Fruitful Christians

Carl Vilhelm Holsoe, Girl Reading At a Sunlit Window

"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. 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." 2 Peter 1:5-9

What rich morsels are nestled within this passage! This verse truly spoke to me this morning as I read it. "Supplement your faith..." Not earn your salvation or gain forgiveness. Just supplement! We have nothing to add to our salvation that will earn us eternal life and forgiveness. By adding these qualities and virtues to our life, we are simply becoming effectual tools in the hands of our Savior. Here, then, is the secret to a self-sacrificing, godly Christian life. Applying the Scriptures by adding these virtues make us fruitful sons and daughters, while ignoring them leads to useless, lukewarm faith. Let us work diligently to become the fruitful Christians our Lord desires us to be!

Have a Blessed Lord's Day!