As you uncover the mysteries of God hidden in plain sight through my Essential Spiritual Fitness Program, you’ll begin to see that ALL the Apostles taught the 4 Cardinal Virtues, in support of our Lord’s teaching on this very same subject. For all the Apostles were focused on supporting your personal development. For this is the intended result of your faith.
Let’s see what the inspired pen of the Apostle Peter wrote about as recorded for all mankind for all history, past – present – and future, in 2 Peter 1:2-11:
God has done His part. See that you do yours.
2Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the full knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3seeing that his divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the full knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and virtue, 4by which he has granted to us his precious and exceedingly great promises; that through these you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the utter ruin that is in the world by lust.
5For this very reason you must diligently make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue (the 4th cardinal virtue of right judgment), and virtue with knowledge (the 1st cardinal virtue of discernment), 6and knowledge with self-control (the 2nd cardinal virtue), and self-control with hopeful endurance (the 3rd cardinal virtue of courage). Your hopeful endurance too must always be accompanied by godliness (for faith without works is dead); 7that in turn must have in it the quality of brotherly kindness (love your neighbor – the second of the great commandments at the core of the 4 Cardinal Virtues), and your brotherly kindness must lead on to Christian love (love the Lord Jesus Christ your God – the first of the great commandments at the core of the 4 Cardinal Virtues).
8For if these things are yours and abounding, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9For he who lacks these things is blind, seeing only what is near, having forgotten the cleansing from his old sins.
10Therefore, brothers, be more diligent to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never stumble. 11For so will be richly supplied to you the entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Now as we meditate upon these words, consider, today, this question Peter is here addressing:
Upon accepting Christ and receiving salvation through faith and faith alone … then what?
If God has done His part, what now is your part to do?
Following are some thoughts for your training as you consider this question.
To start, let me share that many times people who do away with God’s law and refuse to follow it, even after being saved, ask me, “So what are the works we must “add” to our faith (supplement our faith with), once we are saved by faith alone?” But they often ask this question as though it should be obvious that there is nothing more to do. They ask this question with great sarcasm.
I think this is the wrong way to think about this question and God’s law.
I’m not suggesting that we are saved by anything but faith, for it is a truth we are saved by faith alone. But when considering “Then what?” the question really to ask is, once saved, is there then anything we are instructed to do? Anything that will enhance our faith and/or help us in our faith so as to keep us from ever falling away?
If you take the time to investigate the answer to this question, what you’ll find is that, indeed, Jesus teaches us that we must “add” to our faith once we are saved. Not for salvation, but in response to it. He also speaks of those who do nothing after being saved as those who become worse off than they were before first coming to their supposed “saving faith”.
The Apostles all follow suit and teach the same thing after Jesus, including the Apostle Peter. In his second letter Peter repeats the teaching of Jesus about what we must “add” to our faith very matter-of-factly. As such, it’s a great place to start.
As you read the following from the Apostle Peter notice how clearly he identifies the things born again souls are to ADD to their “faith”:
“For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.” (2 Peter 1:5-7 ESV)
If you pay attention, you’ll notice the first 4 things he identifies are the same 4 Cardinal Virtues our Lord speaks of when He says to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. You will learn all about these virtues in both my Making-It-Real subscription service and my Faith-Without-Confusion online course.
Now what leads Peter to tell us what we must “add” to our faith, once saved? This that he wrote just before, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” (2 Peter 1:3-4)
So, because of this, that is, in “response” to these precious and very great promises we’ve now become partakers in, he tells us, “for this very reason” in verse 5, “add to your faith (or supplement your faith with) virtue, etc.”
And notice, Peter too understands that it is us, our sinful desire, that is the problem, as did Jesus. It is not the law that was the problem, or the works of righteousness we’ve always been called unto. This is why he too is comfortable directing us to moral excellence (virtue) through knowledge of Christ’s supreme law.
Now, if we do this – grow in the virtuous life – what then does he promise? Let’s see (and notice, just like Jesus, he indicates that those who don’t add these things to their faith will end up falling away, and be worse off than before they first came to faith):
“For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:8-11)
So, according to Peter, who is teaching after the likeness of Jesus, we MUST add to our faith, once saved. Not for salvation … but in response to it.
Fortunately for us, these things we MUST add to our faith, once saved, are written in the good book.
In fact, all the Apostles throughout the New Testament teach us what these things are.
Now be careful to always remember: None of this means that we are saved by these things “beyond faith”.
It is always faith alone by which we are saved.
But faith alone is dead.
And if we insist for our own selves on just faith alone, then we, as Peter said in confirmation of Jesus’ teaching, well, we become blind, and in danger of falling from salvation.
This is the reason why my Essential Spiritual Fitness Program is focused on helping you grow in your personal development by developing in your own life the 4 Cardinal Virtues of Discernment, Self-control, Courage, and Right Judgment. For without adding to your faith the virtuous life, you are in very real danger.
As you contemplate these things, remember that the 4 Cardinal Virtues are the means by which we attain the ‘practical mysticism’ of Christ.
Simply put, they are the means by which we know Christ in us, the hope of Glory.
The means by which we walk in the Way.
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As a reminder of the value built into my Essential Spiritual Fitness Program specifically through the Faith-Without-Confusion online course:
Step 1 unwinds the mystery of God and Creation through Christ. Uncovering the nature of the spiritual realm and how it is that our life in this earthly realm is the proving grounds for our eternal state. This is the foundation for deepening your relationship with Christ. The rounding out of your faith.
Step 2 gets into even deeper spirituality as it unwinds the mystery of the Gospel through Christ and the Cross. Introducing you to the Mysterious Melchizedek and, ultimately, your innermost self. Awakening you to the inner nature of your very own soul.
Step 3 unwinds the mystery of the new man and his life in Christ especially through the 4 Cardinal Virtues and the Moral Law. Taking you beyond “knowing” and into the “practical application” of Christ’s teachings. Elevating your mind beyond the things you thought you knew. To the grandeur and moral elevation of Christianity beyond which the human mind can not advance.
Step 4 unwinds the mystery of the practical application of Christ’s teaching in a world where not everyone is good. Where not everyone is willing to accept that Jesus is Lord. This is known as Discernment with Public vs. Private Enemies.
And finally, Step 5 unwinds the mystery of how the spirituality of Steps 1 and 2 and the practical application of Steps 3 and 4 combine into a daily practice of the ‘practical mysticism’ of Christ. Unfolding through an understanding and application of the First and Second Resurrections. We call this, “Embracing the Power” and it is the ongoing fulfillment of you growing your personal development through and in Jesus Christ.
OK…
For those of us who are saved, and are committed to amending our ways. We are those called to what we refer to as the ‘practical mysticism’ of Christ. To conforming our lives to the life Christ as the author and finisher of our faith so perfectly modeled during His earthly ministry.
And this is the very thing we help you do here with my Essential Spiritual Fitness Program.
Provide the ways and means for entering into dispassionate love that leads to the greatest passion through the mysteries of God, the Gospel, and Creation.
Centered on the revelation of Jesus Christ. The manifestation of God among men.
What we sometimes call “Training through The Mysteries of God in Christ.”
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You can get started working my Essential Spiritual Fitness Program by subscribing to the Making-It-Real service by clicking the following link:
https://spiritualfitnessprogram.com/membership/makingitreal/
You can further your growth using my Essential Spiritual Fitness Program by enrolling in my Faith-Without-Confusion Online Course by clicking the following link:
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God Bless!
Coach Paul
‘Feel, Do, and Be Better!‘