In this post we will be continuing to look at “The Divine ladder to God.” As we as Christians follow Christ faithfully, there is a development of different virtues that are built into us as we are made into Christs image. We will see how the growth of the virtue of excellence in the believers life is coupled with two twin forms of knowledge.
2 Peter 1:5 – For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue,e and virtue with knowledge, 6and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.
VIRTUE’S CHILD IS KNOWLEDGE
A new Christian having heard the Call of the Spirit of God to become virtuous begins to exercise self-control in his life in order to develop excellence. For the believer who follows Jesus Christ, the development of Christian virtue, ( excellence) always leads to knowledge. A wise and sagacious knowledge! Virtue’s child is knowledge; a wise and sagacious knowledge.
On Sunday when he feels like sleeping-in early in the morning, instead, he gets up, splashes his face and goes to church to worship. He starts to pray for now he is developing a powerful prayer life. At the same time he is developing these excellent practices he is developing self-control. God wants his improvement in many different arenas of life.
As he, ( or she) develops excellence, he will be led by the Spirit of God into different situations to be tested. This testing, for instance, could be a work environment. A hostile environment where everybody mocks his Christian faith and tries to bring him down. A man I know was working in a scientific environment and his immediate supervisor tried to remove him from the Company he was working for. One day the supervisor spoke abruptly to him in the hearing of other staff. He said “ I’m going to get you dismissed from this company”. This man however knew that God had given him the position. He had also had a history with God where he had learned from experience that God was his deliverer and defender, He replied to the supervisor, “You can’t dismiss me because God gave me this job and you are not able to get rid of me”. This Christian man stayed for several years working in that environment and proved himself an excellent worker. God will take the Christian through various scenarios where he learns that God is his defender. This knowledge of God’s deliverance in all circumstances is part of the knowledge that is developed and spoken of in first Peter, chapter one, verse 5
TWO TWIN KINDS OF KNOWLEDGE
There are two twin kinds of knowledge that are now being developed in the Christian’s life. One form of knowledge is knowledge of the scriptures. God speaks to him through the scriptures truth. This kind of knowledge is not directly related to the kind of knowledge gained in the trials of life. In this kind of knowledge, the truth of God as he reads the scriptures demolishes many lies he has believed in his pre-conversion life. As he reads the scriptures God gives him many truth filled promises. According to verse four, as he believes these promises and claims them for his own something wonderful happens. He partakes more and more of the Divine nature.
2 Peter 1:4 – He , (God). has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.
As precious scripture truths seep sweetly into his life and heart; this helps him to live in an atmosphere of heaven. The Christians knowledge of God’s truth puts him or her in a ‘climate; that promotes spiritual love and holiness.
WISDOM FROM LIFE’S BATTLE
But another form of knowledge is that received practically by seeing God’s deliverance. There is wisdom from life’s battle. God delivers the Christian from the many trials as He takes him through the various scenarios of life. Let’s consider for instance. the life of King David who had been a shepherd boy who cared for sheep. God anointed him with His Spirit and called him to be king over Israel. There came a time when the children of Israel were being mocked by a man named Goliath.
One day after another, the giant Goliath mocked the children of his Israel. His presence made all Isreallites knees tremble and nobody was willing to fight him. He was indeed a Formidable enemy. But David could not forget the times when as he was watching the sheep a lion or a bear came out to kill them. David could not forget that at those hours the power of the Almighty would come upon him and with his bare hands he could tear the bear or lion apart.
King Saul said to David, “ “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for you are but a youth, and he has been a man of war from his youth.” ( 1 Samuel 17:33)
David took no notice of Saul’s derisive comments. TheGod’s power in delivering his flock had added to his faith a certainty in God’s power to deliver. David proclaimed………..
Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, 35 I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. 36 Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.” 37 And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine. (1 Samuel 17:34 ).
As David stood before the Very fearful and formidable Goliath David uttered these glorious words in faith.
You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, 47 and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand.” (1 Samuel 17:45 thru 47)
And then with a single sling shot David defeated and killed Goliath, He had learned the secret of faith and victory from knowledge gained by a life immersed in the Word of God. He had also learned the secret of faith and victory from a certain knowledge of a history he had lived, showing him that in every adverse circumstance God was his supply.
In the next Lesson we will learn how that this knowledge leads to self control.
So we can see in verse 4 that knowledge develops self-control. in other words Knowledge develops the ability not too panic. in the early days of a Christian’s life he may find that it is very easy to panic; find it very easy not to trust God as he should. but as the Lord takes him through the scriptures and through the trials of life the Christian will learn that god gives you the victory in every single situation that comes against him or her.
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