in your faith supply moral excellence

    in your faith supply moral excellence

ἐπιχορηγήσατε ἐν τῇ πίστει ὑμῶν τὴν ἀρετήν
 

So far we have seen that faith allows us to perceive and interact with reality that we cannot fully see based upon varying amounts of evidence leading to a beyond a reasonable doubt conclusion about that reality.

The next word that we come to is ἐπιχορηγήσατε (epichoregesate, G2023, LN59.74) to provide something in addition to what already exists. The word is used only 5 times in the New Testament. (2 Cor. 9:10; Gal. 3:5; Col. 2:19; 2 Peter 1:5, 11) And it carries with it the thought of an additional supply. So we see that moral excellence as well as everything else listed in this passage is added on to faith. Another way of looking at it is because one has faith the result will be the addition of moral excellence and so on.

Moral excellence in the Greek is the word ἀρετήν (areten, G703) and it is used only five times in the New Testament. Four of the five uses are by Peter (1 Peter 2:9; 2 Peter 1:3; 2:5) the fifth use is by Paul in Philippians (Phl. 4:8). Basically it means "the quality of moral excellence—'outstanding goodness, virtue". 1 Peter 1:3 and 2 Peter 2:9 apply ἀρετήν to God. In the first reference we read "so that you may proclaim the excellences of Him who has called you…" "Excellences" is our word and it is applied to God. ἀρετήν as applied to God is in the absolute sense and flows from His possession of absolute holiness. A believer or an unbeliever can be good in the sense that they are a "good" person when compared to other people. But that kind of "goodness" is not what is in view here. When a person's goodness in the human realm is compared to God's absolute perfect holiness; God's view of our goodness is that: "all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment" (Is. 64:6). How then can we ever be "morally excellent"?

In Systematic Theology Volume Two, Dr. Geisler states "…God is holy; He is perfect in and of Himself; all else is perfect by participation in His perfection." If we look back just a few verses here in 2 Peter 1 we read "For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature…" God has made provision for us to "become partakers of the divine nature".

How do we do this?

    In Ephesians 4:20-24 we get an outline of what is to be done. First we must learn Christ, second we must lay aside the old self and finally we must "… be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth."

    As we learn Christ old thought patterns and standards that we have had will begin to conform to His standards. We learn Christ through bible study, "we have the mind of Christ." (1 Cor. 2:16) And by studying His mind (the bible) our mind is renewed. As our mind is renewed we will lay aside our old self and will be "conformed to the image of His Son" (Romans 8:29). It all starts with learning Christ as we do this the old self is left behind and our mind is renewed and only then can the new self be put on. This is not an all at once process, it takes a life time. As we grow in one area we will become aware of other areas that need changing.

    In Philippians 4:8-9 we have a blueprint for renewing our minds. The key words in those verses are "dwell on these things". λογίζεσθε (logizomai, G3049) is our word dwell and it means: to put together with one's mind, to count, to occupy oneself with reckonings or calculations. The list of things that we are to dwell on encompasses three aspects of thought. The first aspect is how those things relate to Gods nature. The second is how those things relate to Gods word and lastly is how those things relate to the world around us. My study of God's word should bring me to an understanding of God's truthfulness, purity, and reputation, just to name a few items from the list. Understanding these things will help us to understand who God is. That in turn will deepen our love and trust for Him. Studying His word will orient us to thinking about things the way God sees them, this in turn will enable us to seek out things in the world around us that will bring honor to Him.

    This is not an easy process. The way that we think about things actually causes physical changes to our brains. Our responses to things in the world around us create pathways in our brains and these responses become ingrained there. It takes time to rewire our brain to change these responses. That does not mean that we do not chose our reactions things, it only means that we are not only fighting our thoughts but also our bodies conditioned reactions to thinking. The renewing of our minds takes place on both a spiritual and a physical level. As the thought patterns change the physical paths alter to make the new thought response the default.

    Finally in verse 8 Paul tells us "The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you." Notice that we are to practice what we have learned, received, heard and seen in Paul. Every believer is a role model for every other believer, either good or bad, and lessons are to be gleaned from each. Either what to do or what not to do.