The Divine Nature
“as His
divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who
called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us
exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be
partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
– 2 Peter 1:3-4
Snowflakes are such divine art! Falling by an infinite number all at once,
each one is uniquely created by our God.
When magnified, their frozen patterns are intricate and as delicate as
lace. Yet there is an even more
intricate creation than the snowflake.
God likes variety, as can easily be seen in the people He creates. We all are different in some way. In the rare instance of identical twins he
will find one worthy of an exact copy on the outside, but never are there two
of a kind. He purposefully creates a
unique soul for each and every one of us, crafting that singular YOU that He
chose to create.
The soul is the center of our moral and emotional nature,
what comes natural to us as individuals. It is the intricate pattern of God’s
unique design for you. This is often
referred to as personality. There’s a
lot said about the soul in God’s word.
In the New Testament we read the following verses:
Matthew 10:28 tell us that thought the soul and body are separate,
God has the power to send both to hell, as it says, “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot
kill the soul. But rather fear
Him who is able to destroy both soul
and body in hell.”
Matthew 16:26 warns of worshipping earthly
wealth instead of attaining salvation, and says, “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses
his own soul? Or what will a man
give in exchange for his soul?”
James 5:20 defines salvation as the saving of the soul, and
says “let him know that
he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and
cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 1:9 goes
on to say that the end of salvation is “the
salvation of your souls.”
1 Thessalonians 5:23 divides our person into three parts as
it says, “Now may the God of peace
Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless
at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The sequence of the three is of
great importance. The spirit gives life
to the soul, which gives live to the body.
God’s salvation is for the soul. At the point of salvation His Holy Spirit
moves in with our spirit and begins a new work in us. This is the great work of sanctification.
Of sanctification, Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:12-19 to those “who boast in appearance and not in heart.”
that “He died for all, that those who
live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and
rose again.” This is the sanctified life, a changed soul, willing to
submit to the Holy Spirit of God. Paul
goes on to say that “we regard no one
according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the
flesh, yet now we know Him thus
no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all
things have become new.”
Sanctification changes your soul, your individual
nature. Peter talks about that nature in
2 Peter 2:1 and calls it a “divine nature”.
It is not achieved of our own accord. We
have no power to become holy outside of the power of God working within
us. But 2 Peter 2:3 says that “His divine power has given to us all things
that pertain to life and godliness”. He goes on in verse 4 to say that He
has given us great and precious promises, “that
through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the
corruption that is in the world through lust.” Those promises are
the commands as to how we are to live in Him.
If we look at the word used in 2 Peter 1:4 for divine “nature”,
it is the greek word Physis, (Strongs G5449) and means “the sum of innate properties and powers by
which one person differs from others, distinctive native peculiarities, natural
characteristics” The divine power of God through the Holy Spirit within us,
allows us, through the process of sanctification, to become divine in nature.
How can we see the divine nature working
within us? Peter gives us certain
characteristics in verses 5-8. When we
look at the Greek meaning for these characteristics we find that he lists:
·
Faith, the ability to
believe with expectation in things not yet seen.
·
Virtue, moral goodness.
·
Knowledge, moral wisdom
for living.
·
Self-control, mastering
your own desires, passions, and actions.
·
Perseverance, a patient
and consistent endurance.
·
Godliness, piety and
respect for God.
·
Brotherly kindness, Christians
cherishing each other.
·
Love, affections and
actions of charity.
·
Knowledge of our Lord
Jesus Christ, an intimate relationship with Christ.
This is the growth pattern of a
Christian. These are the fruits we see
and experience, when we grow. But in
order to grow, we have to submit to the Holy Spirit that lives in us and
empowers us to take on this divine nature.
Yes, you do have a choice. God doesn’t save by compulsion, and He doesn’t
sanctify by compulsion. But as
Peter says in verse 9, “he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to
blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.” It’s often said that a person has lost “the joy of their salvation”. Even King David did (Psalms 51:12). Take note that you cannot lose your salvation. Eternal life is eternal – not temporary (John 3:16, Hebrews 7:25). Your salvation is not based on your actions, but a gift from God (Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:8). But you can lose the joy of your salvation by living in denial that the incorruptible seed is within you. When you choose to let your spirit lead, rather than the Holy Spirit, you are losing that joy that God provides, the peace in your life that passes all understanding.
Take on the divine nature of God by following
the lead of the Holy Spirit within you.
There is joy in serving God, and there is no joy to be found apart from
Him.
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