Please turn to the Second Epistle of Peter this morning—2 Peter, chapter 1. We will consider the first four verses today.
Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
to those who have received like precious faith with us through the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,
through which He has given to us exceeding great and precious promises, that through these you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
I would like to draw your attention again to that part in verse 1 where it says, “to those that have received like precious faith,” and then in verse 4, “through which He has given to us exceeding great and precious promises.” Or, if you have the Authorized Version, it is “exceeding great and precious promises.”
Lord, as we come to You, we acknowledge our total dependence on the Holy Spirit. We call out to You that You would, by the Holy Spirit, anoint this day, that we could hear the words that come from Your heart.
May the Holy Spirit, whose ministry it is, unveil to our hearts the Lord Jesus, and may we be drawn to Him and run after Him. We say again to You, Lord, You alone have the words of eternal life. Where else can we go?
We ask this in Jesus’ precious name. Amen.
Well, I think everyone knows that we have been sharing several times from the epistles of Peter. This is the last of four.
I think most of you remember, from at least that little introduction I tried to give last time to catch us up, that the word precious is the word we have been focusing on. It is a word that occurs seven times in this small letter of 1 Peter and in these opening few verses of 2 Peter—seven times more than any other place in the whole New Testament, and almost more than all the other places combined.
So it seems to me, when I considered this word—when the Lord spoke this thing to my heart—that this word precious is a significant word. It is a very important word to understanding these little letters.
It is not like we think in our Western culture, with precious being a sentimental thought. It is a word of valuation. It means “of exceedingly great value.” It is a word of value.
We have shared already three times. First, from 1 Peter 1:7, on the precious proving of our faith. You have been tested; your faith is proven.
The proving of your faith, which is more precious than silver and gold, which perishes, be found unto praise and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
These saints, who found themselves in particularly difficult circumstances, made some grand discoveries about what was of value. It seems to me that this is a spiritual principle: those who go through deep waters sometimes discover the most precious things.
Those who go through, learn the lessons, and come out the other side make a grand discovery of what is precious to God.
It says of these ones that they were tested. It says of these ones that they were scattered. It says of these ones that they were dispersed. It says of these ones, more than any place in the New Testament, that they suffered for the name of the Lord.
Yet, in what we would consider somewhat horrific circumstances, these ones discovered what was of extremely great value. So that is the burden.
The second time, we shared from 1 Peter 1:19: the precious blood of Jesus.
We have been redeemed, not with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from our manner of life, but by the precious blood of Jesus.
These ones discovered how precious the blood was. I think we need to make that discovery. The blood is for God. It gives us access—unlimited access—to God. It stops every accusation of the enemy; that is his full-time job. And it cleanses us from a wicked conscience, as we hear in Hebrews.
The third time, last time—I hope it is a little more fresh—we shared from 1 Peter 2:1–10 on God’s precious building work.
These dear brothers and sisters to whom Peter wrote made a discovery that God was doing a precious building work in their circumstances. He was building His church. Their circumstances were not wasted. They discovered that God was doing a great, everlasting work.
I have laid in Zion a precious cornerstone, the living stone; and ye, as living stones, are being built together, a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable unto Him.
They discovered the purpose of God, brothers and sisters. I hope that, when we go through deep waters, we make a discovery of what is precious. If we do not, it is a waste. But if we do, it is a blessing. Do you understand?
Oh, I know I am not supposed to say that, but do you understand? These ones made a glorious discovery. May the Lord help us.
Well, we must move on. We will finish today, I promise. Today we will look at just two things together from the second letter that Peter wrote. He used precious twice: precious faith and precious promises.
Now, you might be tempted to think these two things ought to be separate, but the writer put them together. I think these two things are intrinsically linked together. You cannot separate precious, living faith from the precious promises. Otherwise, your faith has nothing to stand on.
These two are indispensably linked together—joined together—and Peter did not bother to separate them. So, even though you might think it is a bit unusual, we will keep them together today.
It was written to those that have received like precious faith. Then verse 4 speaks of that through which He has given to us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these we may be partakers of the divine nature.
