Keep Building: Don’t Stop at Faith

“For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness.” (2 Peter 1:5-6)

You started with faith, trusting God that Jesus’ death on the cross was full-payment for your sin and welcoming his Spirit into your new life. Too many of us try to stop trying there, content to be saved, not really wanting to be changed. But Peter said that’s only the beginning of the work to be done in you with God’s power.

trees_350Now build on to that faith with goodness, the desire to do the right thing instead of the wrong thing (because in Christ you can). But keep going. An impulse for goodness without knowing what is truly good would be worthless. You’ll need to build in knowledge.

And once you know the good to do, it will take self-control to actually do it today. Then you’ll need perseverance (self-control + time) to keep doing the good thing tomorrow. Next, you’ll need godliness to become like your Father and do the good thing all the time.

Think: Are you building on your faith in Jesus? Are you adding in a desire to do good? knowledge about what is absolutely good? self-control to do good when you don’t feel like it? perseverance to keep doing good? and godliness to do it in every area of your life?

Pray: Ask God to help you to add to your faith goodness and to that knowledge and to that self-control and to that perseverance and to that godliness.

Do: Are you a hands-on visual learner? Got any blocks around the house? Build yourself a little tower and label the bottom layer “faith,” the next layer “goodness” and so on. Leave it set up in your room for a week or so as a reminder of the Christ-powered spiritual work-in-progress that is you.