2
Peter 1:10-11
(A Bible Study Led by Dr. Larry
Reynolds)
March 13, 2014
1. In
the year 1928 Alexander Fleming, a Scottish bacteriologist discovered
penicillin...penicillin, the first widely used antibiotic drug, revolutionized
the practice of medicine...when Fleming began to grasp the importance of his
discovery, he warned people against taking an underdose of the penicillin...he
said an underdose would permit germs to remain in the system allowing them to
build up an immunity to the drug...then, Fleming said that these immune germs
could be “passed on to other individuals so that the thoughtless person
playing with penicillin treatments may be responsible for the death of another
[person]...” [Echoes
of Eternity, Dennis
Kastens, CSS Publishing]...in other words, according to Alexander
Fleming, getting too little penicillin would be worse than getting none at
all...
2. When
read that couldn’t help but think that is how many people relate to
Christianity...they have some exposure to it...they have been introduced to
it...they dabble in Christianity...they play at it...and sadly, they get just
enough to make them immune from the real thing...
3. As
we continue our study of that beautiful description of the Christian life found
in 2 Peter 1, we’re going to focus on a fifth characteristic of the life to
which we are called in Christ...want direct your attention to 2 Peter
1:10-11...(text)
T.S.
- Key phrase in that passage is at end of v.10...”...for as long as you
practice these things, you will never stumble...”...for as long as
you--
--keep
doing what God called you to do...
--keep
on persevering...
--keep
on keeping on...
you
will never stumble...in the context of 2 Peter 1:10 word translated “stumble”
means more than merely a slight slip...Peter is not saying there that we will
never sin, that we will never make a mistake...that would contradict many other
things the Scripture says about our continuing need for forgiveness...the word
does not mean a slight, temporary slip...it means to fall into total ruin...and
what Peter is saying is that “...as long as you practice these things...”
you will never lose your salvation...
That
phrase reminds us that perseverance is a quality of saving faith...and faith
which does not persevere is not saving faith...an old country preacher put it
this way: “If your faith fizzles at the finish, it was faulty from the
first.”
Warren
Wiersbe puts it this way: “It is not our profession of faith that guarantees
that we are saved; it is our progression in the faith that gives us that
assurance. The person who claims to be a
child of God but whose character and conduct give no evidence of spiritual
growth is deceiving himself and heading for judgment.” [Wiersbe,
Be Alert, p.19]
2
Peter 1:10-11 tells us that we are called to a life of perseverance...and in
these verses we are told two important things about perseverance...v.10 tells
us that..
I. Perseverance
comes from looking back at what we have experienced in Christ
1. Notice
that v.10 begins with the word “Therefore...”...therefore looks
back at all we have seen so far in our study of 2 Peter 1... therefore since
we—
--have
entered a life of equal standing before God (v.1)
--are
privileged to know God in a personal, intimate way (v.2)
--share
in the power of God (v.3)
--are
recipients of the precious and magnificent promises of God (v.4)
--are
growing and maturing in our walk with God (vv.5-9)
2. “Therefore”
what?...”Therefore—
--brethren
- That’s an important word because it indicates that Peter is not questioning
their salvation...he identifies them as his brothers in Christ, as fellow
believers...
--be
all the more diligent - That phrase translates a single word...we came
across this word back in v.5 where it is translated “applying all diligence”...it
means to be eager, to be characterized by sense of urgency...
--to
make certain - To confirm or to remember or to focus on...
--His
calling and choosing of you - Refers to what God had done for them in
Christ...
Now
put that all together...”Based on all I’ve said to this point, fellow
believers, be eager to remember what God has done for you in Christ and
remembering what God has already done for you give you every reason to
persevere, to continue in the faith.”
1. There’s
a principle in this don’t want you to miss...while the focus of our lives must
be on the present and the future and not the past...while we should be looking
more forward than backward...it is helpful to us from time to time to look back
and remember what we have experienced in Christ...the blessings of the past,
the victories of the past, and the challenges of the past become the foundation
upon which we stand today...
