His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life …
2 Peter 1:3 (NIV)
This verse and the one that follows are such beautiful verses to me. Perhaps part of the reason is because every time I read them I start singing that old Acapella song in my mind which is derived from them (it’s called Everything We Need). But the content of the verse itself is so abundantly beautiful that it should lead us to wonder and awe at His goodness to us.
The words cited above make an emphatic statement that we can live this life He has called us to live. We can’t do this by our own strength; we have shown ourselves to be abundantly weak and lacking in ability and fortitude. But God has given us everything we need. It all comes from Him. This should lead us to thanks and worship … and it should lead us to a godly life.
He tells us this comes by our knowing Him, and a big part of our coming to know Him is through our experience of Him as the faithful One who always keeps His promises. In our seeking after knowledge, it is not simply about getting information about God. Rather we are seeking to know Him.
Following this passage backwards (vs 3-4), we can see how this process works. We grow to have more godly character as we trust in God to keep His promises to us. We exhibit this trust by walking in the peace of our forgiveness and by stepping out in faith wherever His promises assure us that He will show up. As He fulfills these promises to us, we experience His faithfulness, His love, His good character (or in the words of Peter, His glory and goodness). And having that experience of His glory and goodness through His promises is how we get to know Him beyond simply knowing information about Him.
That’s why we can say that by knowing Him we most assuredly can live a godly life in Christ Jesus, because that life rests on His promises which rest on the very character of God.
– Deryk Pritchard, Preacher