Can the coat of many colours be seen on you?

Preached at Glen Aros Christian Fellowship, Scotland on
Sunday 4th June 2006

2Peter 1:1 -15

Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
11 For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
12 Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.
13 Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance;
14 Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath showed me.
15 Moreover I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.

V1 Simon Peter I love your letters!
V 1 He’s a servant and an Apostle, what a great combination.

He’s a servant of Jesus Christ, and an Apostle of Jesus Christ.

He is writing to those who have obtained the same precious faith as himself.

Have you obtained that precious faith? Can you say this morning that you have obtained this precious faith he is talking about?

Yes? Then the content of this letter is for you.

No? Then listen in to what God is saying in this letter.

This precious faith which belongs to Simon Peter can belong to you.

V2 Grace and Peace be multiplied to you…

You have received grace and peace, but more than that Simon Peter desires that it be multiplied to you.

That you may have it in abundance!

And it comes from two places.

V2 through the knowledge of God, and of our Lord Jesus Christ…

You see God has given you all things in giving himself to you.

He gave himself as Jesus died in your place on the cross.

You should have died that day.

But Jesus died in your place.

He died you live.

In V3 Simon tells us there are two things he has given.

V3 [He] has given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us to glory and virtue.

God has given us everything that has to do with life.

That’s everything!

Everything to do with your life, the tone of the words are; ‘everything to do with your lifetime’. He has given you everything for the time you are on this planet.

Everything up to now…

Everything to come…

Everything!

Nothing has been left out.

Not only has He given us everything to do with our life and our time here on earth.

God has given us everything that has to do with godliness!

Again he has given us everything!

Everything to do with holiness! Everything!

You have been given everything in order that you might live, and everything that you might live a godly, and a holy life.

Remember Joseph, he was given a gift of a coat of many colours.

This marked him out from his brothers

Remember the prodigal son His father said ‘bring forth the best robe and put it on him’ He was given a gift of a robe which marked him out form the elder brother.

Godliness, Holiness is a gift from our Father in heaven!

Combined with all the other qualities mentioned in this letter, from Simon Peter, they make a great coat of many colours, a robe, which adorns us.

It marks us out form all others.

Godliness! Is the gift of being saved, so that we might live a life which is godly.

Let’s look a little deeper.

Ac 3:12 and when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, you men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? Or why look you so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk?

Remember the lame man at the beautiful gate?

This was a miracle done among the people openly in the street.

Simon Peter had to stop the people; these were their fellow Israelites; because they were thinking that it was the godliness of Peter and John which had accomplished this healing.

The man was made to walk by the fact that Simon Peter and John had moved in the godliness which they had received as a gift from their Father in heaven. They were walking in godliness and holiness.


1Timothy 2:2

Read form V1

For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty…

Paul A servant and an Apostle like Simon Peter exhorts us that life should be lived in all godliness…

1Timothy 3:16

And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

There is a mystery about godliness!

Yes! he has given us all things that have to do with life. Praise Him that he has.

But there is this godliness, this holiness.

In some ways the world and Satan can reproduce deceptive life. But it can only be enjoyed for a season!

Remember Moses before Pharaoh, when he threw down his staff and it became a serpent?

The magicians did the same?

For everything that Moses could do they did, or had reason why it had happened.

The only thing they could not reproduce, or have an answer for, was death!

Finally after all the darkness, hail, frogs and lice God killed the first born of every man and animal.

When it comes to death you need the godliness which God the father provides as a gift through his Son the Lord Jesus Christ.

Praise God for Jesus…

The gift of godliness…

The gift to live a holy life!

Given to us, in such a mysterious way, that we can live life in all its fullness

Mark 4:11

He said to them, ‘to you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables…

You have been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God…

What a great privilege.

Romans 11:25
For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of his mystery…

Romans 16:25

According to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began…

A mystery kept secrete since the world began…

Colossians 1:27

…God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

This mystery of godliness, of holiness

Christ in you the hope of glory.

This is, the mystery of Godliness, revealed to you when Jesus came into your life.

Amazing that Jesus Christ can come into your heart, and give you the hope of glory.

There is more…


1Timothy 4:7

Refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself rather unto godliness.

The world is full of magicians!
The world is full of Old wives’ fables!

The apostle Paul exhorts us to refuse them.

God himself through Paul exhorts us to go, instead, to the gym.

And do exercises in godliness.

I, too, exhort you to go to the gym.

1Timothy 4:6

For bodily exercise profits little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.

You see bodily exercise when compared to godliness profits only a little.

Godliness, Holiness is profitable for all things.

It affects the life that we live now, and it affects the world that is to come.

Going to the gym will make you fit, and healthy, and is useful for this life.

When you die all your hours in the gym will come to an end. They will have affected only this life.

But the exercise of godliness goes beyond death. All your godly exercise profits and prepares you for the world to come.

Because Christ is in you…you have the hope of glory and it inspires you to prepare for that glory to come.


1Timothy 6:3 - 5

if anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which accords with godliness, he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions, useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. From such withdraw yourself


There is a doctrine, a teaching which accords to godliness, to holiness.

By finding out about this godly teaching, and exercising it, you will see grace and peace multiplied throughout your life.

1Timothy 6:6

Godliness with contentment is great gain.

Godliness mixed with contentment is great gain; in fact, it is the greatest gain of all.

1 Timothy 6:11 - 12

But you, O man of God… pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were called…

Here Paul reminds us, that godliness is one quality among many which the Holy Spirit desires to produce in our lives, with your cooperation, of course!

It is called the fruit of the Holy Spirit

Do you remember the list in Galatians 5: 22, 23

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…

Let’s go back to 2 Peter 1:5

2 Peter 1: 5

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…

Cooperation is needed, to add these things to your faith.


I have emphasised godliness, but each one of these qualities mentioned by Simon Peter, and by Paul, can be treated in the same way.

Going into the gym involves a series of exercises on various pieces of equipment.

Some for the leg muscles, some for he arm muscles, and of course some will tone up the belly.


Notice what is said at the beginning of V 5

Beside this, giving all diligence


Beside what?

V3-4 tells us…

As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Why then should we spend time in the gym of Holiness?

V10

For if you do these things, you shall never fail…

Wow!


V8

8 for if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

If these things be in you, and abound

If you give all diligence

If you give diligence to make your calling and election sure

If you do these things you shall never fail

If these things be in you and abound you shall never be barren

You shall never be unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Can the coat of many colours be seen on you?

Have you obtained the robe of righteousness which the Father gives to those who return to him?

Are you diligent in your exercises?

V 9

But he that lacks these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

Which are you?

V10

Give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if you do these things, you shall never fall…