2 Peter 1:2 Peace

Continuing our look at 2 Peter 1 – the first few verses. 2 Days ago I was focusing on the issue of the journey Peter calls us to – from faith to love, but there is another secret found in verse 2 when we see it in the Amplified version. Note: the six components of true peace:

2 Pet. 1:2 May grace (God’s favor) and peace (which is perfect well-being, all necessary good, all spiritual prosperity, and freedom from fears and agitating passions and moral conflicts) be multiplied to you in [the full, personal, precise, and correct] knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

            —Perfect well-being                      

            —All necessary good                    

            —All spiritual prosperity                

            —Freedom from fears

            —Freedom from agitating passions

  —Freedom from moral conflicts

This peace comes to us as we walk deeper and deeper into the knowledge of the Lord – in other words, knowing Him more brings us into true peace.

Peace is not just a feeling that comes from being in a certain place or condition; peace is the result of our hearts as they are intent on living for God.

So…from these two studies on 2 Peter 1 we can see that:

• Christianity is a walk of discipline because there is work for us to do.

• Christianity is grace because we enter into the life of God, which is a gift—we can never earn it.

“Lovingly God works His life into us by Grace alone, joyfully we hammer out the reality of this new life on the anvil of discipline. Remember, discipline in and of itself does not make us righteous; it merely places us before God. Having done this, discipline has reached the end of its tether. The transformation is God’s work.” Richard Foster

There are three Greek words for “discipline.” They outline the three things needed to obtain discipline in any area of our lives:

gymnazõ—to train, exercise—1 Tim. 4:7; Heb. 5:14

This discipline is found as we exercise our body

enkrateia—power over oneself, self-control—Gal. 5:23; 2 Pet. 1:6

This discipline is found as we exercise our soul – our character and will

sõphrõn—to be of sound mind—2 Tim. 1:7

This discipline is found as we exercise our spirit – we make wholesome spiritual choices that result in a sound and peaceful mind.