Partakers of the Divine Nature_Part One

The speaker is discussing the topic of becoming partakers of the divine nature based on the book of 2 Peter. They emphasize the importance of obtaining the same faith as the apostles and the role of Jesus Christ as God and Savior. The speaker also mentions the need for knowledge of God and Jesus, as well as the importance of grace and peace. They explain that through God's divine power, believers are given all they need for life and godliness. The speaker then talks about the process of escaping corruption and becoming partakers of the divine nature. They mention the building blocks of faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, endurance, godliness, brotherly love, and the love of God. Finally, the speaker emphasizes the need for diligence and the importance of faith as the foundation for adding these qualities. Happy Sabbath, everybody. It's wonderful to be with you again. And as Steve mentioned, we're going to study this topic of partakers of the divine nature. And it was so interesting that in the opening prayer that this very thing was mentioned to be transformed into the very image of God, because that's what this is. And we're going to start, this is all based on 2 Peter. I'm sure you're familiar with this passage, 2 Peter 1. And that's where we're going to begin studying this topic. 2 Peter 1.1, and this is so important because it is so, so deep. It really comes to the whole point of our lives. The whole reason for our existence right now is to be able to become partakers of the divine nature, because that's the promise. We're going to read about it here in 2 Peter 1. And it is so, so interesting that was mentioned already in the opening prayer. And so many things that we're going to talk about today and also in the opening comments before we began today. But it says here in 2 Peter, let's get started. In verse 1, it says, Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained the same precious faith as ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. And we're going to be, this is the introduction to this epistle, but it really is telling us who's speaking, obviously it's Peter, the apostle Peter. And he says he calls himself a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ because he served Jesus Christ and he was sent one by Jesus Christ. And he's telling us who he's speaking to. He says to those who have obtained the same precious faith as ours. He's talking about himself and all the other apostles. And we have, you and I, brethren, have obtained the same precious faith as those who were walking around there with Jesus Christ. We have obtained the same precious faith. So he's talking to us. And then he goes on to explain how, that is, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. There's so much in here that is telling us that it is the righteousness, that's the only way to obtain this faith, is by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. And he's declaring Jesus Christ to be God himself. We know there's God the Father and there's Jesus Christ. And they are both God. And that's what he says, that's what he's declaring here. He is our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Because he was the God of the Old Testament. He's the one that spoke with Moses. He's the one, obviously he was relaying the words of God the Father as well, because they are one in spirit, one in purpose. But he is also God. And he is the Savior. And that's what Jesus means, the eternal saves. That's what he means. And it's amazing because all of these words are for us. And just as we read these first verses before we get to the ones where we're really going to get deep into it, into the words of all these things, what it is to be partakers of the divine nature and the things that we need to be doing right now, it's just to remind us that these things were written to us. They were written to you and to me personally. And that's how we have to take these. Because we have received the same precious faith as the apostles. That's what he says, as ours. That's what he's referring to, those who are servants and also to those who were apostles of Jesus Christ. And obviously to be an apostle means he was sent directly. They saw him. They were with him. And this is not only whom he's talking to, but how. And how we have obtained that same precious faith is by the righteousness of Jesus Christ, by his precious blood. Because nothing else would do except the blood of him who was eternal, who gave up his divinity to come and live and not only die for us, but set an example of life. And we're going to see as we study these things that Jesus Christ is the perfect example of all of this. And then after explaining to whom he's talking and how is it that we have obtained that same precious faith, then he says in verse 2, grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. And that is so important because it's not just the knowledge about God. It's not just about what he says. It's the knowledge of them. And here it's interesting, it's almost contrasting with verse 1 because it says in the knowledge of God, referring to God the Father, and it says and of Jesus our Lord. When obviously in verse 1 he also called Jesus Christ our Savior God himself also because he was God in the flesh and he is part of that God family. Because this all ties together with being partakers of the divine nature. We understand, we know and understand the plan of God the Father and Jesus Christ, but here we're going to get a little bit more into the fine details that are here in 2 Peter about this process of becoming partakers of the divine nature and what we need to be doing right now. But here he's saying that he's praying, he's telling us that grace and peace be multiplied to us. That's what he's wishing for us, that the grace and the peace be multiplied to us in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. Because it's in that knowledge and we can see a couple of different ways. One way is that we can see that grace and that peace when we know them and also that we can have grace and peace in that process of getting to know them. Not only as we know them, but also in the process of getting to know them. We get great peace, we get cover, we have that favor. We have that favor from God. It's like when the king extended grace to somebody that presented himself