Kindness and Love

Finishing today on the attributes of a growing, fruitful Christian as described in 2 Peter 1:5-7: brotherly kindness and love.

We are challenged to brotherly kindness, described by one as a warmhearted affection toward all in the family of faith. Characteristics of this are found in Romans 12:16 Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

A forgiving heart is an element of brotherly kindness, found in Ephesians 4:32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

The pinnacle of this stair step structure in recieivng that supernatural peace of mind because of knowing God is Love. The word “love” is mentioned 551 times in the Bible, and best described by the infamous 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

It has been suggested that a way to measure love is to place your name in the place of love. “Ray is patient and kind….” Then, have the person closest to you who would be honest with you, evaluate your love quotient. It may sound like, “On a scale of 1 to 10, Ray, your score is 7. You’re not as impatient as you once were but there is still considerable room for improvement.”
And of course the greatest commandment: love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all you might, and your neighbor as yourself.

Second Peter than continues in verses eight through eleven with: The more you grow like this, (growth in the nine previously mentioned attributes), the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins. So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Besides spending eternity with the Lord, we can have a growing peace now that comes from knowing and enjoying God more and more intimately. A peace of mind that far surpasses comprehension, as described by Rick Renner’s paraphrase of Philippians 4:7 : “And the peace of God – a peace so wonderful that it cannot be compared to any other type of peace; a peace that stands in a category by itself and rises far above and goes beyond anything the human mind could ever think, reason, imagine or produce by itself – will stand at the entrance to your heart and mind, working like a guard to control, monitor and screen everything that tries to access your mind, heart, and emotions.”

Peace of mind, so valuable, is a result of “making every effort” to grow in faith, goodness, knowledge,, self control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly afffection and love as delineated in 2 Peter chapter one.

“We cannot save nor sanctify ourselves – God does that. But God will not give us good habits or character, and He will not force us to walk correctly before Him. We have to do that ourselves, working out our salvation.” (Making every effort.)
“God won’t do by miracle what man must do by obedience” (Making every effort.)