“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” (2 Peter 3:18, ESV)
My parents love to grow different flowers and plants. Every year, they set aside an area of their backyard to grow tomato plants. They also grow flowers like Hibiscus. Every now and then, they run into problems. Sometimes, the winters are so harsh that perennials are damaged. The plants just won’t grow. The flowers won’t appear. Buds won’t form. When the plants seem to struggle, lack the ability to flower, or die back, they call on a relative who has studied extensively in gardening and soil management. Often, what they find is that the soil is missing a nutrient, there is too little sun, or the weeds have stifled growth. When the problem is corrected, often there is a growth spurt in the plants and an increased harvest.
The spiritual life is a lot like my parent’s garden. There can be periods of growth and decline. Sometimes, harsh times can stifle growth. The lack of good nutrition or exercise or rest can often lead not only to physical problems or disease, but the loss of spiritual vitality. As weeds can stifle the growth of plants if not cut back, little sins and bad habits can decrease spiritual strength or enjoyment if not eliminated. Plants need certain nutrients to blossom or produce fruit. The spiritual life also needs certain conditions to grow and produce spiritual fruit. Even Jesus noticed commonalities between plant care and spiritual formation. That is why He spoke of reaping and sowing, mustard seeds, the fig tree, and many other aspects of plant life in his parables and teachings!
The second letter of Peter contains the scripture for today. In 2 Peter 3:18, there is found a command to “grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…”. Yes, in the original Greek of this verse, the word “grow” is a command not just a regular verb. That means that Peter expected Christians who read his words to “grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus”. It was not a suggestion but a demand. Why did Peter use the word “grow” as a demand and command? Because, like plants, the spiritual life will not grow and bloom without the purposeful work and intention of the follower of Jesus. The greatest growth in faith does not come without care, effort, time, and patience just as in nature.
In my second church, I became very close to a member of the congregation. He and I traveled to a conference together. For several hours in the car, driving to and from the conference each day, we talked about our history and family and work and church projects. The conversations also drifted to spiritual issues, favorite Bible passages, and Bible study. At one point, the member spoke about his dislike of reading the Bible. He said parts of the Bible were difficult to understand. He expressed frustration when he made a New Year’s resolution to read the Bible every day for a year, which lasted about two weeks before he gave up.
After listening to the member’s complaint, I asked, “You are a farmer. Does it take a lot of time and patience and hard work and knowledge to be a good farmer?”
“Of course,” he replied. “Anybody who says different isn’t doing it right!” he said as he beamed with pride. He was a great farmer, with large lands and very good yields.
I responded, “What would you say to a friend of mine who gave up on farming because it took too much hard work and patience?”
The farmer responded, “I’d say he needs to get dedicated and learn more about the land and the crops.”
I turned to him with a smile and teased, “Well, the same thing could be said to a man who gave up on reading his Bible after two weeks. You need to get dedicated and learn more about what you are reading! And, I’d love to teach you some awesome things about your Bible and our Lord!”
Not only did we become good friends on that trip, that farmer never missed a Bible study class at that church. He became one of my most dedicated Bible students, showing his desire to be closer to Jesus and learn more about the depths of God’s Word.
In the letters Peter wrote that are found in our Bible, he included warnings against false prophets and false teachers in the churches (2 Peter 2:1). Peter believed that growing in the “grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ” helped not only to bring one closer to God, but it also prevented the spread of lies and falsehoods in the church. The Believer’s Bible Commentary makes note of this when it reads, “Peter teaches that continued progress in divine things is a great protection against the peril of false teachers. There must be a twofold growth—in grace and in knowledge. Grace is the practical demonstration of the fruit of the Spirit. Growth in grace is not increased head knowledge or tireless activity; it is increasing likeness to the Lord Jesus. Knowledge means acquaintance with the Lord through the word. Growth in knowledge means increasing study of and subjection to His words, works, and ways.” (William MacDonald, p. 2304). Faithfulness involves continually growing in grace and knowledge of Jesus for your own spiritual formation as well as for the health and prosperity of the wider church.
In her reading of this scripture, Diana Wallis made the following conclusion: “The tendency of the heart, even in the best, to depart from God furnishes powerful reason for the exhortation to grow in grace, for in religion, there is no such thing as standing still. A Christian who makes no advancement is going backward. The only course of safety, therefore, as well as comfort, is to make vigorous efforts to grow in grace.” (Take Heart, p. 379). Based on her understanding, either you are growing in your faith or you are declining. There is no standing still. Your knowledge of spiritual things is either increasing or it will falter and wither on the vine.
