Milestones to Salvation, Part 7

2006-06-17 22:00

But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. (2 Peter 1:5-9).

The place where there is brotherly kindness is the holy ground where there is the glorious church. It is written, "'Do not come any closer,' God said. 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.'" (Exodus 3:5).

We should take off our sandals which as man likes, we have put on until now in this life. And then, we should "shoe our feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace." (Ephesians 6:15). If so, we can be faithful in Christ as a steward and fellow worker of God. It is written, "For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building." (1 Corinthians 3:9).

From here, we can add the love of God through Christ. Although the past milestones are very precious gifts of God, the milestone of adding the love of God is more precious than them. It is the milestone of entering the love of God, and it is the milestone of the last fruit after all the good fight.

Love the last milestone was already in faith the first milestone. It is written, "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love." (Galatians 5:6).

From start, only faith working through love is the faith that saves the soul. Any other faith except this one is believing the lie. There is no love in believing the lie.

Therefore, it is written, "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:13). And also, "And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him." (1 John 4:16).

If love is not added to brotherly kindness, it is as if the dry bones in the valley of Ezekiel come together without breath. The dry bones' coming together is not the end of God's work. It is written, "Then he said to me, 'Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.'" (Ezekiel 37:9).

His apostle speaks of it again, "and one of you says to them, 'Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,' but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead." (James 2:16-17). And also, "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." (James 2:26).

Therefore, the perfect faith has love in it. Faith without love is in vain. If we hold the beginning of our confidence, the faith working through love, steadfast to the end, we can finally reach the milestone of love. It is written, "For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end." (Hebrews 3:14).

Truly blessed are those who have reached the milestone of love which is added to brotherly kindness. Out of their hearts flow rivers of living water. They have entered the love of God, following Christ. They are equal to the angels, giving love to the world. Thank you, Lord.