By WALTER ALBRITTON
RELIGION —
3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires – 2 Peter 1:3-4 (NLT).
What a beautiful phrase — “everything we need”. More beautiful still is the truth embodied in these three words. God has provided all we need to live the way He wants us to live.
Who says this? A man called Peter. The big fisherman who had a gift for putting his foot in his mouth. The disciple whose counsel Jesus rejected so strongly that he said, “Get behind me, Satan. You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men” (Matthew 16:23). The man who turned into a coward and a liar when Jesus was being mocked and treated cruelly by Roman soldiers. The outspoken leader of the disciples who was so afraid for his own life that he denied even knowing Jesus.
However, that is not the end of the story of Peter. Broken and ashamed by the chilling sound of the rooster crowing, Peter wept bitter tears of remorse and yielded to the life-changing power of God’s grace. God redeemed him, changing him from cowardly liar into a brave apostle of truth. God broke the chains of Peter’s sinful past and made him an impressive leader of the Christian movement that erupted from the resurrection of Jesus. Peter’s two New Testament letters flowed out of the maturity of a dynamic ministry that helped shape the future of the young church.
What great significance this story has for us. Since God is able to redeem a man like Peter and use him in a mighty way, He can do the same with our broken lives. Have you not identified, as I have, with Peter’s disgraceful foolishness and rejoiced that God can change flawed people into useful disciples? Have you not cried, as I have, “Lord, what you did for Peter, do it again for me. Take me, sorry as I am, and make me what you want me to be.”
Give thanks for God’s “great and precious promises” and that “divine power” which changes us from weaklings into strong Christ followers. Celebrate with me that it was Peter whom God chose to show us that, through Jesus, we have “everything we need” to live godly lives that reflect the glory of walking with Jesus. Using what God has provided, let’s purpose so to live that, in Peter’s words, we may “receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Think about it: everything we need! Glory.
