loving those not like you or even those against you

If these traits are in us and growing in us, Peter says our knowledge of Jesus won’t just be theoretical or intellectual, it will be fruitful and effective.

III. The Grace of Remembrance

A. Peter grounds us in the Gospel, calls us to grow and then tells us what will keep us being fruitful. He states it negatively but we can see in the text that if we remember all that God has done for us in Christ, we will be fruitful and effective in our knowledge of God.

B. Peter again and again in this second letter seeks to remind his hearers, and us, of this important principle: all who have repented and trusted Christ need reminders of this Gospel and need to remind themselves of its truth daily.

C. What are the important things to be reminded of or remind ourselves of?

a. We were hopeless sinners before we came to know Jesus.

b.

b. we have been brought out of the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of Jesus by faith in Jesus life, death, and resurrection.

Jesus by faith in Jesus life, death, and resurrection.

Colossians 1:13–14 ESV

He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Notice that we are a part of what God is doing but He is the one doing all the work.

c. Our growth will be in God’s time.

“It seems that most believers have difficulty in realizing and facing up to the inexorable fact that God does not hurry in His development of our Christian life.”- Miles J. Stanford in The Green Letters

d. Our growth takes direct effort by us and dependence on the Holy Spirit.

b. Our growth takes direct effort by us and dependence on the Holy Spirit.

We can’t merely read books and go to church and see all the work God wants to do in us.

We are to be in this for the long haul and not grow weary in doing good.

But in all this we go back to , we are to walk in or by the Spirit.

e. We have to carve out time to spend time with Jesus in His Word and with others who can help us but all the while we are not to pretend that these things alone

How do we grow? (Application)

Recognize how little you know God and put your energies into knowing Him: in His Word, with His people, looking at creation.

1b. Memorize promises of God that remind you of His character, His love for you and His church, His faithfulness.

2. Take stock of your character:

Be honest with yourself and God.

Ask your spouse or a Gospel friend if you are unmarried which of these areas they see need for growth.

Ask your small group or bible study partners to weigh in as well.

2b. Ask God for help in areas of weakness and for strength to do them-make every effort.

a. seek to demonstrate more goodness to others, grow in your understandings through reading and sharing

3. Remind yourself of the Gospel and what God has done every day.

a. Not as some rote chant but remembering it is all by God’s grace that you have anything and are standing where you are today.

b. Surround yourself with Gospel people or at least a few who can remind you when you start to forget of who you are in Christ and all that God has done for you in Christ.

c. Be that person who graciously reminds others of Jesus.