2 Peter 1:5-7
5For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.
5For this very reason...
This verse reminds us of the previous verses which are described in the previous post: We have escaped sin through Christ Jesus and now have all things that pertain to life in godliness so that we may cling to God's promises and become more like Christ in our Christian walk.
...supplement your...
The word supplement simply means "add to". The next list is a progression of how we are to grow, for if you are "adding" onto something then you are increasing a.k.a growing.
Faith
Of course the life of a Christian begins with faith, that is, saving faith. But I believe there is dual sense of this faith. While we never lose saving faith and never move on from saving faith, there is a sense that, once we have faith in Christ, we now expand that faith to include God's promises for us (in the previous post I talk about how all of God's promises (c.f. vs.4) flow out of the essential promise of believing in Christ for eternal salvation).
Virtue
My bible has a footnote for virtue, it says it can also be considered "excellence." If you remember from the previous post, excellence was defined as the summation of God's character. So, what do you do when you are regenerated by the Holy Spirit and come to saving faith? Isn't there a desire born in you to rid yourself of sin; to change your character so that you no longer participate in former sins? This is a God-given desire to become more like him and we must have this desire to grow; our roots of faith shoot upward to become the tree planted by streams of flowing water (Psalm 1).
Knowledge
How does one grow in their desire to become like God and simultaneously change their sinful ways if they don't know how? Thus, it necessarily follows that we must supplement our desire for excellence with the knowledge of how to attain it! What better place do you get knowledge than from the bible itself? It is God's written word; His revelation of who He is and what His plans are for us! Though the bible is the ultimate authority for us, valuable help and insight can be gleaned from other Christians (we will see this later in the progression).
Self-Control
Now you are dangerous. Not only have you grown in a desire to put away sin and become more like Christ but you have the know-how to do so. So you start mortifying sin and putting it away. But what happens when you fall, when you fail in a moment of temptation and sin that same old sin again? Thankfully, we have a solid foundation of faith in Christ Jesus and we have forgiveness of all sins! But the reason you may have failed is because you lack self-control. We still battle against the flesh even after saving faith, therefore, even the desire to become like God and the know-how is not enough. We must supplement our knowledge with self -control. Self-control says "no" to pursuing sin and "yes" to pursuing God.
Steadfastness
Now is a time for celebration! You faced down temptation, you exercised self-control and you have supplemented your knowledge and virtue with manifest results! When you grow in self-control this leads to consistency in facing down temptation; it leads to consistency in persevering through prolonged periods of trials and suffering. When your are consistent you are steadfast. Steadfastness is another attribute of our heavenly father; when you prove yourself steadfast you grow even more in your virtue because you are practicing a character trait of God!
Godliness
Once you have begun putting away your sin and changing into a more merciful, forgiving, compassionate, etc.. person you become Godly, i.e, "like God." Not only do you have the desire and knowledge but you have consistently practiced it and lived it out. Mere knowledge and desire are not enough, the fruit that is produced from self-control and consequent steadfastness blossoms into our godliness and achieves the glory of God while giving us peace!
Brotherly Affection
As I mentioned before under "knowledge," other Christians can be means of grace through which God helps us in our progressive sanctification. This is what brotherly affection is! When we have practiced godliness we have a desire to help others. It is difficult to help others when you are struggling with a particular sin; it is hard to remove the speck from your brother's eye when there is a plank protruding from your own! That is why godliness, the blossom of self-control and steadfastness, is supplemented by brotherly affection; because we are ready to come up alongside our brothers and sisters and bear their burdens!
Love
Love is the last piece; it is the keystone. Notice how our temple of Christian living was founded upon the cornerstone of faith, Jesus Christ, and how it is finished by the keystone of love. And who was the ultimate example of love? "By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us..." (1 Jhn. 3:16) Jesus Christ is how we know love! Do you see how Christian growth comes full circle? It starts with the gospel and ends with the gospel and, as we shall see in later verses, the gospel permeates every aspect within that circle of growth!
