Sunday, July 26, 2015
Did
you catch the end of verse 4 in 2nd Peter chapter 1?
By grace, God gives all that we need for
life. This grace comes through knowledge
of God which is itself grace given by the Holy Spirit. That grace continues as we grow in through
Bible study, prayer, and participation in church life.
Then we come to verse 4 where we learn
that in Christ we escape the corruption of the world around us. Sin degrades this good world God
created. We lack the power the stop the
destruction humanity’s sin brings. But God
promises that in Christ we escape the death and destruction, says 2 Peter
1:4. The good news is we are freed from
death’s clutches.
But what is that statement in the last
part of that verse? We escape death so
that we may become participants of the
divine nature. What does that mean?
Do we become gods? That is what I think is Mormons believe. It doesn’t mean that. Our friends in Orthodox Christianity have a
concept called theosis whereby they believe we become so materially united with
God it is as if we become gods. I don’t
understand orthodox theology enough to try to discuss theosis.
I can’t say we become God, but, I have 2nd
Peter 1:4 before me. Through knowledge
of God, which is given freely by God and not something we earn – through that
knowledge we have all need to participate in the life of God. We are called to the divine life.
The Christian life does not strive for moral
improvement. That’s not our goal. I had lunch with the campus rabbi at Duke
University and I asked him, a 21st Reformed Jew, what is the mission
of Judaism? He said it is to “be a good
person.” That was his answer to the
question, what is your mission?
That is not our answer. The destination for Christ-followers is not
to become good persons. Neither is our
goal to get to heaven when we die. If
you became a Christian because you wanted to be assured of an eternity in
Heaven, I am happy to disappoint you.
That’s not our goal.
As followers of Jesus we do things that
contemporary culture would attribute to “good persons,” and when we are in
Christ, our eternal destiny is secured.
But neither moral purity nor eternity in Heaven are goals for us. Those things are byproducts of following
Jesus in everything. Those things come
with giving our lives to Him and living with Him as our absolute Lord. Our aim is life in Christ. As Peter says it,
“we become participants of the divine nature.”
Every person is called to this. In a moment I’ll talk a more about the
special call to elder ministry, but it is important for the entire church to
hear the call to life with God. The
phrase in 2 Peter 1:4, “participants of the divine nature,” shows this involves
major change for us.
Recall John chapter 3 where Jesus
explains to Nicodemus that one must be born again. The change from life without God to life in
Christ is as radical as moving from the womb to the open air.
It is seen in baptism; one dies in sin and is raised to
new life, eternal life, free from the corruption of sin. We step toward this life in our baptism and
fully realize at the second coming of Christ when we join him in
resurrection. Between baptism and second
coming, we live the divine life as we are still in the fallen world.
This life is lived out as the Holy Spirit
takes up permanent residence in us. God
enters our hearts and live there.
We live this life our relationships. The list of virtues beginning in 2 Peter 1:5
gives shape to life in Christ. It starts
with faith, which is supported by goodness, and goodness with knowledge, and it
continues on, each virtue expanding the previous one; self-control, endurance,
godliness, and mutual affection (or brotherly love).
The ultimate expression life in Christ as we see it
in our relationships is love; self-giving, altruistic, agape love. When it says we participate in God, it means
we live in this kind of love. God fills
us with it. We share it with all around
us, friend and enemy alike.
We are all called to the divine
life. Throughout that life individual
discovers new ways to answer the call.
Today, Emily, Tiffany, and Heather answer by accepting the invitation
into ordained ministry within the church.
They are set apart as those who will have
spiritual insight in terms of prayer, pastoral care, spiritual vision, and
worship in the life of the church. In
simple terms, elders pray for the church, visit the sick, oversee the care for
those entrusted to them, and, come alongside the pastors as the pastors set the
vision for the church. Elders also help
the pastors lead the church to the throne of grace by serving communion and
assisting when we have baptisms. In all
these ways, elders answer the call to fellowship with God and live the divine
life.
In a few moments, we as a congregation will gather
round and lay hands on Emily, Tiffany, and Heather to affirm that we believe
God has called them to this ministry. As
we do that we are, in one small way, ourselves answering the call because we
are participating in the life of the church.
What other ways do we live this glorious fellowship,
this divine life? Worship, prayer,
missions, fellowship in the church family; these are obvious. At a deeper level, when you and I seek out
our vocation and our identity in Christ, we are doing what is described in 2
Peter 1. The power to do this is in us –
God has given it. When we choose to live
the new life we’ve been given and leave the old life, the one bound for death,
behind, we are living into eternity and divinity.
For sure, such a life is all-consuming. Christianity is an intense thing, an extreme
life. We are determined to show the
world agape love. We insist that God,
not the world around us, is who defines us. We are his.
We live – every facet of our lives – in Christ.
Upon leaving church today and re-entering the world,
think deeply upon your identity in Christ and your vocation in Christ. Let that pondering be something that
overwhelms you this week. Be consumed
with the longing to grow into who you are in Christ.
This obsession to answer the call to divine life
leads us to all we could hope for and infinitely more. As Second Peter 1:10-11 says,
10 Therefore, brothers and sisters,[g] be
all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you
will never stumble. 11 For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you.
AMEN
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