2. And
that is what Peter is saying in v.10...looking back at what we’ve experienced
in Christ helps us to persevere...but perseverance comes not just from looking
back...v.11 tells us that...
II. Perseverance
comes from looking forward to what we will experience in Christ
1. While
v.10 looks back, v.11 looks to the future...look at what the verse says...”...for
in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.”...that statement provides a
glimpse of what awaits those believers who demonstrate the reality of their
faith by perseverance...
2. Did
you know the Bible speaks of at least two ways to enter heaven?... not two ways
to get to heaven...there is only one way to get to heaven, and this is through
faith in Jesus...the only way to be saved is by accepting into our lives His
sacrifice on our behalf...there is no other way to do it...Jesus said, “I
am the way and the truth and the life; no-one comes to the Father but through
Me.” ...in his great sermon before the Jewish High Court in Acts 4
Peter put it this way: “And there is salvation in no one else; for there
is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must
be saved.”
3. If
you are depending on anything else other than a faith relationship with Jesus
to get you to heaven, you are going to be greatly disappointed... nothing else
will do it...but while there is only one way to get there, the Bible teaches
there are at least two ways to enter...
--in
I Corinthians 3 Paul speaks of Christians who have not been productive or
fruitful in their spiritual lives...says they will enter heaven but “only
as through fire...”...that is, they will make it, but they kind of
stumble or slink across the finish line...
--but
in 2 Peter 1:11 Peter speaks of an “abundant
entrance” into the eternal kingdom...the imagery that Peter uses in
this verse would have been immediately recognizable to his readers in the 1st
century... athletic contests were very much a part of that culture...all over
Greece to this day are the ruins of ancient stadiums where the athletes
competed ...when Peter speaks of the believer’s “abundant entrance” into heaven, he used the exact phrase
used in the 1st century to describe the welcome given Olympic winners
when they returned home...
4. And
what I want you to see in all that is that while every believer will make it to
heaven, some will have a more glorious welcome that others...
--some
(those who have come to faith in Christ but who have not really been serious
about living for Him and who have let lessor priorities dominate their lives)
will make it, but the entry will not be glorious...
--others
(those who have come to faith in Christ and who have made living for Him and
serving Him their life’s priority) will experience an “abundant entrance”
into heaven like a victorious athlete being welcomed home...
5. Looking
forward to what lies before us in eternity should motivate us to a life of
perseverance, to keeping on in the faith today...
CONCLUSION
1. Chrysostom
was the patriarch of Constantinople in the fourth century. One of the stories
surrounding this faithful witness concerns the occasion when the Roman emperor
had him arrested and charged with being a Christian. If Chrysostom did not
renounce Christ, then the emperor would--
--have this Christian
leader banished from the kingdom. Chrysostom responded to the threat by saying
that the emperor could not do so, “because the whole world is my Father’s
kingdom.”
--“Then,”
replied the emperor, “I will take away your life.” To which
Chrysostom said, “You cannot, for my life is hid with Christ in God.”
--Next threatened with
the loss of his treasure, this saint replied, “You cannot, for my
treasure is in heaven where my heart is.”
--The emperor made one
last effort: “Then I will drive you away from here and you shall have no
friend left.” But again Chrysostom responded, “You cannot, for I
have one Friend from whom you can never separate me. I defy you for you can do
me no harm.”
[Like a Breath of Fresh
Air, Larry M. GoodPaster, CSS Publishing, 1992, sited in eSermons.com,
6/23/02]
2.
In ways more subtle perhaps, but no less
real, we too are often tempted to
renounce our faith, to compromise our commitments, to ignore the things we
profess to believe...in the face of such constant temptation, it is important
to remember that the life to which God calls us in Christ is a life of
perseverance, of staying with it, of keeping the faith...this part of God’s
Word teaches us that looking back to what we have experienced in Jesus and
looking forward to what we will experience in Jesus will help us to persevere
even in the face of great difficulty...
