PT-6 Faith Results in Spiritual Growth (2 Peter 1:5-7)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 8/13/2017 8:06 PM

My Worship Time                                                  Focus:  Faith Results in Spiritual Growth PT-6

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  2 Peter 1:5-7

            Message of the verses:  “5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.”

            We want to finish up on looking at “brotherly kindness” in this SD and we will look at what Dr. Warren Wiersbe has to say as he concludes this section:  “Because we have the divine nature, we can trow spiritually and develop this kind of Christian character.  It is through the power of God and the precious promises of God that this growth takes place.  The divine ‘genetic structure’ is already there:  God wants us to be ‘conformed to the image of His Son’ (Rom. 8:28).  The life within will reproduce that image if we but diligently cooperate with God and use the means He has lavishly given us.

            “And the amazing thing is this:  as the image of Christ is reproduced in us, the process does not destroy our own personalities.  We still remain uniquely ourselves!

            “One of the dangers in the church today is imitation.  People have a tendency to become like their pastor, or like a church leader, or perhaps like some ‘famous Christian.’  As they do this, they destroy their own uniqueness while failing to become like Jesus Christ.  They lose both ways!  Just as each child in a family resembles his parents and yet is different, so each child in God’s family comes more and more to resemble Jesus Christ and yet is different.  Parents don’t duplicate themselves, they reproduce themselves; and wise parents permit their children to be themselves.”

            I believe that one of the ways that we can become more like Jesus Christ is to stay in His Word, especially stay in the four gospels for some time and see what Jesus did while He was on earth, how He accomplished what He accomplished.  The epistles help us with doctrine while the gospels show us more about Jesus Christ.  Don’t be afraid to look at different commentators, but make sure that the ones you are reading do not in any way shape or form go against the written Word of God.

8/13/2017 8:19 PM