Adding to Our Faith

Our series of articles has been building the case that faith was never meant to remain idle or static, but to grow intentionally into a complete and fruitful Christian character. By first establishing the foundation of grace & peace — then faith, virtue, and knowledge, we have seen that spiritual growth is both God-enabled and personally pursued with diligence. Now, as we turn to adding self-control, we do so understanding that knowledge must shape behavior — because genuine faith matures when what we know about Christ begins to govern how we live. Recent Articles: What About Faith | Grace and Peace | But Also For This Very Reason | Add to Your Faith – Virtue | Add to Your Faith – Knowledge It is our goal to establish that while we may not know much about virtue in the beginning, we will gain virtue as we add knowledge. Similarly, we will find that self-control is related to knowledge. Let us read 2 Peter 1:5–9 again: But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. … Read more

We are several articles into a series on 2 Peter 1:1-11: Adding to Our Faith Recent Articles:What About Faith | Grace and Peace | But Also For This Very Reason | Add to Your Faith – Virtue Today we turn our attention to the second of the seven qualities found in 2 Peter 1:5–7. Peter writes: “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.” In our last article, we saw that we must be diligent to add virtue to our faith. Peter’s list is progressive—each quality building on the one before it. Once we begin adding virtue (moral excellence) to our faith, we then build upon that virtue by adding knowledge. But immediately, a question arises. Peter calls us to knowledge, yet Paul warns in 1 Corinthians 8:1 … Read more

“But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.” 2 Peter 1:5–7 Especially for the new Christian, this is one of the most important passages in the New Testament. It is not addressed to the person who is seeking how to be saved, but to the Christian who desires to grow — who longs to become stronger and draw nearer to his Sovereign Lord. Faith is certainly the foundation of all that pertains to our Christian life. As we are reminded in Hebrews 11:6, “without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Peter opens his second epistle by addressing those “who have obtained like precious faith” and assures us that God’s divine power “has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:1–3). It is because of this gracious provision that Peter begins, “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith…” … Read more

2 Peter 1:5 begins with a phrase that deserves our careful attention: “But also for this very reason.” These words do not stand alone. They reach backward, connecting what Peter is about to say with what he has already established. To understand the call to diligence that follows, we must first appreciate the reason that makes such diligence necessary. Our study continues from our last article (Grace and Peace), focused on 2 Peter 1:2–3, where Peter reminds his readers of the abundant provision God has already made. He opens with a blessing: “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” Grace and peace are not merely granted; they are multiplied through knowledge — knowledge rooted in God’s revelation of Himself through His Word. Peter goes on to affirm that God’s divine power has given us “all things that pertain to life and godliness.” Nothing essential is lacking. Our physical needs and our spiritual needs are fully supplied, and they are supplied through knowing Him who called us by glory and virtue. This knowledge is not abstract or theoretical; it is transformational. We should take note of verse 4, where Peter speaks … Read more

2 Peter 1:2–3 “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.” One translation concludes verse three with the words, “who called us by His own glory and excellence.” From the opening of this letter, Peter offers more than a polite greeting. He speaks a blessing — one that points directly to the life God desires for His people. “Grace and peace be multiplied to you.” These words appear often in the New Testament. Paul, Peter, and John regularly begin their letters this way, sometimes adding mercy as well. One writer observed that grace was a familiar Greek greeting, while peace was a traditional Hebrew one. When the apostles joined them together, they did more than combine cultures — they deepened the meaning. And since multiple writers use the same blessing, the wisdom behind it is best attributed not to human creativity, but to the Holy Spirit. Grace and peace are not simply polite wishes. They describe the condition of a heart shaped by … Read more