2 Peter 3:18

The believer, faced with this, is urged to holy conduct and godliness… There is a danger that the Christian will be contaminated by the spirit of the world. What then is the preservative? "Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."

It is not enough to be warned against evil; we must be in the positive enjoyment of truth. The way not to go back is to go on. Like a man on a bicycle, the Christian must go on if he would avoid falling off.

Growth has no direct connection with age. A man may be old and grey. He may have passed many a milestone since his conversion, and yet still be a stunted child spiritually.

Growth, then, is a question of character. As we grow we are moulded more and more into conformity to Christ.

Growing in grace stands in contrast to a legal attitude. It means deeply learning and valuing the grace of God in Christ Jesus. That grace lifts one above the level of all the surrounding evil.

All true growth is in grace, the grace of God. Then as we expand in grace we grow in graciousness of spirit… Who can set a limit to our growth in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord? Both are without limit.

For the fifth time in this short letter our blessing is connected with the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:2-3, 8; 2 Peter 2:20). The Apostle has pressed on us the value of the prophetic Scriptures, the commandments of the apostles, and the deep importance of resting on the Word of God. But he realises that merely knowing the letter will not keep us. Scripture is only rightly used as we gain through the word a deeper knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Nothing keeps you safe from error except a growing, deepening knowledge of the Lord Himself. Let us set our hearts on this most precious knowledge. The walls of no church structure, however strong, can give this security.

If we are really dependent on God, He will give us the right thing. He will put the right book into our hands. He will feed us with food suitable for us. So we receive it from Himself and hold it in communion with Himself. It is fresh, living, powerful, formative. It tells on the heart and shines in the life. So we grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Someone may have seen much of the grace of God when first coming to the knowledge of Christ. Even so, this should not, and does not, satisfy our soul, still less the Master… It is of the greatest importance to be also going forward in the ways of God… "To Him be the glory both now and [not simply for ever, but] to the day of eternity. Amen." Peter puts in view the day of eternity, with the new heavens and new earth, where everything that can be broken is gone.

We all admit that glory will come to Him for ever, but we may well challenge our hearts by asking, Is He getting glory from our lives even now?