The Daily Dose

Grow through

If the Lord Yahweh rescued Lot, he knows how to continually rescue the godly from their trials,  2 Peter 2:9

This passage makes me think about my own life and how God has been so faithful to rescue me throughout the course of my life!  I depend on that faithfulness to bail me out even today.  When I get into trouble whether it’s my own fault or not, if I call to Him, He comes running to rescue me.  As I look at this passage, I recognize that my troubles are so miniscule compared to Noah’s and Lot’s.  Noah was in a world of constant turmoil.  I’m sure he was always on guard against evil.  It was not so subtle as it feels like it is today.  Lot was oppressed by filthy conduct.  He was trapped.  I have often thought of Lot to be in a self-induced predicament.  However, that didn’t matter to God.  When one of His people needs help, God comes rushing in. 

God is so compassionate, He knows we are going to get ourselves into trouble from time to time, but because He wants the best for us, He always comes to get us out.  That doesn’t mean it will always look like we think it should.  Most of the time God makes a way for us to grow through our struggle so we never have to go through the same thing again.  If you find yourself going through the same struggles continually, maybe its time to step back and ask yourself how to get beyond.  Ask your Heavenly Father how to grow through the issue so you don’t have to repeat it again.  Life is a test, and if you fail your tests, you will repeat them until you pass.  It’s how we get stuck in the “ruts” in life, but praise God we don’t have to stay there.  There is a way out!

Today I want to encourage you that no matter what your trouble is, call out to your Heavenly Father!  He will rush into rescue you.  Even if you have gotten yourself into a predicament and may be deserving of the consequences, that doesn’t matter to God.  He wants the best for you and will help you through and bring you out to victory every time.  Thank Him for His faithfulness and ask Him to show you the path out of the mess you have gotten into.  Then learn from the struggle so you never have to go through it again.

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Peter 2:1-11

A more sure Word

Because of that experience, we have even greater confidence in the message proclaimed by the prophets. You must pay close attention to what they wrote, for their words are like a lamp shining in a dark place—until the Day dawns, and Christ the Morning Star shines in your hearts. 2 Peter 1:19

This is a truly amazing passage.  The apostle Peter is talking about the return of Jesus and he says, “we (the apostles) are not making up stories when we talk about the return of our Lord Jesus.”  He says “we saw Jesus glorified with our own eyes and heard the audible voice of the Father on the mount of transfiguration.” (Matthew 17, Mark 9, Luke 9)  Then Peter goes on to say that because of that experience, they have an even greater confidence in the messages written by the old testament prophets.  The original KJV translations says a “more sure word!”  He said that he heard the audible voice of God, but the prophecies written in the old testament about the return of Jesus is even more real to them because of that experience on the mount. 

How can this be?  This solidifies once again, how important it is to know the written Word of God.  Peter says that the scriptures are like a lamp shining in the dark places of your heart and life that lights up the areas of your life that need to line up with Christ Jesus.  He goes on to qualify that the scripture was not from human initiative but the prophets wrote by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit from God. 

So, what about that?  How serious are taking the Word of God that we have so available to us today?  Are you hiding it in your heart to guard against sin coming into your life?  Are you looking to it for direction for your future and your hope?  Or do we pick it up Sunday morning to take to church and then set it back down when we get home and never look at it again until next week?  James 1:25 tells us that we are to look into this perfect law of liberty daily as one who looks into a mirror and line our lives up with it.  This needs to be our goal in life!  Get a hold of God’s Word for your circumstances, believe it is true and hold to it with a thankful heart until your life situations line up with how God says it should be.  The Word works always, it is up to you to speak it!

Today I want to encourage you to first of all think about the authenticity of God’s Word, the Holy scriptures.  Consider that this is a book spoken directly to you for today from the creator of the universe and your Savior Jesus.  He wants you to know Him, He wants you to know all the good He has for you.  He has made Himself available through Jesus, His Word and talking with Him.  Now all you have to do is stop running, turn around and look at Him.  Tell Him you want to know Him and He will make Himself so real to you!

