Never Stop Growing: The Power of Knowing Christ

You must empty your cup to learn something new. We often come to various situations in life already full, with no room for anything else. But the longer we live, the more we realize that we don’t know everything. Don’t turn off growing because you’ve achieved a certain level of success or education. To grow means to increase, to enlarge, and to become better.

2 Peter gives five truths that highlight the importance and impact of growing in knowledge. These truths are what the Apostle Peter is saying to a church that had been scattered and persecuted.

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Knowledge Multiplies Grace and Peace (2 Peter 1:2)

Grace is God’s unmerited and divine favor; peace is being set at one again (wholeness and harmony on the inside). Grace and peace can be multiplied because they increase and abound greatly through the full experiential knowledge of God (a relational knowledge). It’s not just knowing about God; it’s about knowing Him intimately. This world can seem so loud and chaotic, but when we get to know God, we have something that settles us. Our knowledge of God through an intimate relationship lets us know that He’s in control and everything will be okay. We must grow in that knowledge because the more we know God, the more we experience His grace and peace, and that is multiplied in our lives. Jesus is the Prince of Peace and the Giver of Grace.

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Knowledge Unlocks Everything for Life and Godliness (2 Peter 1:3)

Knowledge is the thing that helps us know what has already been given to us. God’s divine power has already given us everything that pertains to life and godliness. The key is that some of us just don’t know it. Every spiritual resource we have is helping us to unlock and know what God has already done. We’d be amazed at what is already wrapped up in our salvation — forgiveness, mercy, grace, and love were made available to us at salvation. When God saved us, He furnished us with everything we need for life and godliness. God is not withholding insight and wisdom from us. But our job is to learn to ask God for the answer because that knowledge will unlock everything for life and godliness.

 

 Knowledge Must Be Added (2 Peter 1:5)

Knowledge does not happen automatically; it must be added. The word “add” in the text means to thoroughly furnish and supply abundantly. We need not just eat but also add some supplements that are gained through studying and understanding.

“If we would ponder longer, we would see further.” – Pastor Billy Johnson

We have become proficient in distraction and call it multitasking. But we have lost the art of focus. A focused effort can get us far more than multiple efforts in many things. The text is saying to take time to add this understanding and knowledge. Ask the question, “Who is this Jesus I need to know?” by exploring your salvation and taking the time to add the knowledge. He has so much more for us. Hosea 4:6 states, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” What you don’t know can kill you. So, what are we diligently adding?

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Knowledge Makes You Fruitful (2 Peter 1:8)

2 Peter 1:5-8 uses the phrase “these things,” and when these things abound, they will keep us from being barren (lazy, idle, inactive, and ineffective) and unfruitful (without spiritual results). Many times, we experience difficulties in life that are really “growing pains,” not because we’ve been bad, but because God’s growing us. Our development requires growth, and a part of growth is growing pains. We may have grown, but our muscles have to catch up. Knowledge makes us fruitful, but sometimes the fruit hurts. We can handle it if we just keep growing and developing. We will reap if we don’t faint. God is insistent on us growing because we need the capacity to handle where God is taking us.

 

 Knowledge Is a Lifelong Pursuit (2 Peter 3:18)

We need to grow to the place where our life is not about us but about giving God glory. We must be willing to go through the pain for the growth process. In Philippians 3:12, Paul states that he presses on toward the goal. There’s a reason that God has kept His hand on our lives. We must pursue that knowledge of Christ in every area of our lives and realize that it’s a lifelong journey. In a world of information overload, why not grow in what truly matters? Don’t become proficient in what doesn’t matter.

“If you stop growing, you start drifting. But when you start learning, you start living.” – Pastor Billy Johnson

At the end of his life, Peter simply told his congregation to GROW and keep on GROWING.

Declare, “I will never stop growing in the knowledge of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!” – Pastor Billy Johnson