HOW TO BECOME LIKE GOD

Seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.  For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.  Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.  For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.

 II Peter 1:3-11 

God has shown His righteousness to us by His Son through the knowledge of the Gospel.  He has also given us everything  pertaining to life and godliness through that same Gospel that we may be complete lacking in nothing.  He called us through the Gospel in order that we might glorify Him with all excellence.  Likewise God has given us precious and glorious promises.  Consider ALL His promises:

1. The promise to supply us with our daily needs, "And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus."  Philippians 4:19.  
2. God has promised that His Grace will be sufficient for us, "And He has said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.' Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast  about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.'"  II Corinthians 12:9.
3. He has promised us access to SALVATION by that same Grace through FAITH in Christ to ALL who will believe in Him and are baptized for the forgiveness of sins, "Peter said to them, 'Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'"  Acts 2:38.  "He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned."  Mark 16:16.  But that Grace is conditional since we must obey ALL of His commandments.  It is only through an OBEDIENT FAITH that we will have access to that same Grace of God,  "Through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God."  Romans 5:2.
4. He has promised to help us overcome sin and temptation giving us a way of escape, "No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it."  I Cor. 10:13.  "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy."  Jude 24
5. He has promised victory over death, the resurrection from the dead.  He will resurrect us the same way He did our Lord and Savior, "This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses." Acts 2:32. "But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive."  I Corinthians 15:20-22.  "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."   I Corinthians 15:3-4.  "For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.  But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, 'Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?  The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.'" I Corinthians 15:53-57.  For further reading I Corinthians 15:26; Luke 20:34-36.
6. God has promised that all things would work together for good to those who love and serve Him faithfully, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."  Romans 8:28.  It is hard to comprehend this in our weaknesses, but He has promised it, and He will carry it out.
7. And finally God has given us the promise of eternal life, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand." John 10:27-28.  "This is the promise which He Himself made to us: eternal life."  I John 2:25.  "In hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began."  Titus 1:2.  "These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."  Matthew 25:46.  "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."  John 3:16.  "For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life."  Galatians 6:8.

All of these promises have only one purpose and that is to make us partakers of His divine nature.  God wants to dwell in us but in order to be able to do this we must escape the corruption of this world caused by sin.  We are able to be partakers of His divine nature by adding to our steadfast faith moral excellence and to this moral excellence knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and finally love.

By doing all these excellent things, we can make certain our call, bearing abundant fruit for His glory.  By putting into practice all these moral excellencies, we will keep from stumbling and make certain our entrance into heaven, our final dwelling.

May our Lord help us to live an excellent life for His glory.


Luci