If you have never received God’s gift of Salvation through the blood and sacrifice of Jesus, do it today by simply praying this prayer:

 Pray:  God in heaven, I know I’m a sinner and I need a Savior.  I want to turn away from my sinful life to the good life You have planned for me.  Please forgive me for my sins, cleanse me from my past, and make me new.  I know your Son, Jesus died for me.  I believe in my heart that You raised Him form the dead.  At this very moment, I accept, confess and proclaim Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior . . . to be Lord of my life from this day forward.  Thank you, Jesus for Your grace that has saved me from my sin and has given me eternal life.  I now have a right relationship with God my Father. I also ask for Your Holy Spirit to guide me and to empower me to do the things that You have planned for my life in Jesus name, Amen

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Peter 1:16-21

Your call and election

For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. 2 Peter 1:12

Because faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and love supply us an abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom of God, Peter says he will always keep reminding us to keep these truths.  So as not to become unfruitful in the knowledge of Christ Jesus, do not be shortsighted or forget that we were cleansed from old sins.  We are to be more diligent to make our call and election secure.  In that way we will never stumble.  He says as long as he is here in the world, he will keep reminding the church of these things to stir them up and he has written them down so they can remember even after he is gone.

I wonder if Peter knew that he would be talking to us here today through these same words?  Yet, they are as relevant today as they were when he first said them.  This admonishing can be incorporated into our lives today and we can be assured of the same results he promised back then.  To keep these steps of faith in mind and to live your life by them will ensure that you will never stumble.  That is a great promise.  As you become more diligent each day to make your call and elections sure, remember that you are the one that does it, not God.  You secure this call by following the progression laid out in verses 5-7. 

Today I want to encourage you to consider what it means to make your call and election sure.  How can you have the assurance of your salvation and the plan that God has for you while you are here in this world?  If you do not know or are unsure of your salvation and the path God has for you, ask Him for a scripture to solidify within yourself these things.  You can also ask Him to speak something to your heart (backed by scripture) to assure you of your relationship with Him.  Make sure to write it down so you can refer back to if often. Then begin to walk out that call step by step as the Spirit of God leads you.

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Peter 1:12-15

Next steps

Also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 2 Peter 1:5-7

This scripture is a progression of steps that you grow in when you walk with God.  In today’s dose, I want to break down each step and how it builds to the next step.  As you read, consider which step you are on and what you must do to move onto the next one to grow in your walk with God. 

The passage starts out talking about faith and how to add or build on that faith.  Peter starts out this chapter by saying that he is writing to those who have obtained like precious faith.  These are believers who need instruction on how to grow in their faith walk.  He says to add virtue to your faith, but faith in God through Jesus is the first step in your walk with God.  We start our faith journey by getting into relationship with God through the sacrifice that Jesus made to reconcile us (bring us back together) to Him.

Virtue is the next step.  He says add to your faith virtue or purity.  Essentially, he is saying to separate from a sinful life style and your old way of thinking and doing things.  After you have separated from your old habits, now you are ready for your next step.

The next step is to begin to create new habits by adding knowledge to your virtue.  This knowledge is of God.  He says, now it is time to get to know God and His character of goodness and love for you.  The way to get to know God is to spend time with Him, by reading His Word and talking to him each day.  Start this new habit of setting a specific time aside each day to get to know God better.  Like all relationships you are in, it takes a commitment of time to nurture and grow it. The more time you spend with someone, the better you get to know them.

After some time of getting to know who God is and how much He loves you, the next step is self-control.  Self-control can be measured by submitting yourself to a spiritual authority or mentor. This is done by purposefully placing yourself into a body of believers that will encourage and keep you on track.  Whether it’s in a church, small group, or Bible study, we all need each other to grow through life.  If you keep yourself isolated your flame of faith will quickly be quenched when the troubles of life happen.  Ephesians 5:21 says, “submitting to one another in the fear of God.” 

Next, to your self-control add perseverance.  Perseverance is consistency.  Once you have created these habits of purity, daily personal time with God, and getting yourself submitted to spiritual authority, now comes the habit of doing it regularly.  You are not ready to go onto the next steps until you have become consistent with these first three.  It should all happen rather quickly but can also take some people longer than others to become consistent in these habits.

After you have mastered these, you’re ready to add godliness.  Ephesians 5:1 says, “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.”  God has given each of us gifts and abilities to do His work while we are here in this world.  So, to exercise godliness we need to identify the gifts He has planted inside us and begin to practice using these gifts and abilities everywhere we go.  In adding godliness to your spiritual habits, you will automatically add brotherly/sisterly kindness.  By using your gifts and abilities to bless and work together with others to accomplish God’s plan for this time, brotherly kindness is achieved.

