Written by Paul J Bucknell on May, 03, 2023

2 Peter: 1:1 Our Expectations of Life

PURSUING HIS EXCELLENCE #1

“Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:1, NASB).

Introduction to the 2 Peter series

This series, Pursuing His Excellence, seeks to restore our hope and confidence in this extraordinary divine power that He has given us as Christians. We will also observe and analyze the tactics and tools that the evil one employs to undermine our confidence. In conclusion, we aim to put our hope into action by expanding our perspective to align with God’s desires and actively pursuing them.

Our focus should be on integrating godly principles; we want to be holy and not just pretend to be holy. We want to take the truth of God, revealed in 2 Peter 1:1-11, and knock out false thoughts that Satan has used for so long to keep us down and out. We are going to grow, and the evil one will not stop us. He will attempt to hinder us, but when things are done God’s way, we see a series of miraculous interventions occur to bring us where we ought to be. Are you ready to get off the sidelines and enter the ring?

No doubt there are specific questions that the evil one is bringing to your mind, even now. I want you to be aware of them. We want to analyze them, see their rottenness, and throw them out. What are you thinking in response to what I just said? Maybe:

“I tried this before.”
“I am too weak; I can’t do this.”
“You are surely not thinking about me. You don’t know what a failure I have been.”
“I don't think you understand how much I struggle.”
“If you only knew how bad I am!”
“I don’t think I can do it.”

The Holy Spirit points out our moral blemishes not, like the evil one, to accuse us but to get us out from under their burden. He shows us how to confess them and become like Him—free to serve God wholeheartedly.

Pause and pray, confessing how you have let these false thoughts and lies influence your behavior and view of God. Let’s seek guidance from the Holy Spirit to learn the beliefs and principles we should adhere to in our lives.

This series is designed to help Christians to be more like Christ. Before discussing becoming a Christian, let’s first define what being a Christian truly means. We will not accept weak and unbiblical definitions of a Christian as one who goes to church regularly, is baptized, takes communion, or gives offerings. Genuine Christians will indeed do all these things, but they do not make a person a Christian—these things the world can and has done in the church’s name.

Peter well summarizes our confidence in our Christian brotherhood.

“Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent in making certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.” (Peter 1:10-11)

The Great Promise

It's easy to take the wonders of life for granted. Consider these three examples:

• We expect everything to be perfect. When Kathryn was born, the midwife put this 1-hour-old baby through a test, testing reflections, skin color, eyesight, etc. The test assumes perfection. She only records the items that are not performing as expected rather than those that are functioning correctly.

• We also expect everything to be of the same kind. If a couple bore a perfectly healthy baby gorilla, we would suspect something, somewhere, went terribly wrong. We haven't even considered this possibility because it looks pretty unusual.

• Lastly, we expect everything to be self-contained. We can care for the little one: feed, change diapers, and nurture, but all the growth systems are expected to be inherently complete. The doctor can attempt to fix a broken body part, but what can the doctor do if there is no nervous system or enzyme-producing pancreas? We can only hope that the treatment administered to the patient will be well-received and effective in aiding their recovery.

The fundamental beliefs depicted in this story draw inspiration from nature and reinforce our understanding of spiritual life. Indeed the spiritual life is mystical because we cannot see the Holy Spirit, but the operating principles are the same. We are born from above (again) with a divine seed (John 3:3,7; 1 Pet 1:3,23). The new divine nature has been planted within us. As with birth, we have exuberant hopes. Everybody is glad, and the angels celebrate. Why? The new birth signifies a perfect and healthy spiritual life, akin to the One who bestowed it.

Similarly, we expect everything to be self–contained. We don’t expect that we have only half of the Holy Spirit or some spiritual flaw in our nature. We expect to have everything that we need to live extraordinary Christian lives. This is the initial new birth’s faith and promise that protects us from many early dangers. But something often happens to our thinking, and our faith becomes corrupted.

