Grace & Peace

SCRIPTURE 2 Peter 1:1-11 (NRSV) Participants of the divine nature Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received a faith as precious as ours through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: May grace and peace be yours in abundance in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust, and may become participants of the divine nature. For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love. For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For anyone who lacks these things is nearsighted and blind, and is forgetful of the cleansing of past sins. Therefore, brothers and sisters, be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you will never stumble. For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you. DEVOTION Indeed our faith is a very precious thing! It does bestow upon the believer a measure of grace and peace that allows us to be--and act--very differently in the world than other people do. Grace is the willingness to give to others that which they do not deserve. I have often thought that "to whom much is given, much is required," speaks richly to my ability to share grace with others. God granted me grace in abundance when Love allowed Jesus to die on the cross to atone for my sin and gift me with eternal life. I know that I did not deserve such an extravagant sacrifice, but God did it anyway! Since God did such a wonderful thing for me, truly I can extend grace to others. Because we live in such a peaceful place as Christians, we are able to attach our faith to goodness, knowledge, self-control, endurance, godliness, mutual affection, and love! These spiritual attributes set us apart from the rest of the world. Our willingness to extend grace and to make peace also set us apart as well. Today, it is my prayer that our faith will be increased in such a way that grace and peace do abound causing us to act in ways that announce the good news in word, thought and deed! Let us pray: Holy One: thank you for Jesus! Thank you for the grace and peace that is mine because I believe in him. Please help me to extend these virtues to others. I pray this in Jesus' Name, Amen. INVITATION If you have questions about how to become a friend and follower of Jesus, please see the devotion entitled, “Come to Jesus” @ http://bit.ly/JVhaLta