Day 228 – Friday, November 14, 2025

One Year Journey Through the New Testament

2 Peter 1

Welcome to our journey through the New Testament!

Greeting the Faithful

1 Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ,

To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:

² Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, ³ 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, ⁴ by which have 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 is in the world through lust. 

(2 Peter 1:1–4, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• Peter identifies himself as the author of the letter, and addresses the letter to the Christians that may read it.
• He offers grace and peace through the knowledge of the Father and the Son. He identified the Lord as the source of all good things. The knowledge of Him is the source of all blessings.
• His divine nature is imparted to us, giving us liberty from the corruption of the world.

Fruitful Growth in the Faith

⁵ But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, ⁶ to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, ⁷ to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. ⁸ For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹ For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.

¹⁰ Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; ¹¹ for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

(2 Peter 1:5–11, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• Peter then moves on to show the path to Christian maturity. Faith leads to virtue, which leads to knowledge, which leads to self-control, perseverance, and godliness. These lead to brotherly kindness and love.
• This life is what produces fruitfulness and gratitude. Peter then calls the believers to be diligent and serve God faithfully, erasing any possibility of losing one’s salvation. They really cannot fail if they work at this relationship with God daily.

Peter’s Approaching Death

¹² 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. ¹³ Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, ¹⁴ knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. ¹⁵ Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease. 

(2 Peter 1:12–15, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• Peter committed to constantly reminding the believers of their blessed salvation and of the need to cultivate that relationship with God.
• Peter is approaching death, and wants to be sure that the church is in good standing and shape with God. He promises to even make sure they are reminded after his demise.

The Trustworthy Prophetic Word

¹⁶ For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. ¹⁷ For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” ¹⁸ And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.

¹⁹ And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; ²⁰ knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, ²¹ for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. 

(2 Peter 1:16–21, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• Peter made sure that the readers knew that his teachings and words were not false. No, he did not traffic in deceit or embellishment. Instead, he spoke of his eyewitness to the power of Christ.
• Peter made sure they knew of the great testimony of the Father as He spoke of the Son at the transfiguration.
• He declared that the word spoken by the apostles was prophetic, and had been confirmed by the Lord.
• He pointed to the great Savior that brings light to the world. He then spoke of the validity of the word of God. It is not made up by humans, and cannot be parsed by anyone’s opinion. Prophecy is not of man’s volition, but the writers were moved to write as the Holy Spirit moved upon them. Inspiration of Scripture is the bedrock of our faith.

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All Scriptures from New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

Join us this afternoon at 5:00 pm for a discussion of this chapter live online. Live@5 with Dr. Greg Sloop can be found on Facebook on the Dr. Greg Sloop page or on the Kannapolis Church of God Facebook page or Youtube page. Another blog will be posted each weekday at 6:00 a.m.