We would be fine if we kept and built upon that initial faith. But when doubts come questioning God’s good intentions and troubles hamper our ability to be a great Christian, we regress and live immature Christian lives far from where God intends us to be. Rather than succumbing to feelings of discouragement and fear, it is wise to reflect on life and regain hope in the positive impact that God has had on our lives.

We must take a moment to understand the genuine definition of a committed Christian. I want to explore the two foundation pillars that set Christians apart from the world. Unless one grasps these fundamental truths, then misinterpretations of the following verses will arise. Let’s examine two aspects of our saving faith from 2 Peter 1:1.

A. Receiving a Common Faith (2 Peter 1:1a)

“…To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:1a)

The first mistaken notion that Christians often have is a flawed concept of what a Christian is. In your mind, the standard has been set by your peers rather than the scriptures. Generation after generation, since Christ’s time, we have found that conformity is one of the deadliest marks on a Christian.

There is a dangerous mistaken notion. Many believe that salvation is attained through a pre-existing faith innate within us. It is commonly believed that we possess an inherent faith within ourselves. But this is not the Christian faith. As verse 1 states, we have received a most unnatural and even supernatural faith. True, we have received the same faith as the apostles such as Peter: “of the same kind as ours” (2 Pet 1:1). His calling made him an apostle, but his common faith made him a Christian.

Adopting a humanistic perspective of Christianity as just one of many religions vastly undermines its significance. This faith is common among men and expressed differently, but this is not what is spoken of here. When we think of the faith of the apostles such as Peter, we think of a brave, righteous man who relentlessly pursued the cause of Jesus Christ among men. It is not that he did not have weaknesses. The Book of Galatians reveals some of these (Galatians chapter 2). Our faith is the same faith enabling Peter to preach to thousands on one day and heal the sick on another. It was a nonconforming faith due to the work of the Holy Spirit. This faith stood out in the world, and was willing to take the necessary risks.

The Christian faith reflects God entering the sphere of man and living among them. The Lord did not compromise His values but instead lived and preached openly. In this sense, we carry the torch of Christ in this world as lights in a very, very dark world. Jesus as a relay race runner passed the baton onto us, His disciples. Looking closely at scripture, we find that Jesus had equal, if not greater, expectations of our lives than He had of His own which were restricted by the brevity of His life.

•1 We received the Holy Spirit just as He did. We can be filled by the Spirit too. John 7:38 says, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.”

•2 Jesus said greater things will you do. As Jesus was preparing to leave, He gave His disciples amazing words. John 14:12-14 says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go to the Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.”

•3 Finally, it is clear Jesus chose us to bear fruit. John 15:6 says, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask of the Father in My name, He may give to you.”

These statements do not allow us to diminish the value of being a Christian. We have received faith like Peter and the apostles. We have the same mighty Spirit of God moving in our being and the same expectation of God driving our lives.

Application

We are unworthy disciples if we look down on the faith and Spirit that He gives us. Brothers and sisters, it is time to stop living the conformist life and live the life of faith that we have received—a saving faith in the living God.

B. Obtaining the Righteousness of God (2 Peter 1:1b)

“To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:1b).

One of the biggest misunderstandings that could be derived from this series is the belief that if we strive to live godly lives, we rely on our virtuous deeds to please God. That belief confuses ‘trusting in our works’ with ‘trusting in His works.’ Peter the Apostle makes a clear distinction between the two.

It is often said today that to have Christ’s righteousness by faith is sufficient. Peter said it was impossible only to have His righteousness by faith. Once you have it by faith, you will be affected by its presence. The righteous character of a Christian derives from its divine origin.

This is one of the points that historically separates Protestants from Roman Catholics. Historically, the Protestants stressed positional righteousness gained by faith as saving faith. I say ‘historically’ because many Protestants have departed from this biblical stance. The Roman Catholics stress that both positional righteousness (faith) and practical righteousness save you.

Frankly, I hope we depend on biblical teaching. Here we see Peter teaching a slightly different point of view. He teaches what Protestants believe in verse 1. We gain Christ’s righteousness through faith: “by the righteousness of our God and Savior” (2 Pet 1:1). This is fundamental. This is where John 3:16 comes into place. We don't talk about our righteousness because, as sinners, we don't truly possess it. Since we are sinners, we have no righteousness to boast of (Eph 2:8-9).