These two things cannot be separated. They are the twin towers that you cannot destroy. They can never be separated.
I remember seeing a special—I think it was on Discovery; memory fails me—about Siamese twins. Most of you know what Siamese twins are. As a matter of fact, you may not know this, but P. T. Barnum made hay with this thing.
There were two twin boys who were joined together at the waist from birth. They were from Siam, which is now modern-day Thailand, and that is where the term “Siamese twins” came from.
But in this special, the twins were joined together at the head, and they could not be separated. They said, “If you separate them, they will die.”
Precious faith and the precious promises cannot be separated. If you break these apart, they have no meaning.
Faith—precious faith that is given to us—has a basis. Otherwise, it is just blind faith. People say, “What does your faith stand in? Does your faith have a stand, a basis?”
Faith that is real has a basis, and the basis for our faith is the exceeding great and precious promises. These two things are inseparably linked together. You cannot separate them.
Living faith—precious faith—and the precious promises linked together are the revelation of the New Testament. When you read the Apostle Paul’s writing in Romans 4 and Galatians 3, when he talks about Abraham, he links these two things together.
It is faith that justifies, based upon the precious promises. Read Romans 4. It is the great explanation in Romans: he is justified by faith, but it is according to the promise. Read Galatians. It says at the end of that whole thing that we are children of the promise, justified by faith—on the principle of faith, according to the promise.
Let me read you quickly parts of two verses. Romans 4:20–22 speaks of Abraham, when he was told that Sarah would have a seed. Of course, Sarah laughed, and hence the name Isaac.
Hesitating not at the promise of God through unbelief, but waxed strong through faith, giving glory to God,
and being fully persuaded that, what He had promised, He was able also to perform.
Wherefore also it was reckoned unto him for righteousness.
Faith and the promises are linked together—inseparable.
Again, in Galatians 3:22:
But the scripture shut up all things under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.
This is the revelation of the New Testament. It is the principle of faith combined with a promise that makes the Christian life possible.
Think for a moment. Go back to their difficult circumstances. They must have asked, “How can we live the Christian life? In these days, with these limitations, how can we live the Christian life?” That must have been the question.
It is by faith based upon the exceeding great and precious promises. That is the answer.
That became a valuable discovery to them, and I believe these saints must have been triumphant. They changed the world in spite of their circumstances.
I hope I have made the point: you cannot separate these two things. Precious faith and the exceeding great and precious promises go together.
One is how we live; the other is the basis upon which we live. These two cannot be separated.
Now let us go back and think for a moment about precious faith. Faith is a key to the Christian life. I do not think any of you will question that. You cannot live this Christian life without faith. You begin with faith.
Ephesians 2:8 says:
For by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.
You begin with faith. Our walk is by faith. We live by faith. Faith is essential to the Christian life, and these saints discovered that like precious faith.
In the prophetic vision in the Old Testament, turn to Habakkuk 2:2–4. This was the vision given to the prophet.
And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tablets, that he may run that readeth it.
For the vision is yet for the appointed time, and it hasteth toward the end, and shall not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not delay.
Behold, his soul is puffed up, it is not upright within him; but the just shall live by his faith.
That was the vision that was to come. That was the secret that was to be revealed in the New Testament. That was the basis upon which Paul the apostle wrote Romans and Galatians: “The just shall live by faith.” It is what we live by.
You know, this one verse changed the whole Christian world. “The just shall live by faith” changed the whole Christian world.
May I bore you again with Martin Luther’s visit to Rome? You may have read it. It is very descriptive in Miller’s Church History, if you have not.
Martin Luther—this verse changed his life, and it transformed the Christian world. In 1510, this German monk was appointed as a representative to go to Rome. He hoped that His Holiness, the pope, could settle the disputes between the monks. He was the ambassador.
Penniless and barefoot, he crossed the Alps. Now, you think you have problems! He was so determined to reach Rome, to receive an answer and settle this issue, that he crossed those Alps penniless and barefoot.
On his way, he was astounded at the pollution of the priesthood. He saw the priests in their comfortable settings, with food, banquets, and lavish lives. He once said to them, “The church and the pope forbid it,” and he almost paid with his life.
