Knowledge of God

Did you know that the Bible tells us exactly how we can get to know Christ better? It does and I would like to share it with you.

2 Peter 1:3-11 (ESV)

²  May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. ³  His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, ⁴  by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. ⁵  For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue  and virtue with knowledge, ⁶  and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, ⁷  and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. ⁸  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.

+ Formatting changes my own

We can see the theme of this section right away for in verses 2, 3, and 8 we see the concept of the knowledge of God stated in three different ways

·As we see there are 7 areas that we can improve and as we do so, we are coming closer and closer to a fuller understanding of who God is.

Notes: It does not say exactly whether we have to work on one area then the next, or all at the same time. I have seen growth in some of these areas at the same time. I think I we can assume that these are qualities that belong to and reflect characteristics of the Lord Jesus Himself. Therefore observing and growing in them brings us into closer unity/fellowship with Him. In other words, we are imitating Christ when we practice these traits.

At more detailed analysis follows:

Word Studies

Moral excellence <arête; G703>^[ii]

For those who like to do crossword puzzles this word may be familiar. The clue is usually ‘mountain crest’ the highest you can get. In this context, it carries the meaning of superlative moral character. We are to scale the heights of chaste attitudes and behavior.

Knowledge <gnosis; G1108>

·         You have to know what it is that you believe.

Self-control <enkrateia; G1466>

·         Galatians 5:22-23 (NASB)

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control (enkrateia <G1466>); against such things there is no law.

Perseverance <hypomonē; G5281>

·         A friend once said that “The only way out is through.”

Godliness <eusebeia; G2150>

·         “reverence, respect”; in the Bible everywhere = “piety toward God, godliness”^[iii]

Brotherly kindness <Philadelphia; G5360>

Love <agape; G26>

Foot Notes

^[ii]  All <Gxxxx.> type references are from Strong’s Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary.

^[iii]  This definition is from the Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®). Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

© Dennis Doolittle