Reflections on 2 Peter 1:3-8

2 Peter 1:3-8

"His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them yo may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

This passage really struck me as I was reading through 2 peter this morning. Sometimes I feel so stuck in my self-centered and self-guided patterns and habits. And it is frustrating. But this passage assures me that God, in HIS divine power, has given me all the knowledge i need to grow in goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. Because I cannot increase the measure of these qualities on my own --I must allow the guidance of the Holy Spirit to grow me in these things through time in prayer, scripture, and meditation.

And what a contrasting measure of efficiency and productivity this list of qualities provides from the list of qualities that need be on a curriculum vitae or resume. I just put together a resume yesterday for a part-time internship i want to apply for for the upcoming school year. And, as usual, it made me nervous and anxious about what I was doing with my life. Will I get a good job when I graduate? Does my resume seem impressive enough? Is my life efficient and productive, can I feel proud of my accomplishments? And yet this passage says that things like godliness, brotherly kindness, self-control, knowledge, faith, goodness, and perseverance are the qualities required of Christians so as not be become ineffective and unproductive in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. These are the building blocks, the basic units so to speak, that a Christian must build their life upon. If we concentrate on increasing these qualities in our life, then our foundations will be firm and God will use us to build up his kingdom. And the way in which God calls us to build up his kingdom may not look incredibly impressive on a resume--or maybe it will. But the point is that it does not matter how successful or accomplished we look to the world; God is moving us along according to a different standard of efficiency and productivity and success. Wish I didn't forget this truth so often. But praise be to God for the nourishing power of his Word, which reminds me of this truth whenever I take the time to reflect and meditate upon the scriptures.