When he went to Rome, he so loved Rome. You have to remember: Martin Luther was a papist at this time. He believed in the pope. He fell on his knees, raised his hands to heaven, and said, “Hail, Rome, thrice sanctified by the blood of the martyrs. Holy Rome.”
On his journey, he became so discouraged that he was actually sick. He almost gave up. Then the words of the apostle came to him—the Holy Spirit whispering, “The just shall live by faith.”
When he came into Rome, there was a great superstition surrounding Pilate’s staircase, supposedly transported from holy Jerusalem to holy Rome. Anybody who could crawl up those mammoth steps on their knees received a free indulgence from the pope himself.
Luther, being a good papist, began to crawl and crawl and crawl. Somewhere up those steps, according to his own testimony, he heard a voice thundering from heaven: “The just shall live by faith.”
Luther jumped to his feet. He was delivered from his superstition. He ran down those steps and said, “Adieu, Rome. Any that would live a holy life, let them flee Rome.”
This single verse was his battle cry. The privilege we have today of an open Bible, an open meeting, the priesthood of all believers, fellowship in Christ Jesus not through a representative, and direct access to a holy God—all because of this one single verse: “The just shall live by faith.”
How important faith is. This one thing changed the world.
Now here is the question: how do we live the Christian life? Is it our faith? This is a vital question, a very important question for believers. Is it our faith?
Turn back to 2 Peter. There is a marvelous word here—one of those words you should not miss. It says in chapter 1, verse 1, “to those that have received like precious faith.”
Did you notice that one word? “To those that have received like precious faith.” That is an important word. It is not our faith. It is not my faith. It is not your faith. It is faith that we have received that makes the Christian life possible.
That is a vital principle, dear brothers and sisters.
I think the faith movement has done good in one way, but great damage in another way. In one sense, they raised the importance of living faith. That is good. I have no problem with that.
But this is what is bad: they put the emphasis on your faith. “Do you have enough faith? Do you have living faith? The reason you are in the condition you are in is because you do not have faith. If you had faith, you would not be like this.”
They have done great damage. Many are shipwrecked because of it.
But brothers and sisters, this is the blessing: “to those that have received like precious faith.” Is that not good news?
I think we often think of faith like the little engine that could. When my children were small—we used to read The Little Red Caboose. Some of you know the book, and some of you are shaking your heads, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about.”
But it had the little engine in there, and the little engine always said, “I think I can. I think I can. I think I can.” That is our impression of faith.
Oh, it is the little engine that could. No wonder you look at me. My wife corrects me: it is The Little Engine That Could. It had a little red caboose, though, did it not?
Now, so much for the illustration. But it is not our faith. Do you understand? Brothers and sisters, that is a vital principle in how we live the Christian life. Faith comes to us. We receive it.
When we receive living faith, it transforms us, and we are able to live the Christian life. It is not your effort. It is not your straining. It is not the veins bulging from your forehead.
It is faith received that is the key.
I tell you, this was so liberating to me when I saw Galatians 2:20. You might want to turn to it, if you have never heard this. Many of you have.
I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me:
and that life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself up for me.
Many people stop reading at, “The life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith.” That is a good thing. But listen to the rest of it: “the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
It is not your faith at all, brothers and sisters. This was the word that came to these beleaguered remnants. It is faith that you receive from the living God.
Faith received is the key to living the Christian life.
I remember Spurgeon speaking of a little Scottish lady. Linda and I had a debate last night about whether it is “Scotch lady” or “Scottish lady.” You are in Scotland, so you could say “Scotch,” I thought.
This Scottish lady was introduced one time, Spurgeon said, as “so-and-so, a woman of great faith.” She took exception to that. She said, “I am not a woman of great faith. I am a woman of little faith who has a great God.”
Do you see the difference? It is all the difference in the world. If walking the Christian life depended upon my faith, where would I be? And if it depended upon your faith—forgive me, do not be too offended by this—where would you be?
“To those that have received like precious faith.” This is the key. Praise the Lord for that.
