2019 will be the ninth year of this daily quiet time site. I have read through the Bible nine times using this program. Praise God! I hope many of you who are registered here have also been blessed over the years. I am convinced that nothing has been more valuable to my spiritual growth than my daily quiet time in God's Word.

Peter writes, "May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God" and of Jesus our Lord, through "the knowledge of him who called us," so that we may not be "ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ" (a paraphrase of 2 Peter 1:2, 3, 8). At the heart of Peter's exhortation is an emphasis on the true knowledge of God. He wants his readers to know it and to remember it (2 Peter 1:12, 13, 15). This knowledge is the key to faith and godliness, and we find it through the Word of God. Paul wrote in his final letter that "all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching," reproof, correction, and training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete (a paraphrase of 2 Timothy 3:16–17).

The Word of God is sufficient to equip us for every good work God has for us to do. Therefore the wise Christian will make time in God's Word a priority.

God's Word shapes our attitude and perspective. It teaches us what is important and what is not, what is eternal and what is passing away, what pleases God and what does not. A thousand things may compete for our time, attention, and resources, but God's Word can, like a laser, isolate the one thing that really matters.

From God's Word we know who our Creator is and who our Redeemer is. We understand the purpose for which we were designed and called. Through God's Word we find the greatest joy, extraordinary peace, and unfailing hope.

God's Word is the inspired and trustworthy guide we have been given to know God rightly and to make Him known. It is not merely one truth among many; it is the truth by which every other claim to truth must be tested.

Therefore, dear friends, as you begin this new year, I pray you will either begin or continue the most important discipline of your life: a daily quiet time in God's Word.

AI-Expanded Reflection

2 Peter 1 moves from gift to growth. Peter first says God's "divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness" (1:3), and then urges believers to "make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge," and so on through self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love (1:5–7). The effort is real, but it rests on what God has already given.

Peter's letter was written with his death in view — "I know that the putting off of my body will be soon" (1:14) — and his great concern was that believers would remember what they had been taught. That is why he repeatedly speaks of reminding them (1:12–13, 15; 3:1). The comment's nine years of daily reading illustrate exactly the habit Peter commends: not a single burst of zeal but steady, repeated return to the same Word. Peter also anchors that Word's authority, noting that "no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man," but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Spirit (1:21).

"Since all these things are thus to be dissolved," what sort of people ought you to be in holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the day of God (a paraphrase of 2 Peter 3:11–12).

Happy New Year, dear friends! It is amazing that the apostle Peter tells us to look forward to and even hasten the coming of the day of God, which will bring the destruction of the present heavens and earth. Yet it is not the destruction we look forward to but the "new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells" (2 Peter 3:13). We will see Jesus, who is our righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30)!

So, dear friends, whatever else you resolve to do this new year, I pray that you may grow in holiness and godliness. I pray that you will be looking forward to that day rather than backward. Let nothing discourage you. Let nothing worry you. As Peter writes elsewhere, we rejoice with joy "inexpressible and filled with glory," obtaining the outcome of our faith, the salvation of our souls (cf. 1 Peter 1:8–9). This is a promise from God that is "imperishable, undefiled, and unfading" (1 Peter 1:4). It is kept in heaven for us, and every new year brings us nearer to receiving it.

May the Lord banish every fear from your heart. May He fill you with His peace that passes all understanding. May you find joy even in trials and contentment through every adversity. May this new year fill you with unceasing zeal to live faithfully in and for the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope of glory!

AI-Expanded Reflection

Peter's phrase "hastening the coming of the day of God" (3:12) is striking, and interpreters understand it in two main ways: either "earnestly desiring" that day, or actually hastening it — since Peter has just explained that the Lord's apparent delay is patience, "not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance" (3:9). On the second reading, the church's prayer and mission are bound up with God's timing. Either way, the practical conclusion Peter draws is the one the comment highlights: expectation of the end should produce holiness now (3:11, 14).

Peter's hope is not escape from the material world but its renewal — "new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells" (3:13), echoing Isaiah 65:17 and anticipating Revelation 21:1. The letter's final words are a fitting new year's charge: "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (3:18).

We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:19–21).

Peter affirms the full reliability of Scripture. His basis for this conclusion hinges on the nature of biblical prophecy. It never arises out of the human will, but is always from God. That is why prophecy can never be wrong. That is why there is no room for mistakes. The nature of this gift allows no room for maturation. There is no stronger prophecy or weaker prophecy. There is simply prophecy.