Confidence in our righteousness before God is a sin in itself. If we cannot see this rationally, we should accept God’s proclamation. Isaiah says, “For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment” (Isaiah 64:6).

Knowing Christ, however, introduces this righteousness by faith. As 2 Peter 1:1 says, we “have received a faith... by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” It’s His righteousness that is needed and received!

Knowledge of the Lord is foundational. We are talking of results because we know Him rather than ways of knowing Him. We must first know Him before we can profit from that knowledge.

Righteousness and life from God are our testimony. Our personal godliness is righteous, and holy behavior results from the faith we receive.

We would make a mistake common with Roman Catholics and many Protestants if we combined Christ’s righteousness with our own to bring salvation.

Liberalism: My righteousness = salvation (justification)
Works: Christ’s righteousness (faith) + my righteousness (works) => salvation (justification)
Easy believism: Christ’s righteousness => salvation without righteous changes in my life
Biblical: Christ’s righteousness => salvation and my righteous life

Gerstner said, “Justification is by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone...” (p. 173). Works of righteousness flow from justification rather than becoming a part of our justification. (Justification by Faith Alone, by Soli Deo Gloria).

Christians are often confused with the expectation of living a righteous life when it is not a prerequisite for salvation. Some even assert that we can be Christians without a righteous life. The problem word is a prerequisite. Ask these questions instead:

What is necessary for one to know he is saved?
What is the result of salvation?

Consider the corn plant. Life comes from putting the corn seed in the ground and letting it germinate. But for a while, we see no growth—until we do. Then we know there is a genuine corn plant there, especially when it grows tall and puts out corn stalks. The growth and production confirm the reality of the life of the corn plant.

Summary

It is as unbiblical to speak about faith apart from a life of righteousness as it is to think that our righteousness can bring us this faith. But as much as I talk about this, some will later think I believe in works by salvation. I do not. Peter did not. This was different from the common faith. Our shared belief centers around receiving righteousness from God and being justified through faith in Jesus Christ.

You probably are not saved if you think you deserve salvation because you base your worth on your works. Salvation results as sinners genuinely confess their sins and plead by God’s great act of mercy to gain salvation through Christ. They never can presume upon it as something they deserve or are worthy of.

Salvation is a marvelous work of God, resulting in a host of glorious excellent, and righteous works to the glory of God and the good of man. This is the thrust of 2 Peter 1:1-11, which our series will follow.

Application

What is your expectation of life? I hope that with all seriousness, you expect something good, perfect, and complete will flow from the exact nature that the divine God bore forth into your soul. Your spiritual life will prove God’s seed of new life within you! Let’s prepare our spiritual gardens to grow!___________________

PIETISM OF PURITANISM

“William Ames, a great leader in the movement, once defined 'divinity' as the doctrine of living to God' and in making the definition he epigrammatically described the whole moving spirit of Puritanism. For Puritanism was not merely a set of rules or a larger creed, but a life-force: a vision and a compulsion which saw the beauty of a holy life and moved towards it, marveling at the possibilities and thrilling to the satisfaction of a God-centered life. Moreover, iron discipline was combined with fervent devotion, saving the Puritan from a fitful mysticism on the one hand and a mere worldly religion on the other - and it was this marvelous marriage of law and grace which was not the least notable feature of Puritan piety. Every area of life came under the influence of God and the guidance of the Word. Each day began and ended with searching, unhurried and devout personal and family prayer. Each task, whether professional or manual, was done to the glory of God and with a scrupulous eye to his perfect will. Every relationship, business or personal, was regulated by spiritual principles. Hours free from labour were gladly and zealously employed in the study of the Scriptures, attendance upon public worship, 'godly converse' or intense witness and every other means which contributed to the soul's good. In a word, the 'great business of godliness' dominated the ardent believer's ambitions and called forth all his energies.” (Peter Lewis of The Genius of Puritanism, p. 12.)