Tuesday, February 10, 2015

I trust you read and meditated on 2nd Peter 1:5-11 and compared it to Galatians 5:22-23 as I suggested in our last visit. Do this periodically while we study the qualities Peter encourages us to cultivate. Faith is clearly the first quality, and this is not surprising. Hebrews 4:2 warns us, “The message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith.” Also, in Hebrews 11:6, “without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Maintaining a healthy faith requires the faithful input of God’s Word. Romans 10:17 explains that “faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” The more you know about Jesus Christ and what He taught the stronger your faith will become. As your faith grows you’ll be able to add to it goodness, the next quality listed in these verses. Notice, this is the same word used in verse 3 describing how Christians were called to trust in Christ. His glory and goodness attract us to Him. I believe the goodness we are to add to our faith should reflect the goodness of Jesus Christ. The more you know about how Christ lived, how He responded to people, how He reached out to people to help and heal them, the better you’ll understand how to add goodness to your faith. This is what the best-selling book, In His Steps, emphasized: when faced with a decision, ask yourself, “What would Jesus do?” Then do it by faith.