Knowledge is Power, Spiritual Growth

Essentials of Faith

Part 6

Knowledge is Power, Spiritual Development

2 Peter 1:2-11

Prayer

Good Morning Church!

Today we find ourselves in part 6 of our Sermon Series, Essentials of Faith.

As we walk the road of faith together, we must remember that we can get easy sidetracked by what is happening in the world, our families, and life in general. When thi happens, must have the right tools to get us back on track.

In the last five weeks, we created a spiritual tool box to help us live the life that God has called us to. We first began adding fasting to the essential tool fasting, we then put in our tool box prayer, living in harmony with one another, then the gift of generosity to God and His Church. Then last week we added the essential tool of love.

We learned that love is the FACTOR OF OUR FAITH INITIATED BY GOD.

We looked at two essential truths that we find in the Bible about love.

FIRST, God's love is incredible, everlasting, and unfailing.

SECOND, God's love compels us to love others.

To love others requires sacrifice, forgiveness, and an attitude of service.

This morning we are adding to our toolbox wisdom that for s our spiritual growth that will help us in all areas of our day-to-day lives.

If you have your Bibles with you this morning, I invite you to open them with me to the book of 2nd Peter.

2nd Peter chapter 1.

If you are unfamiliar with where 2nd Peter is, you can find it by locating the book of Hebrews, James, 1st Peter. You will find 2nd Peter. 2nd Peter chapter 2 is where we will be this morning.

Second Peter was written to wake up the minds of his readers by reminding them of the predictions of the Holy Prophets, the commandments, and the promises of the Lord and Savior given through the apostles. Peter wants to remind his readers of those teaching false doctrine, and we, who follow Christ, should live in holiness and godliness as we wait for Christ's return which results in growth.

Let’s get right to God’s Word.

If you are there in the book of 2nd Peter, begin reading with me from chapter 1 verse 2.

This is the Word of God, and it begins like this: "Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 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.

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. 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."

In this scripture we find that the Apostle Peter is giving a lesson on Spiritual Growth that comes from the knowledge of God.

You might be asking; why is this important?

First, God calls us to grow. When we become Born-Again, we enter into a relationship with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit that will cause us to grow. With the power of the Holy Spirit. We are called to become more like Jesus and to become more holy. It is this spiritual growth that becomes another birthmark of our faith!

Second, I genuinely believe that if we look deep down, we have a desire to grow and to take our relationship with God further than what it's ever been.

Third, We must answer the question; how do we get from where we are to where God wants us to be?

The problem may be that we lack knowledge. Or the problem could be that we seem to lack the power to do what we need to do.

Many want to grow, and those who feel the need to grow believe they need more than just steps. We need help to do what we know we should be doing.

For a true believer spiritual growth is not optional. Matt 5:48 tells us “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

BUT HOW DO WE OBTIAN THAT? Our passage that we just read answers the question: How do we grow?

I am talking to you about how to grow spiritually. But listen, when you grow spiritually, you also grow in all the areas of your life.

Did you know that God cares about every part of our lives? God cares about our souls, and he also cares about our emotions, relationships, work-life, family, and physical health. God cares about it all.

God doesn’t just want part of your life. He wants all of it.

How do we grow in every part of our lives?

Peter answers that question through spiritual growth.

The definition of Spiritual Growth is; The development or improvement towards a goal called maturity or perfection.

It is growing in God's grace.

Look back at verse 2 with me: "Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord."

Grace is multiplied to us through the knowledge of Jesus Christ.

For believers today knowledge of God and the Lord Jesus Christ is powerful. You can tap into God's power when you decide to grow.

Which brings us to our TAKE-HOME TRUTH TODAY:

THE TAKE-HOME TRUTH IS:

GOD GIVES US EVERYTHING WE NEED TO GROW. (X2)

Think about that statement for a moment.

The Apostle Paul is a great example for us.

