Verse of the Day 4/20

Verse of the Day 4/20

 

2 Peter 1:2-3 

 May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

Confirm Your Calling and Election

³ His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to^[a] his own glory and excellence,  English Standard Version (ESV)

 

Peter, yes Peter the one who denied Jesus those three times was empowered by the Spirit  to follow Jesus closely for the next 30 years.  He  wanted to pass  that on to others that they too may truly be "Christ followers" but it was not  any power in and of ourselves and our own efforts.  It  was in the "divine power" available from only one source that would give us the grace required  that pertains to "life and godliness".

 

I've shared a definition of this grace given by John Piper many times before but it is pertinent  to these thoughts today.  "Grace is not  simply leniency when we have sinned.  Grace is the enabling gift of God not to sin.  Grace is power, not just pardon."  That  same power that was given to Peter that turned his faith around, turned  his life around is available  to us.

 

As I closed yesterday's post and thinking about how God comes down to our level to meet  us where we are, sometimes at the point  of  our failure, the Gaither Vocal Band song "He Came Down  to My Level" came  to mind.  Jesus came down  to Peter's level  all  right.  But  He didn't leave him there.  He lifted him up to show  him what "livin is."

 

If you're lookin' for contentment
In the things that you can see
You're gonna have some disappointment
So won't you listen to me, please

'Cause I know about a Savior
He came down to be a man
And when He left, He sent His Spirit
He made me everything I am

He came down to my level
When I couldn't get up to His
With a strong arm He lifted me up
To show me what livin' is                          (He Came Down to My Level – Gaither Vocal Band)

 

The picture  below is from the city of Capernaum where Peter lived and  Jesus spent much time.  Back in  Matthew 4:19 Jesus  had called  Peter and told him that  he  would make him a fisher of men."  The time  spent with Jesus in Capernaum  and elsewhere was training for  that mission. The power and grace to do it came after Jesus' death and resurrection and the power of the Holy Spirit was  given  to him.

 

 

 

Read the passage from  The Message below, may it challenge and encourage you today.

 

Blessings,

 

Mike

 

2 Peter 1:2-9The Message (MSG)

1 ^1-2 I, Simon Peter, am a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ. I write this to you whose experience with God is as life-changing as ours, all due to our God's straight dealing and the intervention of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Grace and peace to you many times over as you deepen in your experience with God and Jesus, our Master.

Don't Put It Off

^3-4 Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received! We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you—your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust.

^5-9 So don't lose a minute in building on what you've been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus. Without these qualities you can't see what's right before you, oblivious that your old sinful life has been wiped off the books.

 

 

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