Now, consider the perspectives of these three self-proclaimed prophets today, Rick Joyner, Bob Jones, and Mike Bickle:

Bob Jones was told that the general level of prophetic revelation in the church was about 65% accurate at this time. Some are only about 10% accurate, a very few of the most mature prophets are approaching 85% to 95% accuracy. Prophecy is increasing in purity, but there is a still a long way to go for those who walk in this ministry. This is actually grace for the church now, because 100% accuracy in this ministry would bring a level of accountability to the church which she is too immature to bear at this time. It would result in too many Ananiases and Sapphiras (The Prophetic Ministry” Rick Joyner. Morningstar Prophetic Newsletter. Vol. 3, No. 2, p. 2).

Mike Bickle: “Now, obviously, probably about 80% of what's in the Body of Christ that's called prophecy is fleshiness. And so we're in a day when we're in such an immature stage of this. So much of what is called prophecy is not truly prophecy. So we realize that; so what's our reaction to that? We don't throw out the baby with the bath water. We say, "Lord, we don't throw out prophecy. We ask You to mature it." We don't take it as serious in the early days as we will in the days to come” (Media Spotlight- The Restoration of Apostles and Prophets and the Kansas City-Vineyard Connection by Albert James Dager)

These perspectives do not line up with the biblical teaching on prophecy. These men are quite adept in using biblical language to defend their wrong teaching and practices; therefore, I encourage you to be wary. Consider the following warning from Peter in the following verses:

But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping (2 Peter 2:1–3).

Mike Bickle above mentions that 80% of prophecies today are "fleshy." That is a nice way to label false prophecies. The acknowledged percentage itself should be cause for concern since so many are led to take these prophecies seriously, but instead it is treated simply as a matter of Christian growth. What these men fail to understand is that manifestations of the Holy Spirit are not a matter of spiritual maturity. You either have the gift or you don't. It is like pregnancy. You either are or you're not. Likewise, a person can either miraculously heal or they can't. Otherwise, what would immaturity in healing look like? Would it mean that they can only partially heal the blind and the lame? What about speaking in tongues? Does immaturity mean they can only partially speak in tongues? Do you see how absurd and unbiblical this is? Mike Bickle, along with Bob Jones and Rick Joyner, feel that prophets, whose prophecies are inaccurate or wrong, are simply "immature". But Peter would call them "false prophets."

Therefore, friends, be wary of these men and the ministries (e.g. IHOP) they lead. Here's another note of warning from a reputed Christian website GotQuestions.org: What is IHOP?

AI-Expanded Reflection

Second Peter 1 anchors confidence in the apostolic witness to Christ and in the prophetic word. The reference to the transfiguration is followed by an invitation to attend to Scripture as a light in darkness. The disputed wording in verse 20 is then explained by verse 21: prophecy does not originate in human impulse but in people speaking from God as carried by the Spirit. The NET notes emphasize this question of origin rather than interpreting the verse simply as a prohibition on an individual reading Scripture. NET notes on 2 Peter 1:19–21.

The original brings that authority into conversation with quotations reporting substantial error in contemporary prophecy. Those historical quotations are preserved as supplied, including their attributions; their percentages should not be treated as independently measured facts. The central question can still be assessed: what authority is claimed for a statement, and what happens when it proves false? Calling a claim immature does not remove the responsibility of a speaker who has presented it as God’s own word. Those who hear it may have made consequential decisions on that basis.

The wider debate also needs accurate distinctions. Some continuationist Christians distinguish divine revelation from a person’s fallible reporting or interpretation of an impression, whereas others reject that distinction as inconsistent with the biblical category of prophecy. Second Peter’s affirmation of scriptural prophecy is essential evidence, but the relationship between that category and every congregational phenomenon discussed in 1 Corinthians 12–14 requires further argument. A strong critique should engage the actual distinction being proposed rather than assume all parties mean the same thing by the word prophecy.

The analogies with pregnancy and healing therefore have limits. First Corinthians 14 does address the orderly use and evaluation of spiritual gifts, and Paul urges believers to excel in building up the church. It is possible to distinguish a gift’s source from a person’s maturity in using it without thereby proving that false predictions are acceptable. Conversely, the existence of growth in ministry does not authorize assigning divine certainty to unreliable statements. These are separate issues that should not be collapsed for rhetorical effect.

Several practical responsibilities remain clear. A teacher should state the nature and limits of a claim honestly, welcome examination, correct mistakes openly, and avoid using spiritual authority to override another person’s conscience. A congregation should not count only apparent successes while forgetting failed predictions. First Thessalonians 5:19–22 joins openness to the Spirit with testing and holding to what is good. The aim is neither credulity nor reflexive contempt. It is a truthful community whose confidence rests in Christ and whose leaders are willing to be measured by the word they ask others to trust.