unannounced, right, that was not allowed to do before certain kings or pharaoh. But that grace is when that king extends that grace, but God does that with us. God says, come, I welcome you. And that grace, that favor, that relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ and that peace that we can have knowing that our sins are covered by his blood, by his righteousness. Because it's not only his life, it's not only that he gave his life, it's also his example. And that righteousness, and that gives us great peace and grace. And that they be multiplied, this is exponential, that they would be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus the Lord. Because when we start to really get to know God, to really get to know God the Father and Jesus Christ really in depth and have a close relationship with them, we are full of grace. They fill us with grace and with peace. And these things multiply because as you see things more, it's almost like it expands. And it's not linear, it's not one plus one, it becomes two by four by eight by sixteen. And it just compounds this grace and this peace. And that's what he's wishing for us here, that this grace and this peace be multiplied to all of us who have obtained that precious faith. All of us, the same precious faith as them, as the apostles. And then he tells us in verse three, according to his divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. So this is part of his grace. Because his divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. And those are the two most important things. When we think about it, it's all about life and godliness. And what did Jesus say? Those that I speak to you, they are spirit and they are life. And godliness is exactly this transformation that we heard about in the opening prayer, that it's being transformed into the very image of Jesus Christ. Having the nature of God the Father and Jesus Christ, that's godliness. That's why God is the very first part of that word, godliness. And we're going to talk about it later because that's one of the things that we have to add. And it's so interesting because two of them are already here. Two of the things that we're going to talk about becoming partakers of this divine nature are faith and godliness. We already read something about those two things here. So his divine power has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness. He has given us everything that we need to know related to those two things. But how? It's through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and virtue. This is a relationship thing. This is not head knowledge. This is not just understanding on our own. This is not about how much we study only because there has to be a purpose. The purpose of study is to really get to know God the Father, to get to know Jesus Christ. And that's what it is. Through the knowledge of him, this is talking about God the Father, him who called us by his own glory and virtue because Jesus said, no one can come to me unless the Father calls him or draws him. And that's what it is. The one who called us was God the Father. And then he explains how he called us, by his own glory and virtue. And because we were called for his glory, we were called to be sons and daughters in his kingdom. That's what we were called to be, by his own glory. And we were also called by his virtue. That's another thing that we're also going to read. So you see, everything relates in what Peter is talking about. And he is explaining a little bit of these things right at the beginning because virtue is another thing that we have to add. So we're going to talk about what that is. But in here, it says that he called us by his own glory and virtue, and that virtue expresses his goodwill, his desire. His desire has been to call you and me. His desire is that we become his children in his kingdom. That we become like Jesus Christ. And he has called us by his own glory and for his own glory. He has called us that way because he said that he will glorify himself and his people. He said that even in the Old Testament with Israel. That's what he said about Pharaoh, he said that he was going to be glorified also through Israel. And now he's going to be glorified through his children. That's why he called us by his own glory and virtue, his desire for us to be part of his family. And it keeps expanding on these things. In verse 4 it says, Through which he has given to us the greatest and most precious promises, through his own glory, through his own virtue, he has given to us the greatest and most precious promises. Because there is nothing greater than these promises. The promise to become God. A son or a daughter of God. Obviously not God as the head, as God the Father and Jesus Christ, that will always be superior. That will always have the preeminence. So we will be like them. We will have the same nature. That's what he's going to mention here. Because he has given us these promises, these precious promises, that through these promises it says you may become partakers of the divine nature. Having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And that's the process that we're in. We are in the process of becoming partakers of the divine nature. Because though we will not have the glory in this body, we will not have the incorruption in this corruptible body, but we can have a certain measure of that because we do have the Holy Spirit and we have to be becoming partakers of the divine nature. That's the process that we're in. And then he says having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust, because that's what God does when he calls us, he makes us see the corruption in the world that we were living in, in our own bodies, not just in the world. But he wants us to escape that. And through these great and most precious promises, then we may become partakers of the divine nature. But the very first step is exactly this. It's escape the corruption that is in the world through lust. And sometimes it's harder to do than others. Because God has taken us out of this corruption, taken us out of this lust. We still have to live in the middle of the world, but he doesn't want us to have these things. He doesn't want us to have this corruption through the lust. And that's why we're always fighting against that. But he also wants to take... It's an escape, but also he wants to take that out of us. He