Not only do we need faith, but we need power. Some of you know this—I have bored you with it in the past—I came up through the charismatic movement. I always tell Stephen, teasing him, that he did a number on my theology the first time he spoke.
Of course, our emphasis was on power—dunamis, dynamite. It was the power. It was the experience. That is what you needed to have. Baptist, Episcopalian, and Methodist—we could not wait to lay hands on them and transform them by this living power.
You have to have power to live the Christian life. Without it, you cannot live the Christian life. But listen again.
In 2 Peter 1:3, it says, “as His divine power.” Did you get that? It is not our power. It is not power that we generate, as though we had some sixty-megawatt generator. It is by His divine power that we can live the Christian life.
What a difference. Can you imagine if it was your power? How long do you think you would survive under your own power? Not a day. Some of you who are more hard-headed, stubborn, and willful—maybe two days.
But it seems to me that the answer to how to live the Christian life comes from verse 3: “His divine power.” That is liberating. This is the power we have to live the Christian life. It is not my power at all.
I remember when I was first saved. I think all of you can recall those days—a love for the Lord. I had a love for the Lord, but boy, did I struggle at times. More than at times. Boy, did I fail at times. I thought, “Man, no power.”
I will never forget. It actually came from a book in the Bible—Philippians. That marvelous phrase was like a ray of light from heaven. Jerry and I met at Capitol Square during our lunch, reading together. I opened that book when I first got it, and that phrase on the front cover said, “For me to live is Christ.”
That is the Christian life. That is the power. It is not you living at all. This may trouble people who are newly saved: “Hey, you are kidding. It is not me living at all?” No. It is Christ living in you.
This is what Colossians says is the hope of glory: Christ in me. According as His divine power has given us everything that pertains to life and godliness.
Do not just pray for power. You pray for power, and you may just get zapped. Pray for His divine power. There is a big difference.
This was the secret that was shared with these believers.
But listen to what it says. In the Authorized Version, it says, “According as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness.”
He has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness. What do you think was left out? Is that not an amazing verse? I love that verse.
You know, I have been infatuated with that phrase, “all things,” in the Scriptures—in Colossians particularly. It says how all things are in Christ. He is the firstborn among all things. It repeats it over and over: “that in all things He might have the preeminence.”
He has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. Not just a few things. Not just a ration. Not just a thimbleful. But all things. What a reservoir.
I have a philosophy. I know why the mom-and-pop stores are failing: because they offer limited stuff. Who needs a mom-and-pop store when you can go to a superstore, where they have all things?
Sometimes we think of the Christian life and the provision that comes from God as a quart of milk when we need it. But it is much, much more. It is all things.
Dear saints, take in these words. This is how we live the Christian life: all things that pertain to life.
You might say, “Brother, you do not know my life. Do not you preach at me. You do not know my circumstances. Do not you tell me.” But this is a marvelous word of comfort: He has given to us all things that pertain to life.
Everything you need—not one ounce short of what you need for your circumstances. Saints, remember: this was written for these dear brothers and sisters in their circumstances, and by the Holy Spirit preserved for us in our circumstances.
He has given to us all things that pertain to life. Is that not good news? Not a ration—all things.
Not only that, it says He has given us all things that pertain to godliness: for your godly training, for your improvement—if you will let me use that word—for your training as a Christian.
He has given you all things. Not one single thing has He left out. All things that pertain to life and godliness. This is how we live the Christian life. Praise the Lord.
“To those that have received like precious faith.” Do not ever be proud of your faith. You have received it.
Sometimes I see brothers whom the Lord uses mightily, and speaks through, and then their chest comes out. The next thing you know, they think they will be writing books and becoming conference speakers all over the world.
I often remember Balaam—that God spoke through an ass, a donkey. I think He often repeats that miracle.
Do not be proud of your faith. You have received like precious faith. His divine power has given us all that pertains to life and godliness.
Forgive me for that illustration: He is your great superstore—unlimited resources, nothing lacking. This is our Christ.
Well, we will press on. The second thing I want us to look at is the precious promises.
