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But Wait, There's More


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; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (II Peter 1:5-8) 

            "You've just gotta believe " Well, it's a good place to start. "I'm a good person." That's good to hear. I won't even argue that no one is 100% good. It's true, but for the moment, we'll assume that you're "good." There are times when it seems as if people think that believing and being good are God's only goals for us. 
            Recently, I saw a video of a high school football team. Each player brought an orange rose out to lay at the feet of a cheerleader who is battling leukemia. Imagine bringing the roses of your perfections to lay at the feet of Christ. You bring your faith. That's one. You bring your goodness. If you brought both, that's two. Some people are relying on their goodness apart from any faith, they have only one. In this passage, Peter suggests that we produce no fewer than 8 roses to present to Christ: faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness (not the same as goodness), brotherly kindness and love. He goes on to suggest that we leave them on the "plant" so that they grow bigger and more beautiful. It is not one of them, but all of them that make you effective and productive in our knowledge of the Lord. I don't want to lay a rose at Jesus' feet. I'd like to give Him a whole flourishing bush. 
       I want to be like those infomercials, bringing faith and goodness, and then being able to say, "But wait, there's more" not because I am so great, but because I'm greatly blessed

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