Sharing In the Nature of God

October 20, 2015

Sharing In the Nature of God

“. . . for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.”

2 Peter 2:9

Peter’s second epistle discusses three obstacles in our path to becoming the people God created us to be.

The first obstacle is within us. Life in Christ is living life dependent on God for all things. Dependence on God only comes at the end of our independence. It’s all a matter of control, or who is in control of our lives: us or God.

The second obstacle is the culture of our society. Essentially, the ways of the world are opposite to the ways of God. As long as we are alive, the world will have a certain allure for us. The Christian is always tempted to compromise some part of their life and yield to the ways of the world around them.

The third obstacle is within the vast Christian community. Some parts of the church universal teach that you are destined for hell if you drink, smoke, or dance. Another part says God intended you to be rich, so focus on using God to get your needs and wants met. Another part says all you have to do is keep certain rules. Another part says grace covers everything, and there is no sin, and certainly there are no rules. Some of these churches are sincere. Some are not. Some of these churches teach truth. Some do not. Some are sincere, but are not teaching truth. Some are insincere and not teaching truth.

Jesus never said it would be easy to follow him. He made it abundantly clear that following him will bring many challenges. Second Peter identifies the challenges, but it also affirms the glorious nature of the One we are following. Jesus is all powerful and will not be defeated. He is able to fulfill his promises.      Jesus shows us the life God created us to live, and then empowers us to live it as the beloved children of God. Jesus fulfills all of the promises of God for the benefit of his followers. Jesus is our refuge and strength, a very present help in our time of need as we seek to escape from the corruption of the world around us. Jesus makes it possible for us to share in the nature of God. As one of his earliest followers said, “Jesus became what we are, to make us what He is.” (See 1 Corinthians 1:30-31 and 2 Corinthians 5:21)

As I meditate on the Glorious Nature of Jesus, the obstacles in my path do not seem insurmountable.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.