The Logic of Christian Growth Text: 2 Peter 1:1-11
Introduction: Grace is Not a Hammock
We live in an age of sloppy spiritual accounting. In the modern evangelical world, grace is often treated as a soft, sentimental thing, a sort of divine permission slip to be mediocre. On the other side of the ledger, you have the grim-faced legalists, trying to build a staircase to Heaven with the flimsy lumber of their own good intentions. Both are profoundly wrong, and both are profoundly dishonoring to God. One side has a gospel of all grace and no effort, and the other has a gospel of all effort and no grace. They are two wings of the same flightless bird.
The Apostle Peter, in this dense and glorious passage, comes along and sets fire to this entire false dichotomy. He shows us that grace is not a hammock for us to lounge in, but rather a trampoline for us to jump on. Divine power is not the replacement for human diligence; it is the absolute precondition for it. God does not do 90 percent, leaving us to struggle with the last 10. God does 100 percent of the saving, and this sovereign, unilateral, monergistic grace is what empowers and requires us to then give 100 percent of our effort in the living.
What Peter gives us here is the divine logic of sanctification. It is a roadmap for Christian maturity. It is not about how to get saved; it is about the architectural consequences of being saved. God has laid a foundation of solid granite, and He has delivered all the building materials to the job site. The question this passage poses to every one of us is this: are you building?
The Text
Simeon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received the same kind of faith as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ: Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the full knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the full knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these things are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For in whom these things are not present, that one is blind, being nearsighted, having forgotten the purification from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and choosing sure; for in doing these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.
(2 Peter 1:1-11 LSB)
The Level Ground of Grace (v. 1-2)
Peter begins by establishing the foundation upon which everything else will be built.
"Simeon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received the same kind of faith as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ: Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the full knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord" (2 Peter 1:1-2)
Notice how Peter identifies himself. He is a slave, a doulos, and an apostle. His authority as an apostle is grounded in his submission as a slave. He is not a freelancer. And to whom does he write? To those who have "received" a faith of the same kind as his. Faith is not something we generate; it is a gift we receive. And there are no tiers of faith. The humblest new believer in the remotest corner of the world has received the exact same quality of faith as the chief of the apostles. The ground at the foot of the cross is absolutely level.
And what is the basis for this shared faith? It is not our sincerity or our spiritual prowess. It is based entirely on "the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ." Our faith is only as good as its object, and the object is the perfect, alien righteousness of Jesus, credited to our account. This is the great exchange. Our sin was counted as His on the cross, and His righteousness is counted as ours in the resurrection. This is the bedrock of our standing before God.
Upon this foundation, Peter prays for grace and peace to be "multiplied." This is not a static reality. It is dynamic. It is intended to grow. And the mechanism for this multiplication is "the full knowledge of God." The word is epignosis, a deep, intimate, and experiential knowledge. A shallow theology will always result in a shallow Christian life. The more you know God as He truly is, the more His grace and peace will flood your life. Sound doctrine is not an optional extra for academics; it is the very pipeline through which the grace of God flows.
The Divine Equipment (v. 3-4)
Next, Peter lays out the staggering inventory of what God has already provided for us.
"seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the full knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust." (2 Peter 1:3-4 LSB)
This is a frontal assault on all forms of spiritual poverty thinking. God's divine power has not given us a starter pack. He has given us "everything pertaining to life and godliness." The war chest is full. The spiritual bank account is overflowing. We are not called to a desperate search for resources; we are called to learn how to deploy the infinite resources we have already been given. And again, the key that unlocks this treasury is the "full knowledge of Him who called us."
How did He do this? Through His "precious and magnificent promises." The promises of God in Scripture are the legal tender of the kingdom. They are the means by which God transfers His divine power to us. And what is the goal? That we might become "partakers of the divine nature." This does not mean we become little gods. That is the ancient lie of the serpent. It means that we begin to share in God's communicable attributes. We are remade in His image, taking on His character: His love, His holiness, His goodness, His justice. As we lay hold of the promises by faith, the very character of God is formed in us.
This process has a negative counterpart: "having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust." The world system is in a state of decay, it is rotting from the inside out, and the termite that is eating away at its foundations is lust, epithumia, disordered desire. The gospel is the great escape plan from this collapsing building.
The Ladder of Virtue (v. 5-7)
Because of this massive, gracious provision, we are now called to action.
"Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love." (2 Peter 1:5-7 LSB)
The logic is crucial. "For this very reason," because God has given you everything, therefore, "applying all diligence." God's sovereignty does not cancel our responsibility; it creates it. His grace is not an excuse for laziness but the fuel for our most strenuous efforts. We are to "supply" or add to our faith. This is not a checklist for earning salvation. This is the blueprint for the house that is to be built on the foundation of a free salvation.
The progression is logical. You begin with faith, the gift of God. To that, you add moral excellence, or virtue, a robust and courageous goodness. To that, you add knowledge, practical wisdom for living. To that, self-control, the mastery of your appetites. To that, perseverance, the grit to keep going when it gets hard. To that, godliness, a life lived in conscious reverence before God. To that, brotherly kindness, a genuine affection for your fellow saints. And the capstone that holds it all together is love, agape, the selfless, covenantal, sacrificial love that mirrors the love of God Himself.
The Fruitful and the Blind (v. 8-9)
Peter then provides a diagnostic test. How can you tell if this is happening?
"For if these things are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For in whom these things are not present, that one is blind, being nearsighted, having forgotten the purification from his former sins." (2 Peter 1:8-9 LSB)
The key markers are presence and increase. Are these virtues present in your life? And are they growing? If so, your life will not be useless or unfruitful. A genuine knowledge of Jesus Christ always produces fruit. It is not about sinless perfection, but it is about clear direction. A living tree grows.
The alternative is stark. The one who professes faith but lacks these qualities is "blind, being nearsighted." They can only see the things of this world. They have a form of spiritual amnesia, "having forgotten the purification from his former sins." They have forgotten their baptism. They have forgotten the gospel. A fruitless life is evidence that a person has lost sight of the cross and the empty tomb. This is a terrifying warning against a cheap grace that requires nothing of a man.
The Abundant Entrance (v. 10-11)
The letter concludes this section with a final exhortation and a glorious promise.
"Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and choosing sure; for in doing these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you." (2 Peter 1:10-11 LSB)
How do we make our calling and election sure? We do not do it by peering into the secret counsels of God or by endless, anxious introspection. We make it sure to ourselves and to a watching world by our diligence in pursuing this ladder of virtue. Your sanctification is the visible evidence of your election. The fruit on the tree proves the health of the root.
The result of this diligence is stability. "In doing these things, you will never stumble." This does not mean you will never sin, but that you will not catastrophically fall away. Your house is built on the rock.
And the final promise is breathtaking. The entrance into the eternal kingdom will be "abundantly supplied." This is not the image of a shipwrecked sailor washing up on the shores of heaven, barely saved. This is the image of a great ship returning to port after a long and successful voyage, with flags flying and sails full, welcomed into the harbor with fanfare. This is the rich, triumphant, abundant entrance that awaits the diligent Christian. God's grace lays the foundation, and our Spirit-empowered diligence builds a life that results in a glorious welcome home.