Remix II: Results (Part 1 of 2)

For whoever lacks these qualities is so near-sighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election. For if you practice these qualities, you will never fall. For in this way, there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Therefore, I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things.
— 2 Peter 1:9-15

Remixing Spiritual Growth into Our Lives

We are continuing in our series entitled Remix. The point is to remix into our lives the things that are most spiritually beneficial. We can't assume that because we are Christians, we are automatically good, with nothing left to do. There's no diligence needed; we can't just sit back and coast.

Some concepts might seem to suggest that. You've been given everything that pertains to life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called you. If we already have everything, it might make sense to relax and coast through life. Yet Peter says, because you have everything that pertains to life and godliness, get to work.

The fact that you have everything as a Christian means there are things you are supposed to remix into your life on a regular basis. It's not enough to say, "I have everything that pertains to life and godliness." The person who has everything is exceptionally busy mixing things into their life and remixing them constantly.

Last week, we looked at the things we need to remix into our lives. Faith in and of itself is a hollow shell that requires us to put things into it. The goal—the result—is to be effective and fruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Knowing about Jesus doesn't mean we'll be effective with that knowledge. It's possible to have knowledge of Jesus but, because of a lack of diligence, be fruitless. It's almost pointless to know about Jesus if it's not doing anything in your life.

The Call to Diligence and Increase

Diligence means to be quick and work hard—to break a sweat. How often in your Christian life have you broken a sweat studying Jesus or being virtuous? Have you put forth enough effort to be physically exhausted supplementing your faith with these qualities?

Peter says in verse 8, if these qualities are yours and increasing, then you are neither ineffective nor unfruitful in your knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.

These qualities include virtue—an uncommon character, living with high excellence in morality. Someone who has mastered morality, not just knowing it but living it unmistakably.

Knowledge helps you learn virtue. Self-control helps you focus on knowledge and endure. Godliness enables self-control. Brotherly affection demonstrates godliness through time spent with fellow Christians.

We were noting in 1 John that the way you demonstrate a relationship with God is by the time you spend with his people. That's how you show the world you have a relationship with God.
— cf. 1 John

Hebrews confirms your relationship with God is shown by your love for other Christians. You add brotherly affection to godliness because that's how God ordained it. One of the most godly affections is toward his people.

Then add agape love to brotherly affection—the selfless love that considers others more important than yourself, even laying down your life as Jesus did.

Peter says break a sweat. Put sweat equity into increasing your faith with these qualities. Don't just practice them; increase the practice. Don't check them off and relax. Do it again, but more—like a coach saying run one lap, then two, then three. Constant increase in conditioning.

You don't want virtue to a certain extent; you want to be the most uncommon, the godliest. Excel and do far more.

This will consume your time. Increasing practice decreases time for other things. There's only so much time in a day. Peter says do it now, increase to the point it consumes your time.

Is that possible? Tonight's message provides motivation. Peter doesn't say there's just one positive result. There are monumental positive results and devastating negative ones.

The Positive and Negative Results

The positive: you are effective and fruitful, capable of loving God, enjoying him, glorifying him, fulfilling your purpose. Effective, fruitful people are good employers, students, spouses, friends. They serve, impact lives, and have unshakable joy in Christ.

We looked at that last week in verse 8. Now, what if you don't do these things or don't increase? Verse 9: whoever lacks these qualities is so near-sighted that he is blind, having forgotten he was cleansed from his former sins.

Result 1: Forgetting You're a Christian

The number one negative result: we forget we're even Christian. Shocking—how can those purchased by Christ's blood forget? How can you have everything pertaining to life and godliness, eternal life, God, the Holy Spirit, and forget?

Without head injury or chemical imbalance, how? Implications: you'd live like a non-Christian. Not losing salvation, but living as if you don't think you're saved.

A person lacking these qualities—no practice, no increase—is a Christian not thinking about being Christian. If Jesus and salvation aren't on your mind, what is? Not the gospel. You'll be ineffective and unfruitful in knowing Jesus.

Being effective and fruitful glorifies God, enjoys him—the highest quality of life. Body destroying itself? Doesn't matter. Persecuted? Doesn't matter. You're fulfilling purpose.

Without these qualities, subtract all that good. You're near-sighted to the point of blind—can't see beyond your nose. Can't see the bigger picture or implications of actions.

You can't see how temptation or sin impacts long-term life, displeases God (he's not even on your mind). Can't see results down the road.

With youth struggling with parents: they can't see future relationships in turmoil. Ephesians 6 says children obey parents—it's the first commandment with promise, that it may be well with you.

Children, obey your parents... for this is the first commandment with a promise, that it may go well with you...
— Ephesians 6:1-3

"Well" means wellness in relationships. No dad present? Harder to have good relationships later.

Being near-sighted: can't see sin's implications, how it spills over. Sin isn't self-contained.

A little leaven leavens the whole lump.
— cf. 1 Corinthians 5:6; Galatians 5:9

Not just bread—a little sin ruins the whole. What sin are you contributing that ruins Heritage Christian College?