wants to change our nature, the way that we think, the way that we operate, the way that we do things. Because he wants us to be partakers of the divine nature. And in order to do that, we have to do some things. And he's going to tell us what we have to do. But it is amazing all of the things that this encompasses. Because Peter covers everything. He covers who he's talking to, that it is us, that we have these precious promises, that we have obtained the same precious faith as the apostles themselves. That he has been through the righteousness of God. That all of these things are in the context of knowing God the Father and Jesus Christ. And that is how we know the things that pertain to life and Godliness. Basically, our purpose in life is through the knowledge of Him. It has to be in the context of relationship. That's what it has to be. So all of this is the backdrop for what he's going to say next. And yes, there are things that we have to do because we have to cooperate. But it really is by the own glory of God and by His virtue. And through the knowledge of them both. So that we can really become partakers of the divine nature. And that process has already started. Because when God is changing our hearts and our minds, and He's inscribing His laws and commandments in our hearts and in our minds, that's part of the divine nature. That's how the divine think. That's how they view things. That's how they process things. That's how they do things according to their own laws and commandments. Their own righteousness. That's what we saw. The righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ. And because of all of these things, because of all of these promises, because of this precious faith, because of this knowledge of God and Jesus Christ, because of all of these things that He has given us that pertain to life and godliness, for this very reason also, that's what it says in verse 5, for this very reason also, for all of these verses that we read, having applied all diligence besides, add to your faith virtue. And to virtue, knowledge. And to knowledge, self-control. And to self-control, endurance. And to endurance, godliness. And to godliness, brotherly love. And to brotherly love, the love of God. For if these things exist and abound in you, they will cause you to be neither lacking effort nor lacking fruit in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. There it is again. There it is again. That's the purpose. The effort and the fruit is in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because Jesus Himself said in John 15 that He would dwell in us. But how can He dwell in us if we do not really love Him? But if we really love Him, if we really know Him, if He's dwelling in us, which He is, then we're not going to lack effort or fruit if we're doing all these things. So we're going to focus our study of these particulars of the divine nature in these things that we just read. In verses 5 and 6 and 7. Because these are absolutely fundamental to becoming partakers of the divine nature. These are the building blocks of the divine nature. These are the building blocks of the things that we need to do in order to inherit that divine nature, to have that. But it has to be developed because our hearts and our minds, that is going to be in the spiritual body. The rest of the body is not. And I'm not speaking in physical terms. I'm speaking in spiritual terms. But what we have to do, let's study now again. I just wanted to read to give us all the full picture of what the Apostle Peter is saying here. But now we're going to go one by one of these things and study what are these things? And how do we add one to the other so that we may not be lacking effort nor lacking fruit? Because sometimes if we're not even aware of these things, we may be lacking fruit. Maybe not because of lack of effort, but we're not directed. We don't have a clear path of what are the things that we need to be looking at and doing directly or focusing on. Asking God to work these things in us and to show us these things. Or sometimes we will lack effort because we can get discouraged because we don't know exactly what we're aiming for. That's why these things have to exist and abound in us so that we don't lack effort and we do not lack fruit. We have to be focused. We have to be diligent. That's why the very first thing that he says, having applied all diligence besides. And it is hard to be diligent. It is very hard because diligence implies consistency. It implies effort. It implies action, purposeful action from us. And obviously this is a cooperation because we are the workmanship of God. We are the product. We're not striving to create anything. God is creating the image of his own son, Jesus Christ in us, but we have to cooperate. And this is how this cooperation looks like. And he starts with diligence. He starts with that diligence to not let go, to keep going. To have that effort to keep going. To have that diligence. To add these things to another. And the very first thing it says, add to your faith virtue. And it's interesting because he's giving faith as the first thing, but as a given. He doesn't say obtain faith because he already said that. In verse one he says, to those who have obtained the same precious faith as ours. We have obtained the same faith. We have obtained the same faith. So it's a given. That's why we're here. That's why we're right now studying these things together. Because we have obtained the same precious faith as the apostles themselves. We have obtained that faith. And then we have to add to that faith virtue. But let's study a little bit about faith. Of what faith really is. Because that is the foundation. This whole thing that we're going to be adding one thing to another as the apostle Peter instructs us. We start with faith. It's built on that foundation of faith. And faith is something, it means belief. Right? That's what it means. It means to believe. And to believe by doing. Because that's how we really show that we believe. Is by actually taking action. But the faith is the very first thing that we have to have. So before we add the virtue and talk about virtue and what that is. Let's talk a little bit about faith and what that is. Let's go to Habakkuk 2. Habakkuk 2. And verse 4. Because we know what faith is. And we're going to go to the actual definition in Hebrews 11. As we all know that's where it is. But first we just want to see what it says in Habakkuk 2. 