Looking at 2 Peter 1:5-7:
- 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.
we have been focusing on each addition to our faith one study at a time.
Someone else facilitated the first couple of weeks, but here are links to the study sheets I handed out since then.
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
My two main sources for these notes were:
- blueletterbible.org, which I used for Greek translations and searching the scriptures
- A small prison ministry study guide my father-in-law had on this study authored by Paul Carlin of the Prisoners Bible Institute, Inc of Crockett, TX.
Those were the lessons we went through before my first blog entry on the study. Now that I have you caught up, I'll be posting shortly some thoughts on the most recent study regarding brotherly kindness.
Feel free to save, use, edit, or print and burn any of the notes I've linked you to. Sorry I don't have a sheet for faith or goodness. Since I didn't lead the first 2 weeks, I didn't prepare notes for them.
If you have any comments about these virtues or the study in general, I'd love to read them and discuss.
Posts
3 comments:
First of all, referencing your source for "Greek translation" is a bit over the top. You are a lay person. Embrace it.
For me, the crucial text of the verses is "But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins."
Moving forward through these spiritual qualities without this final reminder will ultimately lead to one of two kinds of Christians.
The guilt-laden Christian who feels he can't live up to God's standards (or the world's interpretation of His standards).
or...
The Pharisee Christian who looks down in judgment on all those who don't follow the rules the way he believes they should be followed.
Can you tell I recently completed a study on The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges?
Pedro,
First of all, thanks for the grace, buddy. Maybe you need to try that study again! But don't take my suggestion too seriously because I don't want you to become guilt-laden or think that I'm a pharisee.
Secondly, Greek translation is where it's at. Where have you been?
And now seriously:
This has been a great foundational study for our group. We're all long time Christians but it's nice to go back and look at some basics to ensure our foundation is firm and we are growing. I can tell you that with each one of these virtues, we have realized we are not able to live up to God's standards. But we know that he calls us to be perfect even as he is perfect and we also know that no one can be perfect - it's only by the grace of God. We're examining our own lives here - no one else's - and we're saying "hey, here are some areas where I can grow with God's help."
I think your crucial text is crucial. Peter tells us if we're not adding to our faith these things then we've forgotten our salvation. Because to be cleansed is to be wholly removed from what is unclean. In remembering that cleansing we remember what was cleaned off of us, and we should then desire to remain clean. And because of what I see as a crucial text in this passage - "His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness" - we can be encouraged that we are enabled.
Thank God for his grace! It is of course by his grace alone that we are saved. And why does he bother? Because we are his prized creation that he created anew in Christ Jesus to do good works he had already planned for us long ago.
Post a Comment