We live by faith, but it is not faith alone. It is faith based upon the exceeding great and precious promises. We cannot live without the precious promises.
When you read the Bible, you notice that the Bible is full of promises. I remember a sister from Florida standing up recently on a Sunday morning and telling us that she did not know how many promises there were, but surely the precious promises are great.
Moody said that another Scotsman once counted the direct promises of God in the Bible, and he counted 31,000. Do you think they are sufficient? Thirty-one thousand—more than a few for every day.
Brothers and sisters, how we need to see the precious promises—how great they are.
As a matter of fact, the New Testament itself is the revelation of one comprehensive promise. When you read Jeremiah 31 and Hebrews 8, which reveals the basis of the New Testament, it says over and over, “I will.”
“I will forgive their sins. I will do this for them.” Over and over, these are the promises of God. The New Testament is one great promise above everything else.
Notice the word that the apostle uses here: “exceeding great and precious promises.” If you understand the word precious, you might think this is overdone. If this were a technical paper, you would take out the extra words and leave in precious.
But the Holy Spirit moved the apostle to call these exceeding great and precious promises. He did not even just call them great and precious promises. I hope you do not think this is straining at a gnat. This is a very important thought.
“Exceeding great and precious promises.”
The word great in New Testament Greek, I think, is megas. Forgive me—no Greek, total Greek challenge. But the word used here in 2 Peter is a different word. It is the superlative of that word. It means that great is raised to a new level—mega-great, if you will.
These are exceeding great and precious promises. It is the only way the Holy Spirit could describe how great they are—beyond description.
I remember that engineers, as you know, are challenged when it comes to language. You may have understood that so far. I had to take an English class because, as engineers, we had what they called technical English, which translated means boring.
For the degree I pursued, I had to take two English classes. I thought it was going to be agony—writing all these papers. I remember writing one paper, and I used great several times. The professor jumped on me.
She said, “What do you use great for? Everybody uses great. Great has become meaningless: great pizza, great haircut, great dress. It has become meaningless. Do not use great anymore.”
I said, “I thought it was great.”
But here—notice what the Holy Spirit says: exceeding great and precious promises. This is how we can live the Christian life.
There are promises for everything. We could spend the whole morning talking about them.
Remember, the Lord said, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Dan has quoted that verse hundreds of times to us over these past two years. “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” What a promise.
When you feel alone, suppose you dust that one off, bring it out, and say, “Lord, does not Your word say—is it true?—You will never leave me nor forsake me?”
In the Old Testament, in Psalms, it says, “Though thy father and thy mother forsake thee, then the Lord will take thee up.” What a promise.
There are hundreds—hundreds of thousands. “All ye that labor and are heavy laden, come unto Him, and ye shall find rest unto your souls.”
You remember when you came to the Lord Jesus and experienced that initial blessed rest that you never had before. My wife tells me I am the most restless human being she has ever met. But when you come to Christ, there is real rest. What a promise.
The Lord said, “My peace I give unto you; not as the world giveth, give I unto you.” Can you imagine? It could have been so different if the Lord had just said, “Peace I give to you.” But He said, “My peace I give unto you.”
Peace that passes understanding. You think of the verses from Romans: nothing can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus. Shall tribulation, peril, death, sword, or anything? Nothing. What a promise.
I would make a recommendation to you, dear saints: lay hold of the promises of God.
We often call one another up and say, “Boy, did I have a tough day. I am miserable.” But suppose we called one another up, starting tomorrow, and said, “Brother, look at this promise. Take this promise just for today. Take it into your heart and your being. Memorize it. Feed upon it. It will be health to your bones.”
I think it could make a difference. We live based on these precious promises.
There is the ultimate promise. I will just read to you 1 John 2:25:
And this is the promise which He promised us, even the life eternal.
The ultimate promise. Do you know that, as a believer, you will never die? We think of that merely as a salvation message, but it is much grander than a salvation message. You will live forever. Life is eternal. The ultimate promise.
