2 Peter 3:4 (KJV) Be Diligent About These

2 Peter 3:14 (KJV)
Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.

It is enlightening to consider those things the Bible teaches us to be diligent about. Much false teaching demands believers to be diligent in things that are almost trivial in the Bible. 

2 Peter chapter three is consumed with teachings concerning the day of the Lord. It finalizes the whole thing by telling us that the material and earthly things that surround us will all be dissolved and replaced with new heavens and a new earth. Because we know these things to be so, we ought to be diligent to be found at His coming:

• In peace
• Without spot and
• Blameless

To my readers:
First of all, thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. Secondly, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and more than 4700 earlier Daily Visits with God visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

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2 Peter 3:4 (KJV) Be Diligent About These

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Deuteronomy 1:2 (KJV) Every Word of God

Deuteronomy 1:2 (KJV)
(There are eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.)

I marvel at the detail of the Scripture. Everything we need for life and godliness[1]is found within these pages, but nothing that is frivolous and unnecessary.

Though I was not able to find where anyone has done it,[2]I can just hear some Bible doubter claiming that this sentence, a parenthetical one, was added by a later scribe. By rejecting the Mosaic authorship and wrongly dividing the Old Testament among various scribes, (P, D, etc.) they rob us of the divine authority of the Word of God. 

Much better to accept every Word as: 

• God breathed,
• God inspired,
• God given and

having God’s infallibility and authority upon it. 

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[1]2 Peter 1:3 (KJV)

According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

[2]I must confess that I did not attempt much of a search.

To my readers:
First of all, thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. Secondly, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and more than 4700 earlier Daily Visits with God visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

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Deuteronomy 1:2 (KJV) Every Word of God

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2 Peter 1:1 (KJV) Through the Righteousness of God

 2 Peter 1:1 (KJV)

Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:

Notice, the Word of God says Simon Peter, as well as all those to whom he writes, obtained faith[1]through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. 

• Not through the membership of their church 
• Not through the ordinances of baptism and Lord’s Supper
• Not through a spiritual inheritance from their parents 
• Not through the keeping of the Old Testament law
• Not through their own righteous acts

But through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. 

---

[1]I believe the reference is to saving faith.

To my readers:
First of all, thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. Secondly, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and more than 4700 earlier Daily Visits with God visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

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My author Page for Kindle/Amazon
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 2 Peter 1:1 (KJV) Through the Righteousness of God

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1 Peter 5:1 (KJV) Partakers of Christ’s Suffering

1 Peter 5:1 KJV
The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:

Peter gives three things he has in common with the elders, that serve as his credentials to give the exhortations he will provide;

• He is also an elder
• He is also a witness of the sufferings of Christ 
• He is also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed 

I am interested in the second of the three today. 

Are all elders[1]witnesses of the sufferings of Christ? Not to the same degree as Peter. He was physically there to witness the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. 

The Bible says,
Colossians 1:24 (KJV)
Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church: 

In some sense, the local church, as the body of Christ, and its pastor, is a partaker of those sufferings. 

The sense of need
As Jesus had need in His earthly life, so does each local church.

The sense of tears
As Jesus wept at the lack of faith in His followers, every local church bears a broken heart for those whose lack of faith prevents them from growing in the Lord. 

The sense of loss
As Jesus watched the multitudes forsake him and asked His disciples, “Will he also go away?” every local church must face the loss of those who leave because they do not like the message.

The sense of persecution 
As Jesus was falsely accused and hounded by the scribes and Pharisees, who looked for some small thing they could use to take Him down, so local churches are falsely accused or unduly targeted for the imperfections that obviously exist in her.

The sense of death
As Jesus for nothing He had done, was slain, so churches, the best hope in this world for humanity often die without cause.  

Pastors witness the sufferings of Christ daily as they serve these bodies of Christ. 

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[1]I take this to mean what we call pastors. These are not itinerate preachers, evangelist’s and etc. for they do not embody all that is part of pastoring a church.