Result 2: Confirm Your Calling and Election

Because of that, verse 10: be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election. If you practice these qualities, you will never fall.

Peter gives the prescription for perseverance—not never sinning, but never totally or finally falling. "All the more diligent" is more intense than "make every effort" in verse 5.

...in this way, there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
— 2 Peter 1:11

Prove you're called and elected by practicing these qualities. Not just what good Christians do—it's what Christians do. Not practicing is a hallmark of lacking salvation.

Criticism of postmodern church: emphasis on justification, zero on sanctification. Songs say sins forgiven, so it doesn't matter what you do. Peter says no.

Strive for... holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
— Hebrews 12:14

Pursue holiness because it's the path of salvation. We don't become saved couch potatoes; we make Jesus's name famous through our lives.

This confirms assurance of salvation. Practice these, never fall. Make calling and election sure.

Result 3: Constant Reminder

Peter intends always to remind you, though you know them. It's right, as long as he's in this body, to stir you up by reminder.

People complain about repeated series: "We get it, move on." Peter preaches these qualities every moment. He wrote it as Scripture for constant reminder.

We're like sheep—prone to wander, forget.

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it; prone to leave the God I love.

Don't think you've mastered Christianity. "He who thinks he stands, take heed lest he fall."

Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.
— 1 Corinthians 10:12

Peter will provoke—antagonize—by reminder. Urgency: he knows his death is near, as Jesus told him. His bucket list: provoke Christians to confirm calling and election.

He'll make every effort so after departure, you recall these things anytime. It worked—preserved in Scripture, accessible everywhere, even electronically with thousands of manuscripts.

We're prone to forget. Every situation tempts instant gratification over these qualities. Scriptures preserve truth because it's our tendency.

No magical motivation comes without doing these. The Word is your reminder. Get up, do them, increase so it consumes your life—your eternal life depends on it. This is how you're fruitful and effective in knowing Jesus.

Peter's Urgent Call to Practice These Qualities

Peter saw that it was so important that he would spend the remainder of his days provoking Christians by reminding them of these truths and preserving it in Holy Scripture so that they would have the ability to recall it at any time. I hope what you have felt is an absolute urgency and an absolute need to start practicing the qualities that have been presented here and to increase those qualities to the point where you're spending so much time consuming so much of your time adding to your faith.

I remember when video games consumed my time. There would be times when friends would ask me to come hang out, and it was really annoying to go actually spend time with other human beings because I was trying to level up my character in my video game. There'd be an event like double experience points over the weekend, and you'd be like, "I can't miss that"—for people, human beings, even girls. "No, that's lame. I don't want to have any kinds of relationships with people. How stupid would that be?"

Imagine what it would be like if you were sitting at home and somebody said, "Hey, let's go watch a movie," and you're sitting there thinking, "I'm too busy adding knowledge to my virtue." That probably sounds stupid. That probably doesn't sound like a very cool thing or a very hip thing—you have to avoid some form of entertainment because you're sitting there with the Scriptures cracked open, adding knowledge to your virtue. What a dumb thing.

But Peter didn't see it that way. The Holy Spirit inspired this text in such a way that obviously God didn't see it that way.

Prioritizing Spiritual Growth Over Distractions

Now, obviously, there's brotherly affection. If there's a brother or sister who's like, "Man, let's get together and talk about the Word of God," well, that's a very useful activity. But you're thinking to yourself, there are so many things that other people are doing that I don't want to do because I'm too busy adding godliness to my steadfastness. That's exactly what this passage is teaching.

It's not just simply saying that these are abstract concepts that just sort of happen. It didn't say, "Make every effort to just sort of sit passively." This takes time. These are activities to be doing, and the matter is life and death.

Adopting a Far-Sighted Perspective

But think about it from an eternal perspective. Think about it from a far-sighted perspective. Near-sighted is the here and the now—who cares about eternity? Again, that's somebody who is near-sighted. Far-sighted is the fact that I could look at my life in the absolute state of the highest existence of bliss in the glory and presence of God with absolutely no shred of negative emotions or feeling to trade that.

Think about 10,000 years into the future—to trade that for this tiny little moment of pleasure. I believe it was Thomas Watson who said, "What fools they are who for a drop of pleasure drink a sea of wrath."

That's a far-sighted view. That's looking at how these kinds of qualities affect your eternal future—out 10,000 years into the apex, the epitome of absolute pleasure in the presence of God himself. 10,000 years into the future—which is kind of a stupid thing to say because it's eternity and you're outside of time—even but to think about it with that respect.

And to think about the fact that for the few moments now, which are inconsequential, you might actually experience some kind of pleasurable sin and some kind of spiritual apathy where we're not participating in these qualities—think far-sighted.

The only way that you're going to ever actually do that is by engaging in this quality: seeing the significance of what it means to be cleansed from your sins and having an eternal future with God.

Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have.

I think it's right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder.