"Diligence Applied" 12/16/07
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n 2 Peter 1:5-7 the Apostle Peter encourages his readers, based upon the blessings which have been bestowed upon them, to add to their faith seven qualities. The promise of this passage is that if you practice these qualities, you will never be unfruitful, and you will never fall. While those are the benefits of adding these qualities, it is not as though adding these qualities to our faith is some sort of peripheral issue. Peter says the Christian is to “make every effort” or “diligently apply” these qualities. Peter is not saying “if you get a chance, after your saved I've a got a suggestion.” Rather he is saying with the utmost intensity that we are to make this the very center of our Christian lives.
~ Founder and Teacher Jeremy J. Lundmark
Unfortunately we don't see much “diligence” applied to anything here in 21st century America. Those who do put forth diligence, generally rise above the rest quickly. Even less do we see diligence applied to the Christian life in the Church. For this reason I like how the ESV translates this section as “make every effort”. All your resources, all your strength, all your passion should be thrown in the direction of adding these seven qualities to your life. One place where we see hard work, diligence, and effort being put forth is in sports. We raise our athletes to a high level and praise them for giving all that they have to win games and titles. We hear of how they practice day after day, how they prepare for their next game, and how they put forth every effort to be successful.
So too we see people who put forth every effort in the area of business and personal success. Students will spend thousands of dollars, and years in college to learn the things they need to know to be successful at whatever career they have chosen. Executives of corporations spend countless hours traveling, planning, and organizing all in an effort to further their business goals. However, there are precious few who put that kind of time, energy, and resources toward growing their Christian life and succeeding in the far more important aspects of life. The Apostles says “make every effort”. Are you ready to give everything to improve these qualities in your life? Some may retort “yeah like anyone is going to do that.” To which I would reply “and they too will continue fall, and be unfruitful.” We may think it a strange thing to give our all to our King but the Bible everywhere tells us to give up the worthless things of the world for treasures of the kingdom of heaven. Indeed Christ himself said “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
If we are ever going to grow in our Christian faith and have a life that honors our Savior and King we need to dig deep and begin to make every effort to add to our faith virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love.