He writes in the book of Philippians:

"Not that I have already reached the goal or am already fully mature, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, 14 I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God's heavenly call in Christ Jesus" (Phil 3:12-14).

The Apostle Paul says “I have not achieved it”

Maturity is a lifetime of change,and challenge of continual learning, and pursuit.

Look back at verse 3: "His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His glory and goodness."

Folks, everything we need to live this life God has given to us. God equips us to live a life pleasing to Him, to overcome obstacles, and persevere over trials through the knowledge of Him.

God has given us knowledge, but it is up to us to develop that knowledge. Folks, the truth is we need to have a faith that grows.

There are far too many Believers who are spiritually content. They never grow spiritually. I love that verse in John 10:10 where Jesus says, "I have come that they may have life and that they might have it more abundantly."

God wants all of His people to experience spiritual growth, and when spiritual growth comes, you begin to live your life more abundantly. We are to grow spiritually to escape the corruption of the world.

In biblical days there were a lot of false teachers out there and Peter is talking about knowing the difference between what is false and what is the truth.

I was watched a show a while back about counterfeit money. During the training of Canadian Police, they spend meticulous hours being trained on identifying counterfeit money. One of the things that struck me was that they don't spend time looking and studying counterfeit bills.

They spend hours upon hours studying the real money so that they can identify it when a fake counterfeit bill comes along.

Although Peter addressed the issue of false teachers throughout his letter, he says that one who grows in the knowledge of Jesus, one who grows spiritually, will know when there is a fake.

Listen, folks, knowledge is power!

Look at verse 4 with me "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."

We are to grow spiritually to live for God as He has intended us to live and for us not to be swayed by the world that leads us to corruption. So that we will know the truth and not be tempted by the counterfeit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

SO we find that in this text, Peter gives us certain qualities to live by; as we live by each quality, one leads to the next in a stair-stepped structure of Spiritual Growth.

Before you can get to those steps, Peter says you must be born again; you must be a believer to have the qualities of God.

Verse 5 "add your faith," some versions say to "supplement your faith."

You must have given your heart, trusting in Jesus and the promises of forgiveness and eternal life.

The word supplement is exactly what it means- adding to something to enhance or complete it.

Bodybuilders, weightlifters, regular people use supplements to gain muscle, enhance body tone or even enhance body health.

I take vitamin supplements and fish oil.

Many of you might take fish oil or some other vitamin supplement. The point of the supplement is to enhance and help your body be healthy. Peter says that if we supplement our faith with the knowledge or wisdom of God, we will grow spiritually and healthily.

Today we are looking at the Seven Steps to Spiritual Growth that we find in our scipture this morning.

Now there are several similar lists found throughout the New Testament.

One of the most familiar is the fruit of the Spirit found in Galatians 5:22-23 "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control."

I read somewhere that it was characteristic of earlier times when people didn't have a Bibles to read, so lists would be put together so the scripture could easily be remembered.

What are these steps that the Apostle Peter is speaking of?

The First Step of Spiritual Growth is Adding Virtue:

It is found in verse in verse 5; "But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue."

Other versions translate this word to be moral excellence or goodness.

This moral excellence or goodness is a value that is expected of us by God.

It literally means the quality of doing what is right and avoiding what is wrong.

It is the part of having good morals, doing what is right, even in challenging situations, even when life seems to deal you the bad hand when everyone else is doing the wrong thing, you do the right thing.

Goodness cannot get you to salvation in Christ Jesus; being a morally good person without Jesus will not save you. Many people think that being good is like a disclaimer- "Well, at least I am not as bad as so and so," I am not as bad as a murderer, or a thief, or a rapist….this is only a disclaimer saying at least I am better than that, hoping others see you as good. Or that your good is good enough.

But when you are in Christ, you should want to excel at being a morally excellent person because it adds to the type of believer you are. Moral excellence builds you up in Christ. When you are morally excellent, you are living as God wants you to live because He is a Moral God.

