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Peter’s Counsel to Parents
purified their lives by obeying the truth, will come up to the gates of
the city of God, and the gates will open before them. Are their children
preparing to enter with them? If the parents have worked out their own
salvation with fear and trembling, if they have in the fear of God tried
to help their children, their work will be accepted. But perhaps their
children have refused to be helped, and have chosen to follow their
own inclinations. Will you not, as young people, act in harmony with
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the knowledge that you have received, and join the army of believers
to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling?
Universal call
“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.” Every one of you is called. Will
you obey the call?
“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.” If you try to fulfill the
Word, if you seek to do the will of God, you will have divine help.
Cultivation of Christian principles
“And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue“—
a virtuous character—“and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge
temperance“—temperance in eating and in drinking—“and to temper-
ance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly
kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity“—love.
“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.
“But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off,
and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
“Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling
and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
“For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into
the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (
2 Peter
1:1-11
).