5For this very reason...
This verse reminds us of the previous verses which are described in the previous post: We have escaped sin through Christ Jesus and now have all things that pertain to life in godliness so that we may cling to God's promises and become more like Christ in our Christian walk.
...supplement your...
The word supplement simply means "add to". The next list is a progression of how we are to grow, for if you are "adding" onto something then you are increasing a.k.a growing.
Faith
Of course the life of a Christian begins with faith, that is, saving faith. But I believe there is dual sense of this faith. While we never lose saving faith and never move on from saving faith, there is a sense that, once we have faith in Christ, we now expand that faith to include God's promises for us (in the previous post I talk about how all of God's promises (c.f. vs.4) flow out of the essential promise of believing in Christ for eternal salvation).
Virtue
My bible has a footnote for virtue, it says it can also be considered "excellence." If you remember from the previous post, excellence was defined as the summation of God's character. So, what do you do when you are regenerated by the Holy Spirit and come to saving faith? Isn't there a desire born in you to rid yourself of sin; to change your character so that you no longer participate in former sins? This is a God-given desire to become more like him and we must have this desire to grow; our roots of faith shoot upward to become the tree planted by streams of flowing water (Psalm 1).
Knowledge
How does one grow in their desire to become like God and simultaneously change their sinful ways if they don't know how? Thus, it necessarily follows that we must supplement our desire for excellence with the knowledge of how to attain it! What better place do you get knowledge than from the bible itself? It is God's written word; His revelation of who He is and what His plans are for us! Though the bible is the ultimate authority for us, valuable help and insight can be gleaned from other Christians (we will see this later in the progression).
Self-Control
Now you are dangerous. Not only have you grown in a desire to put away sin and become more like Christ but you have the know-how to do so. So you start mortifying sin and putting it away. But what happens when you fall, when you fail in a moment of temptation and sin that same old sin again? Thankfully, we have a solid foundation of faith in Christ Jesus and we have forgiveness of all sins! But the reason you may have failed is because you lack self-control. We still battle against the flesh even after saving faith, therefore, even the desire to become like God and the know-how is not enough. We must supplement our knowledge with self -control. Self-control says "no" to pursuing sin and "yes" to pursuing God.
Steadfastness
Now is a time for celebration! You faced down temptation, you exercised self-control and you have supplemented your knowledge and virtue with manifest results! When you grow in self-control this leads to consistency in facing down temptation; it leads to consistency in persevering through prolonged periods of trials and suffering. When your are consistent you are steadfast. Steadfastness is another attribute of our heavenly father; when you prove yourself steadfast you grow even more in your virtue because you are practicing a character trait of God!
Godliness
Once you have begun putting away your sin and changing into a more merciful, forgiving, compassionate, etc.. person you become Godly, i.e, "like God." Not only do you have the desire and knowledge but you have consistently practiced it and lived it out. Mere knowledge and desire are not enough, the fruit that is produced from self-control and consequent steadfastness blossoms into our godliness and achieves the glory of God while giving us peace!
Brotherly Affection
As I mentioned before under "knowledge," other Christians can be means of grace through which God helps us in our progressive sanctification. This is what brotherly affection is! When we have practiced godliness we have a desire to help others. It is difficult to help others when you are struggling with a particular sin; it is hard to remove the speck from your brother's eye when there is a plank protruding from your own! That is why godliness, the blossom of self-control and steadfastness, is supplemented by brotherly affection; because we are ready to come up alongside our brothers and sisters and bear their burdens!
Love
Love is the last piece; it is the keystone. Notice how our temple of Christian living was founded upon the cornerstone of faith, Jesus Christ, and how it is finished by the keystone of love. And who was the ultimate example of love? "By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us..." (1 Jhn. 3:16) Jesus Christ is how we know love! Do you see how Christian growth comes full circle? It starts with the gospel and ends with the gospel and, as we shall see in later verses, the gospel permeates every aspect within that circle of growth!
