Journey to Joy: We’ve Got It All!

What joy-filled good news! God’s Advent coming among us has given us everything needed for life and godliness. According to the holy author, that gift is ours “through the knowledge of him who called us.” The Greek is epignosis, perhaps better translated as “full” or “complete” knowledge. Through faith in the One who came, we have more than head-knowledge; we have complete knowledge, everything needed for life and goodness. To help us visualize what that would look like, the author strings together a beautiful symphony of seven Christian virtues that support us in faith: “?with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love.” These seven virtues are joined hand-in-hand. Faith begins the refrain and love completes it.

Our God, whose divine power works within us through the hearing of the gospel, has freely given us everything that makes possible the new spiritual life within us and through us in the world. Through faith in the Saviour born among us, we’ve got it all! Rejoice!

Help us, Lord, to live out what we have been given. Amen. — PH