You remember those Raëlians recently, do you not? They were cloning people, or at least they said they were. I will never forget the interview with this strange-looking fellow. If you are a Raëlian, I apologize to you, but your leader is a strange beast.
When they interviewed him, they said, “What are you after?” He said, “Life eternal.”
I thought making exact copies of me would produce life eternal? You would be bored, and my wife would be on medication. Can you imagine?
Life eternal. This is the ultimate promise.
Well, we must press on. Here is another marvelous verse. Write this down: 2 Corinthians 1:20.
For how many soever be the promises of God, in Him is the yea: wherefore also through Him is the amen, unto the glory of God through us.
The promises that are in Christ Jesus are yes and amen. We sometimes think the promises of God are “no” and “maybe.” But this word tells me something different: the promises that are in Christ are yes and amen. What good news.
This is how we are to live the Christian life.
Why can we live based on these promises? Titus 1:2 says:
In hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before times eternal.
That is the reason we can trust in these promises. I think Lenny is a good guy. I do not have any doubt about it. I have known him for years. But I am not going to trust all of Lenny’s promises. Forgive me, Lenny.
You should not trust all of my promises. But we can trust all of His promises, because the Word of God—the record that we have for the ages—says that He cannot lie. He could not do it if He had to.
He is the One who has promised. Hebrews 6:17–19 says:
Wherein God, being minded to show more abundantly unto the heirs of the promise the immutability of His counsel, interposed with an oath;
that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have a strong encouragement.
It is impossible for God to lie. Do you think this is just ink on the page? This is God’s Word. It is impossible for Him to lie.
How good that is. We have His Word, brothers and sisters. You do not have my word. You have His Word.
It used to be in the old days—and I am not that old—that a man’s word was his honor. We have sort of lost that, with this new invention of what the meaning of “is” is.
But we do not have a man’s word. We have His Word. This is how you can live the Christian life.
I have one of my all-time favorite stories about Napoleon. There are lots of stories about Napoleon.
Napoleon was once reading something, and he dropped the reins of his horse. The horse reared up and was about to pounce on the emperor. Some brave corporal rushed to his rescue, grabbed the reins, and brought the horse under control.
The emperor was very grateful. You would be too.
The emperor looked squarely into the corporal’s eyes and said, “Captain.” The corporal was stunned. He said, “Captain? Of whose guard?”
The emperor said, “You are captain of my guard.” This young corporal took his musket, threw it away, ran to the officers, ripped the corporal stripes from his shoulders, and stood before the officers saying, “I am captain of the guard.”
Can you imagine what the colonel must have thought? He said, “What do you mean? I can still see the places where the corporal stripes were. Upon whose word are you captain of the guard? Who told you that you could be captain of the guard?”
He said to that colonel, “The emperor’s word.” It was enough.
Do you understand? Exceeding great and precious promises. His Word—it is enough.
It tells us, in closing, what is the purpose of these exceeding great and precious promises. Look at verse 4, the last part:
That through these ye may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world by lust.
Brothers and sisters, this is the design of the promises: that we human beings—those who were once enemies and aliens to God—we human beings could become partakers of the divine nature.
Is that not the ultimate of ultimate promises?
Now, do not take this where it is not taken. Do not start to think you are a little Christ all of a sudden. Do not think you are divine all of a sudden. Read it in context.
You are partakers of the divine nature. You are in the life. He is in you. This is how we can live the Christian life.
This is the exceeding great and precious promises. How, then, is it possible to live the Christian life?
If we receive this like precious faith, if we know His divine power—not our power—if we stand upon the basis of His exceeding great and precious promises, and if by these we are constantly partaking of Christ Himself, then Christ lives in us.
To me, this is the secret.
Shall we pray?
Lord, we just come back to You, and we know that whenever human beings touch Your Word, something is lost. But Lord, we are appealing to You by the Holy Spirit that You would illumine to us this secret that these dear ones discovered, and that we would know it as our own.
May we be those as well who can declare that we have received this like precious faith; that we would know, meditate upon, and apprehend these exceeding great and precious promises; and then, by them, we would partake of Your very life.
This is our prayer, in Jesus’ name. Amen.