Quality Steps

The start of a new year brings opportunity to discern and dream about what work there is to accomplish during the coming year.  Our motivation could be rooted more in our desires than in the truth and calling God has on our lives. The call that God has on our lives is always directly tied to what we do. The challenge is discerning if we are ready to do what we’re called to do. We can only be ready to do what God calls us to do if the effort has been made to build up the possession of Christian qualities to combat and replace the sinful desires of life.

2 Peter 1:4-9

The qualities that Peter mentioned are useless without the faith in the promises that Jesus provides. Having faith in Jesus gives us access to the divine nature that we need to gain the other qualities, but without faith, there is no promise, only tainted human effort. Peter describes this effort as false teaching from teachers who are “denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction” (2 Peter 2:1 ESV).

Peter’s list of qualities motivates us to remember that we have been cleansed by Jesus’s sacrifice. A false and faithless perspective will find similar qualities that are motivated by sinful desire

1. Faith is replaced with our own effort.
2. Virtue is replaced with vices.
3. Knowledge is replaced with preference.
4. Self-control is replaced with self-indulgence.
5. Steadfastness is replaced with weakness.
6. Godliness is replaced with the ultimate freedom of our own desire.
7. Brotherly affection is limited to mere friendship.
8. Love is redefined and demanded.

Peter’s instruction to complement each quality with a progressive connection to another is the only way we can achieve the call God has given to His church. As we focus our efforts to take steps to spread the gospel to people through love and experience growth in ourselves as well as other generations, we must possess the qualities. We can never give to others that which we do not possess.