EXCEEDING GREAT AND PRECIOUS PROMISES

"May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. 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, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, that through these you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of passion, and become partakers of the divine nature" (2 Peter 1:2-4, RSV).

Devotion 6 of 10

INCENTIVES AND AWARDS

How can people become more holy? There are no alternatives in this matter. We are forthrightly told of the necessity of holiness. "But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy" (1 Pet. 1:15-16). "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord" (Heb 12:14). What resources have been supplied to constrain us in this matter? For a long time, I felt that divine threats were the primary motivators in the Kingdom. That they are motivational cannot be denied--but they are not the primary means of attaining holiness, or God-likeness. Our text informs us that "exceeding great and precious promises" are the appointed means to that end. God uses incentives to draw us toward Himself, not only threats to push us. The warnings are designed to keep us from sin, not propel us into righteousness. But even at that, there is a better way to accomplish separateness from the world order. The promises of God are glorious enough to diminish the attractiveness of "this present evil world" (Gal. 1:4). Believed, they will draw you away from sin and toward the Living God. For Adam and Eve, the promise of a coming "Seed" provided incentive to live above utter despair. Eve associated the birth of her sons with that promise, probably supposing they were the promised Offspring (Gen. 4:1). Noah held fast to the promise of deliverance by means of the ark, and did not allow unbelief to dominate (Heb. 11:7). Abraham was drawn to a land of "promise." That divine commitment constrained him to move out, "not knowing whether he went" (Heb. 11:8). Holy men have always been motivated the promises. The promises become the vehicle through which divine conformity is realized. They appeal to the heart, sensitizing the individual to heavenly things. When the heart and ear are sensitive to God's promises, the world loses its appeal. It is, after all, not to be compared with the "glory that shall be revealed in us" (Rom. 8:18). If heaven does not appeal to people, there is no hope of them going there. The "exceeding great and precious promises" makes it appealing! If an individual cannot acknowledge a deep yearning to "dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple" (Psa 27:4), there is not the slightest chance that it will occur. The promises of God provoke that longing. The preeminent promise is that of eternal life. The Spirit compresses all of the promises into a single commitment. How marvelous it is! "And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life" (1 John 2:25). "In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began" (Titus 1:2). This is God's chief incentive. If people do not want this with all of their heart, they will not disconnect with the world, or connect with God! It is really just that simple. PRAYER POINT: Father, show me Your glory! Let me see it in Your promises--Your commitments to bless those who seek You, and do them good. Help me to look into your exceeding great and precious promises, and associate them with your profound goodness.

-- TOMORROW: A VALUABLE KINGDOM --