In Daniel 4:7, it tells us that "for all HIS works are right and His ways are just"

Psalm 23:6 "Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life" God's ways are good and moral to all people. To grow spiritually, we should practice this goodness.

The Second Step of Spiritual Growth is adding Knowledge.

Verse 5 “add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,”

This type of knowledge is not just to know something but it is expanding knowledge.

If you want to know what Jesus is like, you must expand your knowledge about what you know about HIM. If you're going to understand why God would not let Moses into the Promised Land, you must expand your knowledge. There is a mystery about God, His Son, and the Holy Spirit, which should cause us to learn more and more about God. Actual knowledge is rooted in God's Grace.

Look at verse 3 with me "His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His glory and goodness." In chapter 3, Peter tells us, "Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ"

How do we grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ?

We read and study the Word of God.

We attend Bible studies and worship services to hear His Word being taught.

It is a knowledge that is implemented to discern right and wrong, good and evil. So this would be the knowledge of God's Word and God's will applied to our lives. Listen, folks, Spiritual Growth is a byproduct of the knowledge of Jesus Christ and His Word.

The Third Step of Spiritual Growth is adding Self-Control.

Verse 6 add “to knowledge self-control,”

Have you ever lost control? I hate to admit it, but I can lose control sometimes. Our emotions can sometimes get the best of us; cant they?

Self-control means having the ability to get a grip on one's life. When you see somebody, who is starting to unravel, maybe under emotional pressure, you might say, "Get hold of yourself." That's this word. "Get a grip on yourself. Get it together. Get yourself under control."

Self-control means controlling your emotions rather than being held by them. When we are not focused on God, self-control is one of the first things we lose. Amen? This is not the same self-control that the world talks about- remember the context of the definition;

"He has given us everything required for life and godliness."

It's His power at work. We are partakers of His divine nature. Therefore, we are commanded to supply self-control, to have ourselves under control in light of what Christ has done. So this is something for the believer who the grace of God has redeemed.

This step is also the final item in the list of The Fruit of the Spirit found in Gal. 5:23.

God works it in us as we walk in the Spirit, but we must also work to practice it. Paul uses the word in reference to an athlete who must exercise self-control in all things so that he might win the race (1 Cor. 9:25). It is also a necessary qualification for elders (Titus 1:8).

By definition, self-control means that you must go against your impulses or feelings to attain a higher goal.

Self-Control can be used in the measure of patience we have for one another. By Biblical definition, we find that self- control is part of the fruit of the Holy Spirit- self-control is needed to win the race, and self-control is a qualification for leadership in the church.

This is the importance of self-control. It is a characteristic that shows Godly character in one's life.

The Steps of Spiritual Growth are adding virtue, knowledge, and self-control.

Then The Fourth step of Spiritual Growth is Adding Perseverance.

Verse 6 add “to self-control perseverance,”

In other versions, the Greek word is translated as endurance.

Self-control exercised over time produces endurance and perseverance. In the original Greek text, this word means "continues to bear up under difficult circumstances- to endure to be patient or steadfast."

In the New Testament, this is a person who is not swayed from their purpose and loyalty of faith even in the greatest of trials.

God has provided us with the necessary power to live a life pleasing to Him, but we are not to sit back and relax; although the grace of God has been given to us freely, it doesn't mean that our life in this existence will be easy. We must have endurance to run the race because God demands our effort. Our patience, endurance, or perseverance grows as we believe and live out the promises of God. Endurance is one of the marks of maturity.

The key to perseverance and endurance is that we keep our focus.

Notice verse 4 with me. Peter says that: by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises,” has given us His great and precious promises, which include the new heavens and the new earth, according to 2 Peter 3:13—focusing on those promises produces endurance to live this life until God’s promises are fulfilled.

In 1 Thessalonians 1:3 spoke of the endurance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. It is the same word - the perseverance of hope. The endurance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ helps us keep with it.

The Steps of Spiritual Growth add to your faith virtue, virtue, knowledge, to knowledge, self-control, and self-control, perseverance.

