Peter wrote by The Holy Spirit in 2nd Peter chapter 1:
1 This letter is from Simeon Peter, a loving servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ. I am writing to those who have been given a faith as equally precious as ours through the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. 2 May grace and perfect peace cascade over you as you live in the rich knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
Peter wrote this letter to you and me to encourage us to live in the RICH KNOWLEDGE of FATHER and Our Lord Jesus. This richness is attainable and we are urged to walk in it daily. If we do, perfect peace and grace will overflow in us and begin to affect others around us. This overflow is an aspect of the Living Waters flowing out of our bellies and satisfying the thirst of those who sense an emptiness in their lives.
3 Everything we could ever need for life and Godliness has already been deposited in us by His Divine power. For all this was lavished upon us through the rich experience of knowing Him who has called us by name and invited us to come to Him through a glorious manifestation of His goodness. 4 As a result of this, He has given you magnificent promises that are beyond all price, so that through the power of these tremendous promises we can experience partnership with the Divine nature, by which you have escaped the corrupt desires that are of the world.
Jesus knows us because He knew us before we were formed in the womb. He was involved in creating our gifts and callings (Psalm 139:16). The angels have access to our books and they are aware of their appropriate ministry on our behalf. We all have riches deposited in us awaiting our use. Why let those riches sit in a dormant state when they can be used to benefit not only us but those around us? What does it take to access those riches? Our devotion to walk according to The Word in Holiness.
5 So devote yourselves to lavishly supplementing your faith with goodness,
and to goodness add understanding,
6 and to understanding add the strength of self-control,
and to self-control add patient endurance,
and to patient endurance add Godliness,
7 and to Godliness add mercy toward your brothers and sisters,
and to mercy toward others add unending Love.
In the final analysis, we are to express Agape Love to others. These virtues are fully attained as we devote ourselves to them. To devote means: to wholly focus, direct attention, to set apart, to dedicate. This is what I call “being all in”. These virtues are already deposited in us because we have The Holy Spirit living inside us awaiting our devotion. When we finally appreciate their importance, we will begin living life more abundantly and produce good fruit in all areas. This fruit will become observable to others and they will seek answers from us rather than the world. Peter continues:
8 Since these virtues are already planted deep within, and you possess them in abundant supply, they will keep you from being inactive or fruitless in your pursuit of knowing Jesus Christ more intimately. 9 But if anyone lacks these things, he is blind, constantly closing his eyes to the mysteries of our faith, and forgetting his innocence—for his past sins have been washed away.
We are all innocent because the Blood of Jesus washed our sins away. We must embrace this Truth and let go of the past once and for all. The adversary would like to keep us in the past where he was using us to promote his kingdom of darkness. He definitely does not want us to access what is on deposit within us.
10 For this reason, Beloved ones, be eager to confirm and validate that God has invited you to salvation and claimed you as HIS own. If you do these things, you will never stumble. 11 As a result, the Kingdom’s gates will open wide to you as God choreographs your triumphant entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Messiah.
We are urged to confirm and validate our walk with HIM. I purpose to do this daily as I begin the day praying in Tongues. This tells my soul and body WHO is in charge and it further activates those virtues inside of me. We must keep these deposited virtues before us and not allow ourselves to forget who we are in Christ.
12 I won’t hesitate to continually remind you of these Truths, even though you are aware of them and are well established in the present measure of Truth you have already embraced. 13 And as long as I live I will continue to awaken you with this reminder.
Life’s challenges can direct our focus to activities which are temporary in nature but demand our immediate attention. However, we must not allow ourselves to become lax in our commitment to walk in the virtues listed above. They are the solution to addressing all activities confronting us. We can either toil on our own or we can be led by The Holy Spirit and be totally fruitful in accomplishing our daily activities. It all depends on what we devote ourselves to on a daily basis. Our devotion will open the gates of Heaven on our behalf and we will walk in the fullness of FATHER’S eternal Kingdom. Those virtues on deposit will be fully activated for our use so there is no need to wait for some future event to occur. Now is the time!