Friends, right knowledge is better than vast knowledge, and virtue with a little knowledge is better than evil with a lot of knowledge. However, having both virtue and right knowledge would be best of all. Peter argues for this here in 2 Peter 1. Just as believers were saved through the knowledge of Christ and by His virtue (2 Peter 1:3), they are encouraged to grow in their salvation by adding to their faith this same "virtue" and "knowledge" (2 Peter 1:5). And since the primary vehicle of worldly corruption is lust (or lit. "desire," 2 Peter 1:4), Peter exhorts believers to add to their faith, virtue, and to knowledge "self-control, and to self-control perseverance, and to perseverance godliness" (2 Peter 1:6).

The first six character builders that Peter exhorts believers to pursue relate to their spiritual and moral standing before God. The latter two, brotherly kindness and love (2 Peter 1:7), relate to their ministry to others. As a general principle, there is a priority to sharpening the instrument before wielding it in service, or in the words of Jesus, taking the plank out of our own eye so that we can see clearly to remove the speck from the eyes of others (Matthew 7:5).

Now, after Peter's catalog of character builders, which are very similar to Paul's "fruit of the Spirit" (Galatians 5:22–23), Peter writes both a promise and a warning. The promise is given in 2 Peter 1:8 and 10–11,

For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ... for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

What a remarkable promise! "If you do these things you will NEVER stumble." Talk about claiming promises. Here's one to really take to heart. If you want a strong spiritual and moral foundation, meditate and practice these faith-based character builders. But there is also a word of warning:

For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins (2 Peter 1:9).

Peter does not say that a person that fails in these character builders is unsaved; however, he uses three words, "shortsighted," "blindness," and "forgotten" to signify that they are living as if they are unsaved. He also, by implication, suggests that they will be "barren" and "unfruitful" (2 Peter 1:8).

In view of the advantages to practicing these character builders and the disadvantages to neglecting them, Peter says twice to be diligent to do them: "giving all diligence" (2 Peter 1:5) and "be even more diligent" (2 Peter 1:10).

I want to key in on the second exhortation to diligence. Peter writes,

Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure (2 Peter 1:10)

We have argued in the past that because faith and salvation are the work of God, we are eternally secure; however, you may not always "feel" secure. But just because you sometimes doubt or feel insecure, does not mean you have, thereby, lost your salvation. If you believe that your salvation is totally a work of God, trusting that Jesus has paid the price for your sins and given you His righteousness, that is, He died for you and rose again, then you are saved (1 John 5:11–13; 1 Corinthians 15:1–5).

Now, 2 Peter 1:10 identifies our security and also gives us a means of assurance by using the words "call and election" and the verb "make sure." Calling and election speak of God's sovereign choice of believers for salvation. This is the believer's eternal security. And believers give themselves and others the assurance of their salvation by living out the catalog of character builders that Peter has just described.

How do you know that you are among the elect? You know by the promise of God in His Word, namely, that whoever believes in Jesus has eternal life (e.g. John 3:16). You know by the inner witness of the Holy Spirit (e.g. Romans 8:16). And you know by the good works (i.e. these character builders) that you do for God (2 Peter 1:5–11). The works do not save you, but they confirm your election. As James writes, "I will show you my faith by my works" (James 2:18).

AI-Expanded Reflection

Second Peter places the call to diligence after the declaration that divine power has granted what is needed for life and godliness (1:3–4). The order matters. Believers cultivate virtue because God has graciously supplied a new basis for life, not to persuade him to begin helping them. The list moves through moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, endurance, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. These qualities belong together; the passage does not present a ladder on which one must perfectly finish a virtue before beginning the next. Read 2 Peter 1:3–11.

The original's distinction between possessing information and having fruitful knowledge is central to Peter's argument. Knowledge of Christ becomes barren when detached from a life increasingly shaped by him. Yet growth cannot be reduced to moral effort without knowledge either: understanding God's promises and character informs self-control, endurance, and love. The passage holds doctrinal understanding and practiced virtue together.

Making one's calling and election sure concerns confirming or establishing them in the life of the believer. Christian traditions differ over how this relates to perseverance and the possibility of falling away. The text does not say that virtuous acts cause God's original call, and it does not invite indifference to whether faith bears fruit. The warning about forgetting cleansing from former sins connects stagnation with a failure to live in light of grace already received.

The promise about not stumbling should be read with the goal of entrance into Christ's eternal kingdom in view, rather than as a guarantee that a diligent believer will never make another mistake. Assurance can be strengthened by observable growth, but obsessive monitoring of every weakness can obscure the very grace that enables growth. A helpful examination asks about direction and responsiveness: is there increasing honesty, repentance, endurance, and love? The answer should lead either to grateful encouragement or renewed repentance and trust, not to confidence in personal achievement as a substitute for Christ.