The apostle Peter tells us that besides the precious promises we have received, we are to with all diligence, add to our faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance (self control); and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness love. 

Peter then tells us that if these things be in you and abound, they make you that you shall neither be barren or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he who lacks these things is blind and cannot see afar off, and has forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. 

These are the things that matter with God. 

Peter then links these things to our election and calling. He says, Wherefore the rather, brethren, give all diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if you do these things, you shall never fail.

Think about that statement – you will never fail! This is fail proof Christianity. 

Peter then tells us the following regarding these things taking root and abounding in us: For so an entrance shall be ministered to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

This is what truly  matters to God. These are the things he wants in our lives. 

See 2 Peter 1:4-11

As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you… ~ 1 Peter 1:14-20

Jesus redeemed us with his precious blood to make us holy in the sight of God. Being made holy is not merely a positional standing before God. Instead, it is real holiness whereby we serve God with a pure heart by the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit. In the introduction to Peter’s letter he describes the people of God as “elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.” ~ 1 Peter 1:2

The sprinkling of the blood has to do with that which has been consecrated and set apart as holy unto God. Under the law of Moses the atoning blood was sprinkled on the altar, the people, the priesthood, the veil which separated the holy place from the most holy, and the mercy seat within the most holy place. The atoning blood purified all theses under Moses as types and shadows of the blood of Christ purifying us and making us holy in the sight of God.

We were chosen in the foreknowledge of God to be holy, and God himself fulfills this in our lives by the sanctifying work of his Holy Spirit and our obedience to Jesus and cleansing by his blood. In view of our call to be holy, Peter reminds us that we were not redeemed from our old life by corruptible things. Instead, we were redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot…”

Unfortunately, there are some among the clergy (unscrupulous ministers) who do not teach sound doctrine about the blood of Christ. They teach as if it is a spiritual charm for blessings (often related to material possessions). Such twisting of the truth of God has led many into spiritual error.

According to the scriptures, Jesus shed his precious blood to save us from our sins and to reconcile us to a Holy God. Holy means sacred and set apart. Everything about God is sacred and he is to be reverenced by all who call on his name. In the text cited above, the apostle Peter says, if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear…

As foreigners sojourning through this life, we are called to live in godly fear. While we rejoice that we are loved by God and have received mercy and grace, we also reverence God because he is holy. When God’s love is coupled with godly fear and reverence the end result is a holy life that glorifies God.

This is the foundation for correctly understanding all that scripture teaches about the blood of Christ: God is holy, and we must be cleansed and purified from sin to stand in his presence. Without Jesus’s blood purifying us, and the Holy Spirit sanctifying us, we would have no fellowship with God, who is holy.

For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. ~ John 1:17

The law of Moses was national Israel’s covenant until Christ, through whom the new covenant has been established. The law of God (God’s ways – righteousness, truth, mercy, judgements, etc.,) is eternal.

The law of Moses was given to Israel as a tutor to teach them God’s law (God’s ways as mentioned above) and was the conduit of God’s law until Christ. Consequently Israel was under carnal ordinances (Hebrews 9:10) which were given to teach them the ways of God. These carnal ordinances were such things as the sacrificial system, the priesthood, the feast days, etc. These were all types and shadows pointing to Christ, and continued until the time of reformation when Christ fulfilled God’s law by giving himself as the offering for our sins and becoming our great high priest.

Because of Jesus we do not keep the ordinances instructed the law of Moses for the children of Israel in the Old Testament. We are not required to bring an unblemished goat to a temple in Jerusalem where an appointed priest offers it as a sin offering on our behalf. We simply look to Jesus in repentance when we sin, and his precious blood cleanses us from all sin because Jesus gave himself as the offering for our sins when he died on the cross.

The law of God requires atonement for sin. The law of Moses taught this lesson through the sacrifices and the priesthood, but Jesus fulfilled God’s law regarding atonement by giving his innocent life for our sins. Now there is no longer any need for the tutor (the law of Moses) to instruct us how to have our sins atoned for. Jesus has fulfilled God’s law and we come to Jesus for forgiveness and are reconciled to God through him.

The law of God is eternal and is now administered through the grace of Christ and not through the law of Moses (by the newness of the Spirit and not the oldness of the letter). The law of God administrated through the law of Moses was written on tables of stone. The law of God through Christ is now written in our hearts.