2nd Peter – Precious Promises, Perilous Times – 2009 – Northern Virginia
The theme of 2nd Peter is the great need for personal spiritual growth in a time when false teachers and teachings were infiltrating the early church (2Pe 1:5 with 2Pe 3:18). Key words/phrases relevant to spiritual growth are “grace and peace,” which can be “multiplied” as we grow in the “knowledge” of our Lord, and exercise due “diligence” in the practice of spiritual “love.” As a method of instruction, Peter emphasizes the necessity of reminder and repetition (2Pe 1:12-13, 2Pe 1:15, 2Pe 3:1-2).
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1st Peter 2:2 concludes, "Grace to you and peace be multiplied." It should be challenging to you to realize that you can multiply grace and peace. You know, God is a mathematician. When we come to Christ, He subtracts our sins. He adds the righteousness of Christ. And then He multiplies grace and peace. He even divides. You know, you have splits in churches. One group goes this way, one goes another. Sometimes those divisions have to happen. He's a great mathematician!
The greeting “Grace to you and peace be multiplied” not only reminds us that the utilization of God’s grace provisions (His written word, our spiritual bank account (Eph.1:3) combined with the indwelling work of the Spirit (1Th.5:23). The phrase “be multiplied” to grow, increase, and is in the passive voice (God does the work), and the optative mood, expressing the will of God for our lives.