Sermon B-Sides: Confirm your Calling and Election
I hope you’ll join us this Sunday, October 4th as we continue our series in 2 Peter called Life in the Last Days.
Sermon B-Sides
Back in the days of vinyl records, songs were released as singles, or ‘45’s’. The single was on the ‘A’ side, but there was another side to the record—not the single, but another song that might be less familiar or not included in the artist’s catalog. Those are called ‘B-Sides’.
Today I’m introducing something I’m calling ‘Sermon B-Sides’. These are things from the sermon that are important but for one reason or another ended up on the cutting room floor. If you want to dive deeper into the text that has been preached, these are a great way to do that!
Two Difficulties with this Sunday’s Sermon Text
Take a minute to read through this Sunday’s sermon text, 2 Peter 1:3-11. There are many wonderful things in there and a few challenging things. But if you’re like me, verse 10 was the hardest for you to understand:
[10] Therefore, brothers [and sisters], be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall.
There are two major difficulties here:
1. How can my actions confirm my calling and election?
First, we have to define calling and election. These are two different ways of referring to the fact that God has chosen—elected—those who would find salvation in Jesus Christ. The Bible says he elected us before the foundation of the world. But then he called us. Your individual calling came later, when you became a Christian. When that happened, you were responding to God’s call on your life. You ever wonder why two people hear the gospel, one person gets saved, but the other rejects it? That’s God at work through calling and election.
So what does that have to do with my “diligence” to “confirm” it? Is my salvation hanging on my diligence? No. That wouldn’t be grace! The point that is made throughout the Scriptures is that we receive the grace of God through faith—believing him for salvation in Jesus Christ. But authentic faith—true faith—always is accompanied by a life that is being transformed (confirmation).
I’ll give you an example from Matthew 14. Jesus was alone on the top of a mountain, praying. All night. Meanwhile, his disciples have gone out on the lake in their fishing boat. The weather turns and they are terrified. The wind and the waves are crashing against them, tossing them about. But then they see Jesus heading toward them, walking on the water. At first they’re even more terrified because no one has ever walked on water before. They think it’s a ghost. But Jesus reassures them they don’t need to be afraid, it’s only him.
Peter says, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Jesus tells him to come. Now imagine if Peter responded by saying, “oh it’s okay, Lord. I have faith. I don’t need to come out.” What would you think? You would think Peter was chicken. And rightly so. You would think that he didn’t actually believe that Jesus would save him. Why? Because faith apart from works is dead.
In the same way, merely saying you have placed your faith in Jesus means nothing unless your life shows it’s true. You must confirm your calling and election by practicing these qualities (the qualities in verses 5-7, which are the focus of the sermon this Sunday).
2. How can I never fall?!
Surely this doesn’t mean that if we practice a way of life with God for a while we will become sinless?! That is correct. We will not be sinless until we see Jesus face to face. However, doing one thing often means you aren’t doing another. For example, I cannot swim and drive a car at the same time.
And that seems to be the main thing that Peter is getting at here. If you are busy practicing a way of life with God, you will be busy not falling. Why? Because you are on a different pathway. You are going in a different direction. For the practicing Christian, while you will fall into sin, it won’t be while you’re exercising self-control, or steadfastness, or while you’re showing brotherly love.
This is what is so encouraging about God’s grace toward us. He patiently gives us more of his power, more of his divine nature (vv.3-4) while we grow in the grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Slowly but surely—and despite our failures—he makes us more like him. He knows we won’t be perfect this side of eternity, but he loves us enough to take us on this journey of practicing a way of life with him until one day, on the other side, he makes us perfect. Practice makes perfect!
Got more questions about this text or some other hard passage? Share it with me!
In the Love of Christ,
Pastor Joel
