Welcome to our study in Eternal Rewards, and we're up to study Number 11. This one we're looking at the Abundant Entrance into the Kingdom, and we're going to base the whole study out of a passage of scripture in 2 Peter 1:2-17.
2 Peter 1:2-17 – “Grace and peace be multiplied to you, in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which we've been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that's in the world through lust.
But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance or patience, to patience godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, to brotherly kindness love. And if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is short-sighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten he was cleansed from his old sins. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble or fall, and so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
So for this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I'm in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover, I'll be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.”
Peter is at a stage in his life where he knows, God has shown to him, that very shortly, he will die. When you know you're about to die, then what you're saying, and what you're sharing, are very important things. Notice there he's sharing with the church, reminding them of something he'd already taught them. We don't have the record of what he taught, but he said: “I think it's right, as long as I'm in this tent” (meaning while I'm alive) - I will stir you up. I will stir up your spirit. I'll stir up your passion. I'll stir up your zeal for God, by reminding you of these things. What we're going to study are the things that he's wanting to remind them of. He also says: I'll make sure, or I'll be careful to ensure you have a reminder of these things after my decease - this is why he's written the letter. He wants us to remember what he's been sharing, because it's very, very important. He's writing it so it won't be lost; and like all of these passages, we need some context for it - and so that's what we want to have a look at, first of all, by way of an introduction to this whole teaching again.
We're going to look firstly just at an introduction to this; and then secondly, we're going to look then through the passage at its context, and then how it applies to us. We've looked and studied Eternal Rewards; and at the whole concept of God's eternal purpose, something He planned long before the earth was created. Part of it includes giving pre-eminence to Jesus Christ; that Christ will be everywhere, and everything, admired, and honoured and understood who He is; and that He will have sons and daughters in His express image, who will work with Him in sharing His work in governing, and establishing the kingdom in the earth.
Romans 8:29, NLT: "For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters."
It's very clear that God predestined us, to be conformed to the image of His Son – “that He might be the firstborn among many brethren”. God's plan was predestined (planned); but we choose whether we're part of the plan. Predestined doesn't mean you've got no will or power to choose. You still choose, but God has a destiny, and He wants us to cooperate and flow with Him into that destiny.