4. And he gives a contrast here. It says, behold his soul is puffed up. The ones that are, you know, self-exalted. It says his soul is puffed up and is not upright. But the just shall live by faith. So the wicked one, that's what he's talking about in the verses before. The wicked one, his soul is puffed up and is not upright. But the just shall live by his faith. So he's telling us that the faith is something to live by. That's what we have to do. Because faith is belief. And if we believe those things, then we're going to do them. And that means living. We're going to live those things. And God is writing his commandments and his laws in our hearts and in our minds. So that we may live by them. That we may live by that faith, by that belief, by that conviction. Let's go, like I said, to Hebrews 11 and verse 1. And this is obviously a memory scripture. But this is very important to remember what is faith. Because if we're going to add virtue and knowledge and all the other things, first we have to start with faith. What is faith? What is it that we're adding to? And how do these other things come together with faith? But God has already given us that precious faith as we read. And it's by the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It's not our righteousness. But they have given us that. Now it says, faith is the substance of things hoped for. And the conviction of things not seen. And this is very important because the substance of things hoped for is faith. But they're not here yet. That's the whole reason that it's faith. It says, and a conviction of things not seen. Do you believe the things though you have not seen them? Do you believe in God though you have not seen him? Because it's invisible. We can't see God. We can't see Jesus Christ. But we believe in them through their word. We believe that they have called us. We believe that they have done all the things that they have done in our life so far and that they'll continue to do. But in order to add to our faith virtue and knowledge and self-control and all the other things, we have to start with faith and understand that at the end of the day, there is nothing below faith. It really is. It really stands on its own. If somebody comes and asks you to prove that God exists, you can give all kinds of proof. You can give all kinds of proof, but as far as showing them so they can see, you cannot do that. It's faith and faith alone. As far as, for example, the kingdom of God, we're hoping for the kingdom of God and the substance is that faith. That's the substance of things hoped for. It's our belief that the kingdom of God exists and it will come to the earth. That Jesus Christ will come to the earth to establish the kingdom of God and later with the new heavens and the new earth, God the Father will also be on that new Jerusalem. But the substance of all of that, the substance of the kingdom of God, we cannot show it to anybody. But it's because we believe it by faith, because we believe what is written and we believe he who inspired that. And we have the conviction of things not seen. We know that God exists and not only that, we believe not only that he exists, but that he lives in us, that he dwells in us through his Holy Spirit as he promised that he would. And that's that conviction of things not seen. It has to be rooted and grounded in the faith, which is belief. Verse 2, for by this kind of faith, the elders obtained a good report. By this kind of faith, the one that believed everything. Verse 3, by faith we understand that the world's worth created by the word of God, the world's. What is he talking about? What is it plural? Well, it's because there's the spiritual world and the physical world and we understand that. We understand that because we believe, because we cannot see the spiritual realm. And we were talking at the beginning of the meeting today a little bit about the spiritual realm. We were talking at the beginning of the meeting today a little bit about that, talking about the things that Satan wants to do in the spirit world. And we were talking about that. We were talking about how, you know, the spirit world is more real than the physical world, because it says that the world is this. So we're created by the spiritual. It says here, so that the things that are seen, meaning physical, were made from the things that are invisible, meaning spiritual. And we know that. We believe that. But there's people that don't believe that. There's a lot of people that believe that physical came from physical. Why? Because you can't see spiritual, because you can't prove spiritual. It's a matter of faith. It's a matter of belief. So the world, even the spiritual world was created by the word of God. That's what it says. All the angels were created by the word of God. The spirit world and the physical world, so that the things that are seen were made from things that are invisible. We don't rely on science alone. If we can prove some things through science, that's fine. But our faith is the foundation. We can prove some things through science. There's evidence for the things that God has made. The things that God has made, and we know as it says in Romans, like all the things that declare the glory of God and his perfection and his beauty and his wonderful mind. But we don't believe that because science has shown us how impossible it would be if something in nature was just a little bit off. That's not why we believe. We believe because God said it and because he wrote it in his word. Those things are wonderful because they corroborate what we believe, because they prove what we believe, but we already believed it. That's faith. And that's what we have to have. We have to have that full conviction that God, that not only that God exists, that's what it says here in verse 6, right? It says, now without faith, it is impossible to please God. Impossible. Impossible. We cannot be partakers of the divine nature unless we have faith. That's why we add to our faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, etc. But like, we cannot add anything if we do not have faith. We cannot please God. We cannot believe in God. Because all the things that we read in verses 1 through 4 and 2 Peter 1, like they don't work without faith. They don't work without believing God. They