Fruitful Growth In Faith

In 2 Peter chapter 1, Peter wrote by THE SPIRIT:

5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,

6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,

7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.

8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.

10 Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble;

11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

THE SPIRIT makes a very clear statement about our fruitfulness, “For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ”.  As we pursue these fruit we can be assured of an increase in the knowledge of Our Lord Jesus Christ.  As we pursue a walk in these fruit we can expect our eyes to be opened to a greater degree which will allow us to see Truth and reality in the same manner as Jesus.  On the flip side, if we don’t pursue these fruit then we become subject to blindness.  Therefore “be diligent” we are told!

When we let our guard down and become slack in studying and recalling these fundamental promises, we expose ourselves to becoming lukewarm and are subject to stumbling.  Then we wake up one morning and ask ourselves how this happened.  We have let the cares of the world come in and attack the Word in us without hardly realizing what happened.  We become accustomed to coasting through life when instead we ought to be diligent concerning protecting the Word in us.  It us up to each of us to keep ourselves fit in the Word, exercising the Word in our lives on a daily basis.

Brotherly kindness requires action toward others.  One way you can keep fruitful in this area is to purpose to do something everyday for someone else beyond your family.  We are to add virtue or “moral excellence” to our faith.  When we do we have a purity of faith which is above reproach.  This serves two purposes- one is to expose our purity; the other is to expose impurities of those witness our virtue. 

Knowledge is obtained by the written Word, The Holy Spirit, Jesus, and FATHER’S Voice.  Once we receive knowledge we must be cautious about how we apply it to ourselves and others.  This is why we must seek wisdom and understanding as well.  These attributes promote self-control so that we are not offensive toward our brothers and sisters when we share newly acquired knowledge.  Perseverance is steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.  This fruit goes hand in hand with faith and patience.  As we take on these fruits our faith increases and we will not stumble as we enter into the everlasting Kingdom.

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