…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. II Peter 1:4
When we become Christians, we do not automatically get a problem free
life. We still experience trials and
hardships, but we have the blessed promises of our Lord and Savior to get us
through these trials…and temptations as well.
For by these He has granted to us His precious and
magnificent promises… 4a
The power of a promise is based in the ability of the person giving it.
We fail to realize that God can and will keep His promises. God has not only
given us all that we need for life and godliness, but He has also given us His
Word to enable us to develop this life and godliness. These promises are magnificent because they
come from a great God and they lead to a great life. If you believe one promise
from God’s Word, why would you not believe another? The same God stands behind them all!
The word for “given” actually translates “to be endowed” or “to be
bestowed upon” - to increase the value of what is given. These promises are precious because their
value is beyond calculation. If we
lost the Word of God, there would be no way to replace it. Peter must have
liked the word precious, for he wrote about the “precious faith” (2 Peter 1:1;
cf. 1 Peter 1:7), the “precious promises” (2 Peter 1:4), the “precious blood”
(1 Peter 1:19), the precious stone (1 Peter 2:4, 6), and the precious Savior (1
Peter 2:7).
Every promise that we have was
given to the Son. What are some of
the promises we can claim?
·
Eternal life
·
His presence
·
Comfort in trial
·
Power to share
·
Victory over Satan
·
Ability to Love
These are to be lived in!
His Divine Nature - so that by them you may become partakers of the divine
nature… v.4b
·
“partakers”
is literally to “become partners”.
·
“share”
in 1 Peter 4:13 (share
in His suffering) and “partaker of the
glory to be revealed” in 1 Peter 5:1 are from the same word
koinōnoi (“partners” or “sharers”).
·
“Divine”
is theias, also used in 2 Peter 1:3.
Believers are a “new creation.” Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature;
the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 2 Corinthians 5:17
When the new nature of Christ becomes the new nature of a man, it is not
NATURAL for that man to walk in sin. We
are empowered to be better than we are!!
We are partakers:
·
Of His grace - Phil 1:7
·
Of the inheritance - Col. 1:12
·
Of the heavenly calling - Heb. 3:1
·
Of Christ - Heb. 3:14
·
Of His holiness - Heb. 12:10
·
Of His Glory - I Pet. 5:1
Power over sin - having escaped
the corruption that is in the because of sinful desire. v.4c
By the same action of this divine power, we can escape the corruption
that is in the world through sinful desire; for the divine power delivers us
from it. When we do not yield to it,
but we are occupied in the divine nature, the power of sin is destroyed and
Christ is Lord. It is a real deliverance; we have the mastery over
ourselves in this respect; we are set free from sin. Our sinful nature will lust after the old
sins. Godly living is the result of cultivating the Divine nature within
us.
We have been delivered to serve!
WE HAVE EVERY PROVISION TO BE THAT
SPECIAL PERSON GOD DESIRES FOR US TO BE.
THE ONLY THING THAT KEEPS US FROM EXPERIENCING ALL THAT WE ARE IS OUR
FAILURE TO DRAW FROM THIS WELL OF
GOD'S GIFTS. DO YOU UNDERSTAND WHO YOU
ARE?
Scripture to Claim:
We
should live decently, as people who live in the light of day. Wild parties,
drunkenness, sexual immorality, promiscuity, rivalry, and jealousy cannot be
part of our lives. Instead, live like the Lord Jesus Christ did, and forget
about satisfying the desires of your sinful nature. Romans 13:13-14
