2 Peter 1:4a

Click here to open the Video Devotional

2 Peter 1:4a

For those who are bondservants (those who have willingly given themselves to Christ Jesus), by His righteousness are the blessings of grace and peace in the knowledge of God and Christ Jesus through His divine power giving us all things pertaining to life and godliness through His knowledge, calling us to Him by His glory and virtue, He gives us, as we see now in 1 Peter 1:4a (NKJV), “exceedingly great and precious promises.”  Peter tries to show the extent of the promises that are given by God to those who put their faith in Him by referring to the promises as not just great and precious, but exceedingly great and precious promises.  It’s kind of like saying “great, great and precious promises.”  To refer to God’s promises as “great” is already saying that they are larger than normal and “exceeds” what would be expected, but Peter uses one word that describes another word in the same sentence to magnify these “exceedingly great and precious promises” of God for those who believe in Him.  His point is that it’s a really big deal to receive God’s blessings, and that His blessings are from Him in His grace and virtue as the one and only true God of heaven.

 

This is a blessing of the “exceedingly great and precious promises” of God for all those who believe in Him and His Son, the Savior of the world – Jesus.

 

The promises of God for all those who believe in Him and His Son Jesus are found throughout the teaching of Jesus and are taught by the apostles who were inspired by God to write the New Testament letters.  How do we find out what these promises are?  We open our Bibles and read them.  We study God’s Word in seeking the proper context in which it was intended to be applied; not making whatever we want out of it, but seeking an understanding of the whole of God’s Word and how it all works together to unfold God’s great plan of salvation for all people who will put their faith in Him and His Son Jesus.

 

Dear LORD,

We all want to experience Your “exceedingly great and precious promises,” as the apostle Peter tells us, but please help us to understand that we need to open our hearts to Jesus in repentance and submission of our lives to You as Your plan for each of our lives is the greatest thing we will ever find – in Christ.  In Jesus name I pray, amen.