2 Peter 1:5 “Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence…”
Faith, it is not something we earn, it is not something we supply, verse one says faith was given to us, it is a gift from God. Hebrews 11:1 tells us that faith “is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” God gave us this gift of faith, now we must build upon that foundation so our feet remain firmly planted in all things good, in all things acceptable in His sight. Hebrews gives us many examples of faith: Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses and Rahab and countless other men and women of faith are mentioned in the Bible. But the one example of faith that stands high above the others is that of Jesus Christ. When He submitted to the will of the Father by taking on human form and dying on the cross for our sins, He was exercising faith. Our faith in Jesus Christ is not just the basis for our belief but also the basis for how we live our lives, which brings us to moral excellence. Verse five doesn’t just say moral excellence but a GENEROUS provision of moral excellence. Did you notice this was the only one of the eight traits that used the word generous? What do you think of when you think of the word generous? Maybe bountiful, liberal, abundance or even overflowing – but what exactly was Peter referring to when he says moral excellence? Most scholars agree that Peter was talking about the excellence of God’s nature. And is God not overflowing with love, kindness, mercy, compassion and forgiveness? In Philippians 4:8 Paul tell us to keep our minds on that which is excellent and worthy of praise, in other words keep our mind on God. God’s nature, His glory, His excellence is what is worthy of praise. By living a life in obedience to Him we are giving Him praise and we are worshiping Him. When we choose to do what is right in the eyes of God and refuse to do what is wrong than this is said to be moral excellence. Let’s look at it in a more simplified way: if you see someone who is hurt and you render aide, if someone is hungry and you feed them, if someone is in a dangerous situation and you help them out of that situation or protect them, then you are choosing to do what is right and you bring praise to the Father. Moral excellence can be related to the areas of courage, generosity, morality, selflessness and moderation just to name a few. All the examples of Jesus recorded in the New Testament bring to light His nature, His excellence, and by imitating Him our behavior can “supplement our faith with a generous provision of moral excellence”. I hope you will join me on Friday as we continue to look at the eight characteristics mentioned in 2 Peter. Until then may God bless you and bring peace to your heart.