To my readers:
First of all, thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. Secondly, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and more than 4700 earlier Daily Visits with God visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

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My author Page for Kindle/Amazon
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1 Peter 5:1 (KJV) Partakers of Christ’s Suffering

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1 Peter 4:8 (KJV) Fervent Charity

1 Peter 4:8 (KJV)
And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.

I spoke with a friend of mine today, a missionary whose testimony, as far as I know, is impeccable. I asked him if he was supported by a particular church whose pastor I have come to respect greatly. He told me that he had presented his ministry in that church, but when the pastor learned he had also presented in a nearby church, he refused to support him. Years later he called about possibly presenting again and was flatly turned down. I got to thinking about that for three reasons: 

• I know and respect my missionary friend
• I know and respect this particular pastor
• I know I have felt as that pastor did

I was reminded that we are all, even the best of us, sinful human beings. 

I think this passage is meant to help us through our own sinfulness. It is not that, when we love someone, we will cover up their sins. The lesson of the passage is that when we love as we ought, such love will serve as an antidote for many of our sins. Knowing how sinful we are then, we ought to love one another fervently. We will offend and sin and hurt others often enough. If we will love passionately, this love may help to salve the pain of those sins.

To my readers:
First of all, thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. Secondly, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and more than 4700 earlier Daily Visits with God visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

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My author Page for Kindle/Amazon
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1 Peter 4:8 (KJV) Fervent Charity

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1 Peter 3:1 (KJV) I Surrender All

1 Peter 3:1 (KJV)
Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;

1 Peter 3:7 (KJV)
Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered. 

I have been quite impressed lately with the subject of submission, surrender, subjection, and obedience. The subtle differences between them seem unimportant for my purposes today so I will sum them in the term, surrender. 

It is worthwhile to consider how many of the great themes of New Testament faith are tied to surrender:

• Humility 
• Answered prayer
• Happy marriage (both husband and wife must be surrendered to the will of God)
• Peace with authority 
• A good testimony before men, even
• Eternal salvation 

All these and others are associated with our surrender first to the will of God and then to others. 

Almost every trouble we have is caused, in some manner, to lack of surrender. It’s the number one challenge of any sort of counseling I am asked to do. It’s useless without the surrender of the counseled. 

In this context, the song “I Surrender All” seems to be as important a message as we will ever hear. 

To my readers:
First of all, thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. Secondly, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and more than 4700 earlier Daily Visits with God visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

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My author Page for Kindle/Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/author/marvinmckenzie

1 Peter 3:1 (KJV) I Surrender All

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Please consider helping our church’s teen department by signing up for cash back shopping at http://www.dubli.com/M04VB. This program has three levels of participation, the first being completely free.

1 Peter 2:9 (KJV) Strange

1 Peter 2:9 (KJV)
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

The word peculiar can mean special or belonging to. 
This is the definition I think most of us impose upon the word whenever we read this passage: 

• Special in the sense that God loves us and we are saved
• Special in the sense that we belong to God. 

We are His children particularly because we are saved.

The word can also mean, beyond usual, unusual or, in other words, strange. 
The Bible often employs the concept of being strange to the believer. We are strangers in this world, the lost think it is strange that we don’t walk to the same excess of riot they do. 

In this passage, our peculiarity serves as a light in darkness. The context has to do with submission to authority. We are a light in our world when we strangely even fanatically obey those who have been placed in authority over us. 

To my readers:
First of all, thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. Secondly, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and more than 4700 earlier Daily Visits with God visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

For more resources from Pastor Marvin McKenzie visit http://puyallupbaptistchurch.com.

My books are available at:
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My author Page for Kindle/Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/author/marvinmckenzie

1 Peter 2:9 (KJV) Strange

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Please consider helping our church’s teen department by signing up for cash back shopping at http://www.dubli.com/M04VB. This program has three levels of participation, the first being completely free.