"And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. 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. – 2 Peter 1:5-8
AMEN! "For if these things be in you..."
This is Peter explaining the proof, the evidence of God's grace. "If we believe; if we acknowledge Christ as Lord and Savior; if our lives reflect the gift of God's glory; if our hearts have been reborn to His word; and most importantly of all as Paul told us, if He has indeed risen from the cross, then praise God, it is all true.
So who can actually believe that a man died and yet rose into heaven bodily? Who can accept this astounding impossibility as truth since there isn't really any rational evidence for this fact? None saw Him rise into glory. We have only the words of the Apostles and a few others who say they saw Christ after His death. How can we really believe this to be true if we didn't witness it ourselves?
Scripture tells us we believe by the supernatural gift of God to rebirth us and to open our eyes and ears to the spiritual truth which isn't comprehended by logic or reasoning, but by faith alone.
And the really amazing part is that this faith itself is not illogical nor unreasonable. Why? Because since we have lived our lives according to this faith, we know firsthand the real and tangible effects of this faith -- our lives are happier; we endure hardships without despair; we are more productive and directed; our families are more secure; and most of all, our hearts are rightly turned from our own impoverished ego toward gratitude. Gratitude for God's grace, protection, abiding care and confidence in our future with Him in glory. Gratitude, the glue that holds our lives together and rightly aligns our hearts to Him.
Now perhaps someone like Kosta would say some potent illegal drug could give us this same confident high. To which I would reply that no drug, no other belief, no man nor other god on the face of the earth can give what Christianity gives --
"And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." -- Philippians 4:7
So there comes a point when our faculties are not equipped to prove it all true, even as Kosta demands. That's when faith is given and we believe by the power of the Holy Spirit to change our doubts and fears into the peace of God.
Everything has been unfolding from the beginning according to God's will. The Final Cause is the new family Christ establishes in the new heaven and the new earth. (last two chapters of Revelation)
Amen! And what a relief to know this is true.
"Be not afraid; only believe." -- Mark 5:36.
The first clause in that verse is nearly as important as the second clause.
When Kosta says "No one could imagine that God is gentle and humble," he is only half right. Of course God is gentle, more gentle than the softest touch, more loving than any new mother, more generous than any proud father.
But why would God, the creator of heaven and earth and all things for all time, be "humble?" Who is He humbling Himself before?
Christ, His Son, humbled Himself to God by becoming a man and suffering for our sins so that believers would be saved. But that's the only "humility" contained in the Godhead. Christ was made shame for us; not by us. Do you presume that God humbles Himself before you, Kosta?
Maybe you do.
But that's not Biblically-correct. Every citation in Scripture speaking the word "humble" references men, not God.
"LORD, thou hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear" -- Psalm 10:17