Then the Fifth Step of Spiritual Growth is adding Godliness.

Verse 6 add to perseverance, godliness,”

Godliness results when a believer observes the requirements of God in our lives.

Godliness is the desire of the heart and mind to be pleasing to God in every area of life. It includes our conduct in how we relate to others. It also includes our behavior and attitude toward God.

The life that we live indicates our desire to be pleasing to God. No higher compliment can be paid to a Believer than to call him a godly person.

He or she might be a zealous church worker, a dynamic spokesman for Christ, or a talented leader, but none of these things matters if, at the same time, they are not a godly person.

The words godly and godliness appear only a few times in the New Testament, yet the entire Bible is a book on godliness.

And when those words do occur, they are full of meaning and instruction for us.

For one to have godliness in your life, you must submit to the will of God and seek to please God by Seeking goodness, knowledge, self-control, and endurance. These are the qualities that support Godliness in your life. Just as being a good person cannot get you into heaven - You cannot jump into Godliness. You must begin with faith.

I am reminded of the words to the Colossian Church by the Apostle Paul – as they pray for the church to "WALK WORTHY OF THE LORD, FULLY PLEASING TO HIM."

The New Testament word for godliness, in its original meaning, conveys the idea of it, a personal attitude toward God that results in actions that are pleasing to Him.

This is a personal attitude toward God.

Listen to me, just because you go to church doesn't mean that you are a godly person.

It begins at the cross, where you bear your sins, it takes place at the resurrection where Jesus defeated death for the penalty for Sin, It takes place in your heart where you bare it all to Jesus, and it takes place in your mind where you make a change to the new you. Then you add goodness, knowledge, self-control, endurance- then comes Godliness. We are a work in progress. AMEN?

The Sixth Step of Spiritual Growth is Adding Brotherly Affection.

Verse 7 add “to godliness brotherly kindness,”

The Bible gives us several examples of this brotherly kindness or affection to have for one another in Romans 12:10 "Show family affection to one another with brotherly love."

1st Thess 4:9: "About brotherly love: You don't need me to write you because God teaches you yourselves to love one another."

Now displaying brotherly affection for one another is not always easy. But the Bible calls us the Family of God, and that Bible also tells us that we are adopted into the family of God by the blood of Jesus Christ, so essentially, we are blood relatives. And as a family, we should be building the unity of the body of Christ through building brotherly and sisterly love.

The 7th Step of Spiritual Growth is Adding Love.

Brotherly kindness climaxes in agape love, the last of the seven qualities. But the most important.

Brotherly love has a mutuality about it. It's family affection, friendly love. This love is a love of the intellect or the mind. I do what is best for you, period. There is nothing in it for me. I am not looking for any return. It's self-sacrificing love and is given for the benefit of the one loved, period. It's the greatest. 1 Corinthians 13:13: "...but the greatest of these is love."

We talked about love last week. God is love, and we are to reciprocate that love with the same tenacity as God.

The Bible teaches in the Old and New Testament: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.

But the truth is without these 7 Steps; you will not have spiritual growth that leads to this ultimate love. Look at verse 9 with me. Peter concludes these virtues by saying: "The Person who lacks these things is blind and shortsighted and has forgotten the cleansing from their past sins."

The Gospel is not something to forget but something to remember and rejoice in.

We must be growing spiritually in each area. We all need prayer for Spiritual growth because look at what Peter says in verse 8 "For if these qualities are yours and increasing they will keep you from being useless and unfruitful."

I don't know about you but being unfruitful for God's Kingdom is not where I want to be.

Our maturity begins with faith and ends in LOVE.

Finally, look at verses 10-11:

"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."

When the Spiritual Steps to maturity are practiced your knowledge results in power in all areas of your life.

Peter Says that Spiritual Growth is a continual thing that we to diligently “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."

“Do these things and you will never stumble”

The question we should ask ourselves; is which step are we missing when we do stumble to live out Godly character in our lives?

Invitation.