Lastly, to brotherly kindness add love or compassion for others.  Get involved in the ministries that you can effectively use your gifts to show compassion to the hurting, lost, and dying world. This is the design God made for you while you are here in the world.

Today I want to encourage you to identify where you are in your walk and calling with God, then choose to take the next step on your faith path.  We get a very short time in this life so begin to recognize that the days here are limited and make the most of your time count for eternity.  Verse 11 says, “if you do these things you will never stumble, and an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Take some time today to identify where you fit in today’s progression and make a plan how to move on to the next step.

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Peter 1:5-11

Precious promises

by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 2 Peter 1:4

We have been given exceedingly great and precious promises!  These promises are to enable us to have a part of His divine/heavenly nature.  This is a super-natural nature, not of this world nature.  This is God’s supernatural nature that He has enabled us to take part in through our salvation in Christ Jesus.  However, the only way to take part in this divine nature is to know His great and precious promises are.

So, what are these great and precious promises that contribute to our divine, born again nature?  These promises are in your Salvation in Christ Jesus.  Any place you read in the new testament, in Him, by Him, because of Him, these are great and precious promises that God, our Heavenly Father gave to us when Jesus paid the price for our sin.  Now all who have received the gift of His salvation are partakes of these promises.  Some of these are for right now in this world and some are for after we leave this world.  However, they are all great and precious!  Below is a short list of promises God made to all those who receive Jesus as their Lord.

Promises for right now:

We are more that conquerors. (Romans 8:37) He always causes us to triumph (2 Corinthians 2:14) We receive the Holy Spirit as comforter and guide (Acts 1:8). We are adopted and have the relationship with God as sons and daughters (Romans 8:17). God hears our prayers and answers them (John 5:15). In His name we will do the miracles that Jesus did and even greater (John 14:12). He will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5) Jesus loves us in spite of our failures and sins (John 3:16). God will meet every need we have according to the extent of his riches (Philippians 4:19). As He is so are we in this world (1 John 4:17)

The promises Christ makes about the future are equally precious and great:

Eternal life (1 John 5:13). We will escape the punishment we deserve for our sins (Hebrew 2:3). Christ will return and take us to himself (1 Thessalonians 4:13). Our bodies — whether living or dead at Christ’s return — will be raised and changed. We will rule and reign with Christ in the new heavens and new earth (2 Timothy 2:12). When we see Him, we will be like Him. (1 John 3:2)

Today I want to encourage you to stop and think about these promises every time you come across one in your daily reading.  Sometimes we see scriptures like these and say “oh yes, we have great and precious promises!” but never consider what these precious promises are.  I’m going to start by making a list and every time I see in Christ Jesus, I will write the promise on the list and review it often.  Consider doing this too.  Start taking part in your divine nature.

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Peter 1:1-4

Life and Godliness

“as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,” 2 Peter 1:3

This is a wonderful promise from God … His divine power has given to us all things that we need for this life to live godly.  Is it possible for us to live like God lives, here on earth?  I mean this sure isn’t heaven, but notice the scripture says He has already given it to us.  So why don’t we see more of heaven in our everyday lives?  Living by the principles and spiritual laws that God has already given to us in His Word are the same principles that are in heaven.  Therefore, by learning His ways that He laid out in His Word we can begin to live our lives like heaven on earth.  We can actually bring heaven to earth by conducting our lives according to God’s ways of existence.  Things such as loving one another, loving your enemies, not taking offense, tithing and sowing, following the leading of His Holy Spirit. . .

This verse goes on to say that He has (already) given these things to us through the knowledge of Him.  How do we get knowledge of Him?  We talked yesterday about growing in the knowledge of God by talking to Him.  Making God’s Word and spending time with Him personally should be our top priority every day.  This is not an automatic thing.  Just because it says in God’s Word His divine power has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness doesn’t mean we automatically have these things.   The things He has given us are there, but they are received through growing in the knowledge of Him and His Word.  Much like the Lord gives us direction on receiving His salvation, He also gives us knowledge and direction on how to live the God kind of life.  The answers are through revelation in His Word and knowing Him better each day!