If Jesus were to ask you today whether your faith is increasing or faltering, what would you say? If HE would question whether your knowledge of God is growing or declining, how would you respond? Do you spend the time to grow in the knowledge of God’s Word? Does your prayer life need a little fertilizer or a complete transplant? Is your spiritual life growing by leaps and bounds or in a death spiral? How would you characterize your spiritual life from God’s perspective? Does it resemble a healthy hibiscus, growing more beautiful each day? Or is it more like a weedy garden, needing a lot of effort and a good deal of patience?
The spiritual life is a lot like my parent’s garden. There can be periods of growth and decline. Sometimes, harsh times can stifle growth. The lack of good nutrition or exercise or rest can often lead not only to physical problems or disease, but the loss of spiritual vitality. As weeds can stifle the growth of plants if not cut back, little sins and bad habits can decrease spiritual strength or enjoyment if not eliminated. Plants need certain nutrients to blossom or produce fruit. The spiritual life also needs certain conditions to grow and produce spiritual fruit. Even Jesus noticed commonalities between plant care and spiritual formation. That is why He spoke of reaping and sowing, mustard seeds, the fig tree, and many other aspects of plant life in his parables and teachings!
The second letter of Peter contains the scripture for today. In 2 Peter 3:18, there is found a command to “grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…”. Yes, in the original Greek of this verse, the word “grow” is a command not just a regular verb. That means that Peter expected Christians who read his words to “grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus”. It was not a suggestion but a demand. Why did Peter use the word “grow” as a demand and command? Because, like plants, the spiritual life will not grow and bloom without the purposeful work and intention of the follower of Jesus. The greatest growth in faith does not come without care, effort, time, and patience just as in nature.
In my second church, I became very close to a member of the congregation. He and I traveled to a conference together. For several hours in the car, driving to and from the conference each day, we talked about our history and family and work and church projects. The conversations also drifted to spiritual issues, favorite Bible passages, and Bible study. At one point, the member spoke about his dislike of reading the Bible. He said parts of the Bible were difficult to understand. He expressed frustration when he made a New Year’s resolution to read the Bible every day for a year, which lasted about two weeks before he gave up.
After listening to the member’s complaint, I asked, “You are a farmer. Does it take a lot of time and patience and hard work and knowledge to be a good farmer?”
“Of course,” he replied. “Anybody who says different isn’t doing it right!” he said as he beamed with pride. He was a great farmer, with large lands and very good yields.
I responded, “What would you say to a friend of mine who gave up on farming because it took too much hard work and patience?”
The farmer responded, “I’d say he needs to get dedicated and learn more about the land and the crops.”
I turned to him with a smile and teased, “Well, the same thing could be said to a man who gave up on reading his Bible after two weeks. You need to get dedicated and learn more about what you are reading! And, I’d love to teach you some awesome things about your Bible and our Lord!”
Not only did we become good friends on that trip, that farmer never missed a Bible study class at that church. He became one of my most dedicated Bible students, showing his desire to be closer to Jesus and learn more about the depths of God’s Word.
In the letters Peter wrote that are found in our Bible, he included warnings against false prophets and false teachers in the churches (2 Peter 2:1). Peter believed that growing in the “grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ” helped not only to bring one closer to God, but it also prevented the spread of lies and falsehoods in the church. The Believer’s Bible Commentary makes note of this when it reads, “Peter teaches that continued progress in divine things is a great protection against the peril of false teachers. There must be a twofold growth—in grace and in knowledge. Grace is the practical demonstration of the fruit of the Spirit. Growth in grace is not increased head knowledge or tireless activity; it is increasing likeness to the Lord Jesus. Knowledge means acquaintance with the Lord through the word. Growth in knowledge means increasing study of and subjection to His words, works, and ways.” (William MacDonald, p. 2304). Faithfulness involves continually growing in grace and knowledge of Jesus for your own spiritual formation as well as for the health and prosperity of the wider church.
In her reading of this scripture, Diana Wallis made the following conclusion: “The tendency of the heart, even in the best, to depart from God furnishes powerful reason for the exhortation to grow in grace, for in religion, there is no such thing as standing still. A Christian who makes no advancement is going backward. The only course of safety, therefore, as well as comfort, is to make vigorous efforts to grow in grace.” (Take Heart, p. 379). Based on her understanding, either you are growing in your faith or you are declining. There is no standing still. Your knowledge of spiritual things is either increasing or it will falter and wither on the vine.
If Jesus were to ask you today whether your faith is increasing or faltering, what would you say? If HE would question whether your knowledge of God is growing or declining, how would you respond? Do you spend the time to grow in the knowledge of God’s Word? Does your prayer life need a little fertilizer or a complete transplant? Is your spiritual life growing by leaps and bounds or in a death spiral? How would you characterize your spiritual life from God’s perspective? Does it resemble a healthy hibiscus, growing more beautiful each day? Or is it more like a weedy garden, needing a lot of effort and a good deal of patience?