don't work without believing in them. Everything that he's talking about is through them, by them, and really aiming at the knowledge of them. That's the ultimate goal. Without faith, it's impossible to please God. For it is mandatory. There's no alternative. It's mandatory for the one who comes to God to believe that he exists. If it's doubting, if it's like, no, that's not going to cut it with God. We have to be absolutely convinced, not only that he exists, but also that he is a rewarder of those who, again, diligently seek him. Same word, same diligent word that we read in 2 Peter. Having applied all diligence besides. Because we have to diligently seek him every day. Every day. Like Daniel, he used to pray in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening. He used to pray in the morning, in the afternoon, at night. Is that diligently seeking God? Because to be partakers of the divine nature, we have to know and understand God and be taught by God and be in this path and be focused so that we don't lack effort or fruit. And the very first thing is to remember what we really believe and believe it with all our heart in everything we do. That's life-changing, completely. Because we believe there is a God that is watching us. Not the Father and Jesus Christ. We believe that they dwell in us. We believe that they want the best for us. And he's not a mean God as other religions have painted him. That he's just watching to see when we mess up just to punish us. That's not the God we serve. It's a love full of grace and peace as we read. That's the God we serve. And that's the faith that we have. Not only that he exists, but he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. Notice he doesn't say those who seek his kingdom, those who seek his glory. Those who seek the wonderful promises that he has for us. Those are amazing. But apart from him, there's nothing. We have to seek him. Because we love him. Apart from anything else. Let's go to Hebrews 12 to the next chapter. Hebrews 12. In verse 1 he says, therefore, since we are surrounded by such a throng of witnesses, and he's talking about all the people that show their faith, they live by their faith. They demonstrated what faith is through what they did. Let us lay aside every way. Every way because some of the biggest ways are unbelief. We need to set aside those ways and the sin that so easily entraps us because we do. We do sin. Now we're forgiven when we repent because we have that grace and we have that covenant with God. But the sin still easily entraps us. That's what Paul wrote here and it says, and let us run the race set before us with endurance, which is another thing that we're going to talk about later. It's something that we're going to need to add along the way as well. But he says, having our minds fixed on Jesus, the beginner and finisher of our faith. See, it all connects. It comes back full circle around. That it all is about the knowledge of God, knowing God the Father and knowing Jesus Christ. But in order to know him, to know them, we need to have our minds fixed on Jesus. Because he is the beginner and the finisher of our faith. Because he is the beginner and finisher of our faith. How is he the beginner of our faith? He was the lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Without that, there can be no faith. There can be no hope for humanity. Because God knew that there was that possibility that sin was going to easily entrap Adam and Eve. And he did. But Jesus, the lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world, is the beginner of our faith. And he's also the finisher, because who is the one that's going to raise us on the last day? He said, I will raise him on the last day. What? The one who what? Believes in me. The one who believes in me. Why? Because that's faith. Because that is the cornerstone. That's why faith has to be on the rock. It has to be on Jesus Christ, because Jesus Christ was that rock. He is the beginner and finisher of our faith. Who for the joy that lay ahead of him endured the cross. Although he despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Another thing that we believe, because it's written. That he has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. And what does it say in Psalm 110? Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies at your footstool. That has not happened yet. So we believe in the coming kingdom of God. We believe in God the Father. We believe in Jesus Christ who is sitting at his right hand. We believe in all these things, because that's the very foundation of taking that divine nature, to be partakers of this divine nature. Let's go to Acts. Acts 11. And this is talking about Barnabas. Acts 11. And verse 23. Actually, let's start in verse 22, where it says, Now the report concerning them was heard in the ears of the church that was in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch. So it's talking about Barnabas going to Antioch. And then what happened, verse 23, when he arrived and saw the grace of God. See, he saw this grace that Bill was talking about. When he saw the grace of God, he rejoiced, and he exhorted them all to cleave to the Lord with purpose of heart. And that's exactly what we're talking about here. Applying all diligence beside and adding to our faith virtue and to virtue knowledge and all of these things. That's exactly how we cleave to the Lord with purpose of heart. The purpose is to know them. The purpose is to be with them. The purpose is to become like them, to be partakers of this divine nature. It says, For he was a good man, talking about Barnabas, For he was a good man and was filled with the Holy Spirit and with faith. Meaning faith is something that we can be filled with. He was filled with the Holy Spirit and with faith. And it says, And a large multitude was added to the Lord. But I just wanted to point here out that what have we read about faith? We've read so many things. We've read that it is something to live by, that is the substance of all the things hoped for and the things that are not seen, the things that we believe. And we don't have to prove through physical means, because as we read, the physical things were made by spiritual beings. And everything was made by the word of the Lord, by the word of God. We've seen all of those things. And now we've also seen that faith is something to be filled