One of the great things about reading and studying the Bible is the directions and guidance we can find for our daily lives. In 2 Peter chapter 1, we find several verses that give us some instruction for increasing our faith.
“…make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:5-8)
In these verses, we see that Peter is addressing those who have faith in God, because he says “supplement” or “add to” your faith. Many people when they become a Christian, act like that’s all they need to do – believe in God, and then they can just go on about their normal daily life without making any changes or ever doing anything else. Peter however, says here that we need to ADD to our faith. True faith in God is the FOUNDATION for our life, but we need to build upon it. And so, Peter gives us several things that we should add to our faith in God:
1. Virtue, or courage – whereby we can conquer all enemies and difficulties, and follow in our lives whatever faith in God asks of us.
2. Knowledge – true wisdom from God, by which our faith will be increased and our courage directed.
3. Self-Control – with which we can abstain from the pleasures of sin and taking up our cross daily – follow Jesus Christ.
4. Steadfastness – patience and perseverance to continue on and grow in our faith, to not give up, and to stay true to that which God has called us.
5. Godliness – a continual sense of God’s presence in our lives, and learning to follow Him completely in ALL that we do and say.
6. Brotherly Affection – having a love for fellow believers and those who also share our faith in Jesus Christ.
7. Love – also, having love for our enemies, strangers, and others whom we do not even know. Learning to love as Jesus loves us.
Peter directs us to add all of these things to our faith in God. And, if we are continually adding and improving these things in our lives, they will help us to know God better and will increase our relationship with Him and with His Son, Jesus Christ.
The Christian life isn’t just believing in God and then coasting along on an easy chair the rest of our life. It is a daily growth experience. It is continued dependence upon Almighty God. In fact, the more we grow closer to Him, the more we depend upon Him, until we soon realize that without Him we can do NOTHING!
In the next verse (verse 9) of that passage, Peter goes on and warns us, “For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.” If we fail to add these important things to our faith, and we fail to grow in our relationship with God – we’re groping along blindly in the Christian life, and we’ve even forgotten the fact that Jesus died for us!
The Christian life with Jesus Christ is meant to be an awesome and amazing experience as we grow daily in our faith and in our relationship with Him. Give Him everything, seek Him with all your heart, and daily increase your faith and trust in Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we could ask or think.