Lastly, this scripture says He has called all of us by glory and virtue.  God is always calling to us.  He is calling us to come and spend time with Him.  He is calling us to show us our path of life.  He is calling us to get to know Him better, and He is calling us to all the good and wonderful things He has planned for us.  The question is are we listening to His call?  Do we have a sincere desire to know God and all the plans He has for us? Do we truly want all that our Heavenly Father has for us or have we settled for what the world has to offer?

Today I encourage you to seek God first in every area of your life and then do it again tomorrow.  Seeking His ways will always lead to success.  He is not calling to you to control you, but rather to get you on the path where He can pour out all His blessing on you.  He can see the whole picture of your entire life and He knows how to get you to where all His goodness is!

Today’s scripture reading:  2 Peter 1:1-4

Multiplication

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 2 Peter 1:2

Multiplied?  I love this!  Peter starts his letter with a multiplication of grace and peace to the reader.  He says “grace and peace can be multiplied to you as you grow in the knowledge of God and Christ Jesus.”  So it is possible to have a multiplied amount of grace and peace in life.  Sounds pretty good to me, but how?  The answer is in getting to know your Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus more each day. 

So how do I get to know Him better and does He want me to know more about Him? The answer is yes, He wants you to learn as much about Him as your possibly can. That is why He has made so many avenues available to you.  You can read books about God and creation.  You can go to church and hear sermons about God and learn so much about Him and His Son, but the best way to get to know the Father, Son and Spirit is to spend time talking to Him.  I’m not just talking about your request and concerns in life, I’m talking about every aspect of life.  Talk over every area of your life with God.  Have a running conversation with Him throughout every day.  Learn to listen and hear the direction that His Spirit is speaking on the inside of you and be quick to respond when you do hear.

Today I want to encourage you to set aside special time to talk and listen to God today.  Recognize that the time you spend totally dedicated to Him is the most precious time of the day.  Then go ahead and take Him with you all day long by talking to Him often.  Respond in a way that you know would bring honor and glory to Him and listen to all the things He wants to speak to your heart. Soon you will see grace and peace being multiplied in all areas of you life and it will be good!

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Peter 1-4

Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: 2 Peter 1:1

I want to go verse by verse in this second chapter of Peter because there is so much packed into each verse.  Peter is writing again to the persecuted church that has gone into hiding to try to outlive the persecution.  It seems like there may have also be some disputing and disagreements in the group because he encourages them to consider their like precious faith.  He wants them to remember their purpose and mission for coming together.

So, he starts the letter reminding them that he is God’s servant and apostle.  That he walked with Jesus while he was on the earth and serve Him and learned from Him.  Then he says he is writing to those who have received the same faith that he has and that they have with each other.  He qualifies that this is precious and valuable.  It is the most valuable thing in the world and that any person can possess.  Lastly that they have obtained this faith through accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior and gaining a right relationship with God their Heavenly Father.

How does this apply to us today?  Let’s start by recognizing that we are in the same situation as these new testament believers and Peter’s letter is to us also.  Given by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, we know that it was intended to build up the church throughout the entire church age.  Therefore, we can identify with the Christians of Peters time and turn our attention to our like precious faith.  Have any of us face persecution?  Sure!  Maybe not to the degree that these new testament saints faced, but it is always out there on some level.  Do we suffer from disagreements and disputing’s among each other within the church body?  Most definitely!  That is more evident and widely know through denominations and doctrinal arguments.  Peter gives us the solution to all of these.  It is to focus and keep our attention on our like precious faith.  The most important thing is our faith in Christ Jesus and our salvation through His blood.  If we as believers would come together in agreement on this one thing, we could change not only our own personal issues, we could change the world!  When you meet and talk with other believers, let the conversation be about what you agree on and not what you don’t.

Today I want to encourage you to take a few minutes to think about and focus on our like precious faith!  Consider the value and connection we have with each other through it.  No matter what differences we have whether cultural, social or racial, our faith crosses all boundaries and bridges every gap.  Then think about one person you can share this like precious faith with this week.  Someone far from God that doesn’t have the hope for their future in eternity.  Pray for them and plant the seed of salvation in their heart through sharing the love of God with them.  In doing this, we can change the world one life at a time!

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Peter 1:1-4

Let them know

I have written and sent this short letter to you with the help of Silas, whom I commend to you as a faithful brother. My purpose in writing is to encourage you and assure you that what you are experiencing is truly part of God’s grace for you. Stand firm in this grace. 1 Peter 5:12

Peter is signing off in his letter by letting the readers know of his confidence in Silas.  He says I commend/compliment Silas for being a faithful/trustworthy brother.  He is letting the receivers of the letter know that he trusts Silas to deliver this important message to them.  He is also letting them know the purpose for sending the message.  To encourage them and build their confidence in God’s grace. 