with. And we have to ask God to give us his faith, that he would fill us with his faith. And I really recommend that series on faith that Fred has, and from faith unto faith, because that's how we add it, right? And that's what Fred explains, it's like, we have the faith from God so that we can add, God can add to that. If we have the faith from God, then he leads to more faith. And God keeps building up that faith through all the things that he does in our lives. Now, let's go to Mark 4, because we're going to read about a couple of things that are enemies of the faith. Mark 4, what can really bring down our faith? Mark 4, in verse 38. Let's read from verse 35. This is when Jesus was with his disciples. And he said, now in the same way that we have faith, he said to his disciples, and he said, now in the same day when evening came, he said to them, let us go over to the other side. And after dismissing the multitude, they took him with them, as he was already in the ship, and there were many other small ships with him also. And a violent windstorm came up, and the waves were crashing into the ship so forcefully that he was rapidly filling up. Now he was at the stern sleeping in a cushion. And they aroused him and said to him, Master, don't you care that we are perishing? And after being awakened, he rebuked the wind and said to the sea, silence, be still. And the wind died, and there was a great calm. And it kind of reminds me of what we read in 2 Peter, of grace and peace. We multiply to you. Because he did it in the physical, but he also wants it in the spiritual for us. Great calm. Give us that peace, be still. And he said to them, why are you so fearful? Why do you not have faith? That's what he means. That fear, when we have fear, that's really not having faith. That's what fear is, one of the enemies of faith. He says, but they were afraid. They continued to be afraid. First, they were afraid of the storm, and then they were afraid of Jesus himself. Because it's like, they said to one another in great fear. Who then is this? That even the wind and the sea obey him? They saw the physical thing. It was amazing. It's almost like they really didn't have the knowledge yet of who he truly was. So they were fearful of that wonder and that miracle that happened. Because if he had the power to do that, imagine what else he has the power to do. But fear is the enemy of faith. We're afraid. That's why he says, why do you not have faith? That means, why don't you not have belief? In this case, belief. Now, I don't know exactly what he meant by this, you know, because it's our nature. But like, have faith in what? That the storm was going to calm down? Or that they could? The storm was going to calm down, or that they could calm the storm, or that Jesus was with them and nothing was going to happen. I don't know exactly what he meant by this. But he did ask him, why do you not have faith? Why are you so fearful? He was illustrating the point that when you're fearful, you're not having faith. Let's go to Matthew 21. Matthew 21, because here's another. And there's many things. We're just going to read about a couple today. Matthew 21, about these enemies of faith. Matthew 21, and verse 20. And this is the account of the fig tree, when Jesus saw the fig tree. Well, let's read verse 19 to get the context. He says, and seeing a fig tree by the road, he came up to it, Jesus, but found nothing on it except leaves only. And he said to it, let there never again be fruit from you forever. And immediately the fig tree dried up. And after seeing it, the disciples were amazing how quickly the fig tree has dried up. Then Jesus answered, and let's pay attention to this verse. Then Jesus answered and said to them, truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only shall you do the miracle of the fig tree, but even if you shall say to this mountain, be removed and be cast into the sea, it shall come to pass. Because it's a matter of faith, it's a matter of belief. But the enemy, what is it? Do not doubt. The enemy is doubt. Because that's exactly, number one tactic of the enemy is doubt. That's the very first thing that he does. The people that do not believe in God is because they doubt. They doubt there is a God. Because they cannot see him. It's doubt. That was the first tactic of Satan, the devil. Cause doubt in Adam and Eve. Is it true? Is it true that God told you to not eat of any tree in the garden? Almost exaggerating and making God look as though he's mean. But that's not the truth. Is it true? Oh, because God knows that when you eat of that, then you will be like God. And you will be like God and your eyes will be open and you will decide between good and evil. See part true and part lies. Because their eyes were open. That's true. And they did decide between good and evil. Not that they could really actually tag something as good and evil, classify those things. That doesn't make it true. But just decide what we're going to call good and evil. So it lies with truth. But what did he do? He seeded that doubt and doubt is the enemy of faith. And so is fear. But when we believe, we have that full conviction that we're going to be partakers of the divine nature and we're focused. We have our eyes fixed on Jesus Christ as we read. And this process can begin. Then we can begin to add to this. Let's go back to 2 Peter 1. 2 Peter 1 to read. What is it that we're going to add to this faith then? Because that's the very first thing, the faith and not being fearful. And not doubting the words of God. Because we cannot work with what is written. It's written and those words are spirit. They are light. They have been inspired by God. And what is in that book is the truth and everything else is mixed with lies. It doesn't matter if you come from scientists. Whatever the word says is the truth. Is the truth because the world is going to try to convince us through science of so many things, whatever it may be. But science is only based on observable facts and physical is absolutely limited to the physical. It's not it is not grounded in what the Bible actually says, which we know is the truth. And there are no lies in the Bible. There are no lies in the word of God. Everything is true. And in 2 Peter 1 and verse 5. It says, add to your faith virtue. Now, what is virtue? The word virtue in the Greek is arete and it means a virtuous course