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This morning we continue our series, “Grace that is Simply Amazing” by continuing with our mini-series entitled, “Growing in Grace.” After taking his time to drive home the fact that believers should grow in grace by growing in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Apostle Peter said the following:
“Because the stakes are so high, even though you’re up-to-date on all this truth and practice it inside and out, I’m not going to let up for a minute in calling you to attention before it. This is the post to which I’ve been assigned-keeping you alert with frequent reminders-and I’m sticking to it as long as I live. I know that I’m to die soon; the Master has made that quite clear to me. And so I am especially eager that you have all this down in black and white so that after I die, you’ll have it for ready reference” (2 Peter 1:12-15 Message Bible).
Over the next few days we will study this passage. For today I want to focus in on this statement: “Because the stakes are so high, even though you’re up-to-date on all this truth and practice it inside and out, I’m not going to let up for a minute in calling you to attention before it.” Another translation reads, “You already know these things. You are very strong in the truth you have. But I am always going to help you remember them.”
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. The enemy is after your purpose. Peter explained his repeated reminders by saying that he provided them “Because the stakes are so high.” The stakes were high back then and they are still high today. The enemy is after you, but he is not after you because of you. Satan is not intimidated by your personal strength, power or influence. Actually, satan is happy if you are living your life based on your own ability and effort. He will leave you alone if you are pursuing happiness with your own strength. But when you start submitting to God, and allowing God to use you by grace to accomplish His Kingdom plans and purposes for your life, then know that satan will come against you. The attack is against your purpose. Satan does not want you to accomplish what were you born to accomplish. That is why Peter urged us to grow in grace. The stakes are high. The attack is against your divine assignment. You can’t handle the attacks on your own, but you can handle every attack when you rely on the grace of God!
2. Without Godly reminders we run the risk of straying from God’s best. The prophet Isaiah said, “All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us all” (Isa 53:6). Isaiah was talking about our need of a Savior, but let me tell you that even after you are saved, even after you are Born-Again, every one of us runs the risk of going astray. When we veer off course, Godly reminders help us to make the course corrections necessary to get back on God’s desired path for our lives.
3. Godly reminders are a safeguard. The Apostle Paul said, “It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is actually a safeguard for you” (Phil 3:1). It did not bother Paul to write the same things over and over again, because he knew we needed to hear it over and over again. My mother must have been related to Paul. I remember growing up in Brooklyn where the ungodly influences were plenteous and the motivations to do right were scarce. My mother knew the dangers of associating with the wrong people, so almost every day, just before I walked out the door, she would say to me, “Son, show me who you hang with and I will tell you who you are.” Her message was both a warning and a reminder to choose friends wisely. Well, her persistence paid off and although I was often surrounded by smorgasbord of illegal drugs and alcohol, I never took drugs, I did not even taste alcohol until after I joined the Army, and to this day I have never even taken a puff of a cigarette. My mother’s constant reminders kept me safe. That’s what I believe the Lord is doing with this series. For the past 22 months I have been teaching on grace, over and over again. Like Paul I can say, “It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is actually a safeguard for you.”
Closing Confession: Father, I thank You for taking the time to give me Godly reminders, over and over again. Your persistence and dedication towards me, even during those times when I did not want anything to do with You, is what has kept me on the path to Your best. I have not always done the right things. I have gotten off course more times than I want to remember. But Your constant reminders have helped me to get back on the path to Your best. Your dedication to me and to the purpose You placed in me before the world began brings me both comfort and peace. I don’t grow weary because of Your reminders. I receive them, accept them, and apply them, and I enjoy the safety found in your instruction. I am determined to make the most of the life You gave me and my determination is fueled by Your dedication to me. Not by my might, but by Your strength. Not because of my goodness, but because of Your grace. I enter this day and the rest of my life confident that I will arrive at Your desired destination for me, before I die, by Your grace. I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
