Staying on Target (2)

Make every effort...

As some of you may know, I’m coaching U9 soccer. I’ve been taking courses to become qualified to coach. I had to take a course about coaching soccer in Canada, and then Learn to Train. After I finished these two courses, I got a notification that my accreditation for “Respect in Sport” had expired and needed to be renewed immediately.

Last year I was able to coach with just my “Respect in Sport”, but now it was time to take the other courses. Most of my sports growing up was recess or intramural sports. I did play on a Men’s Soccer team for about 5 years. I’ve always been the grinder. I was never the Gretzky or McDavid, but I was taught to play hard and to play according to the rules. There was no such thing as equal time, unless there were just enough players to be on the soccer pitch. Our goal was to win. We thought that winning was equal to enjoying what we were doing.

Over the last several years, the thinking has switched to living a healthy life, and enjoying the sport. At younger ages, we try to give equal playing time at all of the positions. The purpose of this is to give a well-balanced approach to sport and give each child an opportunity to excel and to do their very best.

As Christians, we need to live our lives according to the promises of God, and make every effort to be found in Him.

Let’s look at our Scripture passage,

2 Peter 1:5–11 NIV

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

For this reason...

This morning, I’d like to lay the groundwork for our passage .

2 Peter 1:5 NIV

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;

What is this very reason?

2 Peter 1:3–4 NIV

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

God has made promises in His word that have the power to change and transform our lives. This is God’s work in us. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation...”

What about us?

Because of what Jesus has done, we become partakers or participants in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires, our sinful nature, or lust.

We can’t just sit around and expect that God is going to do everything in our lives, we have to resist the devil.

Philippians 2:12–16 NIV

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.

Make every effort

If it was all on God, we would have no reason to make every effort.

The Bible Knowledge Commentary 1:5–7

It takes every bit of diligence and effort a Christian can muster, along with the enabling power of the Holy Spirit, to “escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires”

As Christians, we are called to die daily. Paul said< “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me...”

Ephesians 6:13–14 NIV

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,

Bible College

When I went to Bible College, I had been a decent student in High School, but English was never my strong suit. I had written a few papers, and I had a pretty good memory, but I wanted to do well in my classes at College.

Most of the students spent lots of time socializing and spending time playing sports, watching TV, or just not cultivating good habits, like sleeping and and barely making it to the first class in the morning.

It can be easy to fall into that same traps as others. That’s why it’s so imperative to make disciples. When I was in College, they wanted us to grow up. We needed to be shown what it means to grow up and to establish life long habits that will help us to grow up in the Lord.

Here’s an example of how things were. We were given one 2-week extension on an assignment. Many would take that on their first paper. We would lose 5% if a paper was handed in 1-3 days late, and 10% if the paper was handed in 4-6 days late.

I personally think, it would have been beneficial to have a few 0%’s handed out for late papers, this might have taught some diligence instead of slothfulness.

It was in my second semester, when I was taking church history. The Prof made this statement, “You will not pass this course if you don’t read the textbook.”

After I my mid-term exam, I went into Mr. Kennedy’s office to pick up my exam. I had 64%. I smirked a little bit, because I had gotten 64%, but 0/35 was from the textbook. It didn’t take him long to tell me that he was disappointed in my efforts, and that he saw much greater potential in me.

.That moment changed the trajectory of my Bible School, but some slothful habits had cost me High Honors by less than 1/2%.

Why did I say all this? I used it as an example that just getting by in life isn’t enough. We need to make every effort to be more than conquerors. We need to make every effort which means to “apply all diligence or all zeal.”

We need to make every effort...

To add to your faith

When Peter is encouraging and admonishing us to add to our faith, what’s he referring to? I’m glad you asked.

Faith is the foundation

“My hope is build on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.”

Jesus Christ is the Rock on which our lives as Christians are built. You can have great materials to build your life, but if they aren’t built on Christ, there is no hope.

“On Christ the solid Rock I stand. All other ground is sinking sand All other ground is sinking sand.”

The Bible Knowledge Commentary 1:5–7

Faith in Jesus Christ is what separates Christians from all other people.

This is going to sound really close minded. We live in a society that wants us to include everyone and everything.

Hebrews 11:6 NIV

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

There is only one foundation to get into the family of God. Matthew 21:42

Matthew 21:42 NIV

Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: “ ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?

We want to be inclusive. We don’t want anyone to go into a lost eternity without God.

2 Peter 3:9 NIV

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

The Lord doesn’t want anyone to perish. He doesn’t want anyone to go to Hell. That isn’t His desire at all. His desire is that all will come.

It wasn’t God’s desire to kick Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden, but He has given each of us a free will, meaning that He does not and will not force us to love Him and serve Him.

Good looking homes

I want to use a house or a home as an example of our lives. There are many whose lives look great. They are happy, successful, it looks like they have everything that they need.

They have some of these characteristics that we are going to look at that are worth adding to our lives. If we look at the words at face value: goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, mutual affection, and love.

There’s great value into looking at the meanings of the words. English isn’t the original language of the Bible. It was written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek. As we dive into these words, we will see the deeper meaning in what Peter wants to convey.

Maybe you know some people that aren’t Christians that are really good people. Maybe you’ve said it or definitely thought it, that person would make a great Christian.

I don’t want to condemn good, honest, hard working people that are really just trying to make a living and wanting to do good to everybody they meet.

Here’s our quandary. Here’s our conundrum. We are not saved or justified by our works. We simply cannot do enough good to save ourselves.

Adam and Eve didn’t eat all of the fruit off of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, but their act of disobedience against God caused sin to enter the world.

Romans 3:10 NIV

As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one;

Romans 3:23 NIV

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

I wish that I could say that good people make it into Heaven, but God’s standards cost Jesus to die on the cross to pay for our sins.

Isaiah 64:6 NIV

All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

Because our righteous acts are filthy rags, faith needs to be our foundation.

Ephesians 2:8–9 NIV

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.

Why do we need to add to our faith?

If we are saved by faith alone, why do we need to add to our faith?

For some, this can cause confusion, because we aren’t saved by works and yet

Ephesians 2:10 NIV

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Our faith in what Jesus has done is our foundation. He died to wash away our sins. He was beaten to provide healing. He who knew no sin became sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Faith vs Works

James 2:14–19 ESV

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!

This morning, I wanted to lay the foundation for the godly characteristics God wants produced in our lives.

2 Peter 1:8–9 NIV

For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.