of thought, feeling or action. And it means also it can also mean moral goodness. And as we read in verse three, that the one who called us, he says, through the knowledge of him who called us, God the Father, by his own glory and virtue. Is that goodness of God is his good desire. He was pleasing to him. To call us, he was pleasing to him, it was it seemed good to him to call us. It was his goodwill. But we want to call it something else. It's not exactly goodwill, but it's goodwill. It's not exactly goodwill, but it's this moral goodness. That's the virtue. Virtue is only mentioned seven times in the Bible. And we're going to read some of them. But before we do that, let's go to Romans, Romans 7, because even though the word virtue is not here, it's basically what the Apostle Paul is defining in Romans 7 and verse 18. This is what he's trying to explain. He's trying to explain the virtue, but then what he come up against, because it says in verse 18, because I fully understand that there is not dwelling within me that is within my fleshly being any good. For the desire to do good is present within me. That's the virtue. That virtuous course of thought, feeling and action. That moral goodness within him. There's that, there is that. The desire to do good is present within me, but how to work out that which is good, I do not find. He doesn't, he didn't understand. It's like, why do I want to do what's right? Verse 19, for the good that I decide to do, I am not doing. It's almost like I can't really exercise this virtue. But the evil that I do not decide to do this, I am doing. That's what he said. And then in verse 21, it says, consequently, I find this law in my members that when I desire to do good, I have this virtue is within me. I want to do what's good. He says evil is present within me. So it's virtue and then human nature. That's what he's explaining right here. Verse 22, for I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. He delights in the law of God and that's a virtue. That's virtue. That is a moral goodness. That's a virtue, scholars of thought, feeling and action. The world talks about ethics and morals. Well, we know that these ethics and morals are, it's virtue is to decide to do good, to do what's right. But they don't do it. Right, but they don't believe in the word of God, which is the standard of what to do that is right. And even as they know and understand and believe what's right, we struggle with this, just like Paul just explained. That's what he says in verse 23. I see another law within my own members warring against. Against the law of my own, against the law of my mind and leading me captive to the law of sin that is within my own members. Oh, what a wretched man I am and so are we, brethren. Who shall save me from this body of that? God will. At the resurrection, he will save us from this body of that. He will change us. We will be then fully partakers of the divine nature. That's why he says, I thank God for his salvation. He knew these two. For his salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, which is the same, almost the same words that Peter said in 2 Peter 1. Because of this, on the one hand, I myself serve the law of God with my mind. I have this virtue. I have this desire to do good. But on the other hand, with the flesh, I serve the law of sin because we can't help it. Because we still have the law of sin and death within us. And having that realization is the first step. It's the very first step in overcoming, in truly having this virtue. Let's go to Proverbs 12. This is now one of the places where it actually mentions the word virtue. Proverbs 12. And we'll learn a little bit more about virtue to this contrast that is made here, because most of the Proverbs are that. They're a contrast between good and evil. Good and evil, right? The wicked and the righteous. The foolish and the wise. In Proverbs 4, in Proverbs 12, it says, A woman of virtue is a crown to her husband. But he who causes shame is like rottenness in his bones. Meaning virtue is the opposite of shame. Virtue is the opposite of causing shame. Virtue is doing what is good. A woman of virtue is a crown to her husband because she does good to her husband in so many different areas. But it's that desire to do. But that's why virtue can't be defined in one specific area. Virtue is more general. It's that moral goodness. That virtue's thought. That is what is important. It's that it's a crown to her husband. But she who causes shame is like rottenness in his bones. A woman who causes shame to her husband is not virtuous. Is not doing what's good and what's right. Let's go to Proverbs 31 now. Because here in Proverbs 31, also talks about the virtuous woman. We know that's the chapter of the virtuous woman. And it gives, we don't have time to read the whole chapter today. But it's part of this whole section. But in verse 10 it starts, who can find a virtuous woman? A woman full of virtue. For her value is far above rubies. And then we'll see some of the characteristics and how that virtue manifests itself. But it's not just one thing. It's that desire to do good. It's exactly what the Apostle Paul was referring to. That delighting in the law of God in his heart. It's how many of us do that. We do that all the time. We rejoice in the good. We do that all the time. We rejoice in the laws and the commandments of God. We rejoice in the things that God is showing us to do. Now, we go live our lives and we mess it up. That's what happens. But we always desire to do good. That's what we have to add to our faith, virtue. It's not just believing. It's to have to add to that faith, the desire to do good. That desire to have this moral goodness, to do what's right before God. So in here, that virtue, he says, it expresses. And like I said, we're just going to read a couple to illustrate the point. But it says in verse 11, the heart of her husband trusts safely in her so that she shall have no lack of gain. So it's at first. Why? Because she is a virtuous woman. Because she's going to do what's right in everything. She's going to be she's going to do what is right with the finances. He says, he shall not have lack of gain. She's not going to go waste her husband's goods. She's not going to go commit adultery. The heart of her husband trusts safely in her in all aspects. In the aspect of their marriage and their love, in