Watchnight Message

By William Nicholson
December 31, 2014

As we come to the end of one year and approach the beginning of a new year, it should be helpful to take a look backward and count our blessings. It should be helpful to also take a look ahead and make plans to work more closely with the Lord.

The past has been good for us as a Church; we’ve seen God’s hand move! We are in a nice and larger Church building and the financial needs to run God’s Church has been adequate. God has blessed us with wonderful people. God has brought us people from different backgrounds. There are builders here. And as long as we remain in unity, appreciate our diversity and agree to move in God’s Spirit, we will move forward to make a meaningful difference for God’s Kingdom. The message today is presented so that each one of us will be encouraged to base our movement forward based upon dependence upon God and His Word.

Let’s take a look at 2 Peter 1:1-11. Read. Here in verse 3 we see a big blessing God has bestowed on believers in the past. His divine power has given to us “all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue.” It also gives each one of us words of instruction and encouragement to live a life in which we are growing spiritually and serving significantly.

We should be encouraged to remember that Peter addressed his message “to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ” (verse 1). You have been given some special gifts from God to live the Christian life. We’ve used them in 2014. They should be a blessing for the future.

2 Peter 1:3-4 helps us as look backward. We can see the blessings of the past. As I’ve shared already the apostle called to the attention of his readers the exceeding great and precious gifts from God to them through Jesus Christ. God has given us so many blessings bestowed on believers through Jesus Christ.

Think on this! God has given us “All things that pertain unto life and godliness.” In Christ Jesus, believers have received everything necessary for experiencing the abundant life.

Jesus made many promises to his disciples; you’ve received more today from the offering plate It will enrich our spiritual life and deepen our faith if we will read them, claim them for our own, and move forward trusting God to keep his promises as people of faith have done in the past.

Look at 2 Peter 1: 4. It speaks of the new birth. Thank God for this! It says “That by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature.” So we should practice holiness and go on to sanctification by allowing the Holy Spirit to work in us as he seeks to develop the new nature, similar to the fruits in Galatians 5:22 that came to us in the miracle of the new birth. Verse 4 also says, each one of us is able to leave worldliness – “Having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”

Then there is the ability to look forward to the future. In 2 Peter 1:5-7 it speaks to the importance of adding to our lives. It’s really about intentionally growing in the new life God has given to us!

Spiritual growth will not take place automatically or accidentally. It’s about exercising our faith. Peter encouraged his readers to give all diligence or rather, hasten with all diligence, to seek the Spirit of God’s help in developing the Christians graces that are associated with spiritual maturity. And Peter gives us a list which we should pray for and work for.

I don’t have time to go through all of them. Its a blueprint for spiritual progress. The apostle Peter was concerned that his readers experience the benefits that come from spiritual maturity. He was eager that his readers escape the terrible results of immaturity in the faith. 1 Peter 2:8-9 it clearly shows the immaturity, which is barreness or unfruitfulness. “He who lacks these things is shortsighted even to blindness and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.”

By praying for and seeking to add these Christian graces such as more faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, brotherly kindness, believers will not be idle and or unfruitful in their experience of salvation through Christ.

In closing, Peter declares that he who does not put forth a sincere effort to grow toward Christlikeness is blind (II Peter 1:9). Blindness is really about a state of mind that really does not understand the mind of God and what He wants you to do. As a Church we need to know the mind of Christ so that we can grow and become the Church that God wants us to be and make a meaningful difference for the Kingdom and for the world.

Someone that does not know the mind of Christ will make mistakes and miss out on the blessings and abundance promised in John 10:10 and Psalm 37:1-4, Joshua 1:8-9 and so many other verses in God’s Word.

So in 2015, I trust we can move forward as believers who are really interested in putting on the mind of Christ, moving forward, thinking forward, planning forward and doing significant things together for Christ’s Kingdom.

Any moment now, we will cross over into the New Year! We are approaching the end of another year in the journey of life. The past is gone. Nothing can be done concerning the past except to admit and to confess past failures. The future is before us. With God’s help, may each of us respond to the apostle’s challenge for the future.

Let’s pray: Thank you Father for the new birth. Father forgive us for past mistakes. We know we are forgiven and we reach out to your word and your Spirit. Continue to speak to us and help us to understand better your mind and heart, and that each one of us will be obedient to help build your Kingdom here. Bless each one who has heard this message. And may we continue to grow in your grace and knowledge in the days ahead. In Christ name. Amen.