Usually we read over the end of these new testament letter quickly without considering just how important the farewell was then and still is today.  These letters were secretly hand delivered and if the carrier was caught, at minimum, the letter would have been confiscated and probably destroyed.  You can see how important it was in that day to encourage the saints, but what about for us.  If these letters would not have gotten through, we wouldn’t have the new testament that we have now.  Wow, I can’t even imagine that. 

Peter’s expression of his confidence in Silas is a great tribute.  It not only let Silas know that Peter trusted him to get the message through, it also gave him the determination to deliver the letter safely.  The point is, we should do this as well.  Not only should we be encouraging other in the faith walk, we should let them know when they are doing things right.  Express to you brothers and sisters in Christ how much you appreciate them.  Tell them of your confidence in them to overcome and motivate them by thanking them for their faithfulness and consistency.  Nothing motivates a person quicker than letting them know they are appreciated.  Your expressions of kindness could be the words that pulled them from the edge of destruction or motivated them to more forward in their calling.

Today I want to encourage you to promote, build up and motivate other believers.  Whenever you have a thought of someone, send them a message or call them and tell them the good things you are thinking about them.  Send a card or letter to let them know you are praying for them. Don’t dismiss those ideas and thoughts you have for others, share them.  These thoughts are what makes a difference in their lives.  Become the person that others look to for inspiration that produces action!

Today’s scripture reading: 1 Peter 5:12-13

Humility

Likewise, you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”              1 peter 5:5

Respect your elders?  It used to be the norm.  Now, not so much.  What about being submissive/respectful to one another?  What does it mean to be clothed with humility?  So, in combining these three ideas we clearly see that respect, submission and humility are a choice.  In fact, Peter says to “clothe” yourself with humility.  What’s up with that?  It sounds like we are to put it on like a jacket or a pair of shoes.  Yes!  In much the same way that we would go to the closet and choose a jacket to wear or the appropriate shoes for the circumstances, we are to choose submission and humility.  Because, let’s face it, these are not natural responses nor are they automatic.  However, if you plan ahead of time and choose that today, I am going to respect others and submit to others with humility.  I’m not going to insist on my own rights or being right, because in most cases, it just doesn’t matter.  The most important thing is that you are drawing others closer to the one who will save their soul.

So, let’s go through this in a practical sense for a minute.  What does submitting yourself to your elders, one another and putting on humility even look like?  First of all, your elders are people who are older than you or in authority over you.  People like your parents, other family members like grandparents or aunts and uncles.  Could be a teacher or just people you sit next to in church or at work.  Wherever you are, you will probably come into contact with your “elders”.  So how do you show respect and submit to them?   You can open a door, give them a chair you are setting in or go and get a chair to offer to them if that is the situation you are in.  You can smile when you speak to them and don’t sass or belittle.  Basically, you give them preference and do your best to honor them.  If they offer you wisdom, you listen and respectfully say “thank you”.  It’s not hard, but it does take effort.  As for one another, you can do the same things.  You prefer them above yourself.  This is not to let people walk over you, although it may happen, but mostly it is recognized as an admirable quality that people take note of.  It is giving honor to all whether it is due or not.  Humility is a quality that you choose to be not dependent on others, but simply because you chose to be that way.

Now we get to talk about how God fits into all this.  Humility is a quality that attracts God to you and that should be the greatest reason of all to put it on.  Humility draws God’s grace to you and it becomes evident in all you do.  In contrast, pride is in direct resister to God.  You cannot be close to God and be proud about it.  Pride is something that pushes God far from you.  It is not God’s desire.  He wants to be close to you, but pride is sin and cannot get anywhere near Him.

Today I want to encourage you to put on humility.  If you feel you are a humble person already, ask God if you have allowed pride to sneak into any area of your life and to reveal it to you.  Pride is sneaky and many times disguise itself as criticizing, condemning and complaining.  Those three actions are probably the easiest way to identify pride.  So, take inventory of your attitudes today and purge pride far from you because, it’s better to humble yourself, than be humiliated!

Today’s scripture reading: 1 Peter 5:5-11