the aspect of the finances of the house, in the things that she does and how she devotes her time, it says she will do him good. Verse 12, she will do him good and not evil all the days of her life. That's what a virtuous woman does. She will do good to her husband all the days of her life. Because she is just like Peter describes himself a servant of Jesus Christ. She will do him good. And then he starts describing in more specific terms the things that she does. She seeks wool and flax and works willingly with her hands. She doesn't waste time. She doesn't waste resources. She helps others. She's like the merchant ship. She brings her food from afar. She looks for the good things and she buys them. It says she also rises while it is still night and gives food to her household. She is a servant. She gives good to everyone who is around her. That's a virtuous woman. That's what we have to add to our faith, that virtue. Because this is the role of women to serve, to do, and also of men. We also have to add this virtue to our faith. But it's expressed in a little bit different ways maybe that these things we have our responsibilities that God has given us. But it says she rises while it is still night and gives food to her household and portion to her young maidens. She's giving portions to her young maidens. The maidens are the ones that are the helpers. But she rises up and gives them. Which is exactly what Jesus Christ said. He said, I am the master, but I am the one who came as the one who is serving and so are you to do. Verse 16, she considers the field and buys it. With the fruit of her hands, she plants a vineyard. Meaning she gets strength. Verse 17, she binds her loins with strength and makes her arms strong. So it's everything. It's in this virtuous woman, because virtue is not just one thing. It's not just in one area of life. The virtuous woman or the virtuous man in this case too, has that moral goodness, has that desire to do good, to always serve, to be Christ-like because Christ always did good. It says that wherever he went, he healed the sick. And he fed the hungry. And he cast out demons. And he did all these things because he was full of virtue. And he was full of the Holy Spirit. He was able to bring it all out. That's what he did. So that's why Peter says, add to your faith virtue. We have to add that virtue. We have to add that virtue. We have to have that desire to do good. Philippians 4, let's go to Philippians 4.8. You can read the rest of that chapter. It's wonderful. Proverbs 31 is a wonderful chapter for everybody, especially for women, but for everybody. Because we all need to understand how is that virtue expressed. And for men, it could be written the same way, right? Like works hard and provides willingly with his hands and serves others and helps others and does all these other things as well. Philippians 4.8. Here's a few more details of what the virtue is. It says, finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are honorable, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things. These things are what the virtues are. The virtues is wanting to do good, and that's exactly what these are. Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good report, and you can't really, there's no end to that list. That's why he just classified him in the categories of the things. But if we start enumerating the things that are true or the things that are pure or that are just or that are lovely or that are good report, you would never end. You would never end. That's why he puts him in just categories, and he goes and just expands from there. If there be any virtue, not only these, but any virtue, because those are the virtues. Virtue implies moral goodness, good thoughts, good feeling, good action, good course of thought, because you're thinking on the things that are true, that are honorable, that are just, that are pure, that are lovely, that are of good report, and those are the things. Those are the things. Any virtue, any desire to do good of all the good things according to the Word of God, not according to our own devices, because there is a way that seems right to a man, but the end is the end of that. No, according to the Word of God, all of these things, if there be any virtue and any praise, think on these things, meditate on them, and add them to your faith. Add the things that are good, that are true, that are honorable, that are just, that are all of these things, add them to your faith. That's what we have to do with a diligence, remembering what our faith is, and then adding this virtue to our faith, adding this desire to do good. We don't have time to go into the other yet. We'll continue in another part of this message with the other ones. So just to kind of whet your appetite a little bit, the next thing is knowledge. Add to your virtue knowledge. Why would it be important to add knowledge? Because how many people have faith, and have very strong faith in God? How many people really have faith, or have faith in other gods, and strong faith and a strong conviction to give their lives for what they believe? How many people have virtue, the desire to do good, and they do great sacrifices, and they do great, amazing things? That's virtue. But do they add the other things? Do they add knowledge? The scripture says, right, they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge? There is a zeal. There is a lot of faith. There is a lot of virtue out in the world. There is a lot of good deeds that people do with their desire to do good. It's within people as well. Maybe not all the time, maybe not in the majority of people, but there is. That's why next time we're going to study then knowledge. Why is it important to add knowledge to our virtue and continue with self-control, endurance, and the other things here in 2 Peter 1 that are talking about the divine nature so that we may be partakers of the divine nature? So we've seen today what God has called us to and we've eaten these precious promises and why the apostle Peter is encouraging us today, to you and me, to have obtained the same precious faith as his, as theirs, to apply all diligence to add to our faith virtue and then to add all the other things that we'll study in the next time. But for today we're going to leave it here. I appreciate the opportunity to share these things with you and we'll see you next time.