2 Peter 1.3-4
“His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 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.”
A distinguishing characteristic of authentic Christianity is continuous growth and transformation. As the passage above says, the Lord has granted us everything we need for lifelong spiritual formation. God has saved and redeemed us through Christ, he indwells and empowers us through his Spirit, and he instructs and directs us through his word.
There are two fundamental parts of The Growth Equation:
1. What God has done and makes available to us
2. What we must do in response to what God has done.
The first part of The Growth Equation is that the Lord “has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness.” Spiritual growth and transformation only happen because of the abiding presence and power of Jesus within us.
Peter states that the purpose of spiritual growth is that we “may become partakers of the divine nature,” and “escape the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” In other words, the Lord calls us to turn away from our old nature and its sinful desires, and to walk in our new nature which is made in the image of Christ. Our old nature—and the fallen world in which we live—is corrupt. The new nature which the Lord gave us at redemption is a reflection of the character of Christ.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Corinthians 5.17)
The process of spiritual growth and personal transformation is not an event; it is the lifelong process of trusting the Lord’s promises and power, and availing ourselves of the incredible resources that we have by virtue of our relationship with Jesus.
Paul tells us in Ephesians that “We have been blessed in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,” and we have access to “the unfathomable riches of Christ.”
2 Corinthians 3.18 spells it out very clearly: “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”
Tomorrow we will consider the next passage in 2 Peter 1, where the apostle spells out part 2 of The Growth Equation: Our response to the incredible resources the Lord makes available to use.
The Lord is calling.
