Word of Encouragement (9/16/2021)

Another prayer we are going to reflect on is, “May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord” (2 Pet. 1:2). Peter began his first epistle with the basically same benediction: “May grace and peace be multiplied to you” (1 Pet. 1:2). You can see that the benediction in 2 Pet. is an expanded version, which has this addition at the end: “in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” In this version, Peter not only prays for grace and peace to be multiplied to us but also shows us the divine means by which God’s grace and peace are to be multiplied—as we grow “in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.”

What is it about grace and peace that they are multiplied in the knowledge of God and Jesus? Obviously, God and Jesus are the Fountain from which grace and peace flow. Grace and peace don’t come from God as a large philanthropic donation comes from an evil crime boss: there is something off about that connection. When we say that God and Jesus are the Fountain from which grace and peace flow, these spiritual blessings are not just something the Father and the Son happen to have in abundance, which they give out—they are part of Their being as Their divine attributes. So, to grow in the knowledge of God and Jesus is to grow in grace and peace because They are the God and the Lord of grace and peace.

But God is not just a God of grace and peace; He is also a God of holiness and righteousness. Simply growing in the knowledge of God doesn’t necessarily multiply grace and peace to us unless we are under the covenant of grace in Jesus Christ. James said, “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder” (James 2:19)! Intellectually speaking, Satan may know God more than any of us, including His attributes of grace and peace. But his knowledge does not help him experience God’s grace and peace, let alone have them multiplied in his existence. Quite to the contrary, he despises God for extending His grace and peace to undeserving sinners and delivering them from his cruel talons.

So, if our knowledge of God multiplies grace and peace to us, it is because Jesus has delivered us from the curse of the law by bearing the guilt of our sin. If we believe in Jesus Christ, we cannot know God without knowing His grace and peace. Isn’t that wonderful? The only way we can stand before God is if we stand in Christ’s amazing grace: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God” (Rom. 5:1-2).

If we stand in the grace of Christ, we can come to know all other attributes of God—including His holiness and righteousness!—as benefits to us, not as threats against us. Consider what John says in 1 John 1:9: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Did you notice how he relates God’s faithfulness and justice, not grace and mercy, to our forgiveness? Because Jesus paid the penalty of our sin, God’s faithfulness and justice compel Him to forgive us! As a faithful and just Judge, He cannot punish the same sin twice. As we receive His faithful and just forgiveness, we marvel at His grace (and the resulting peace) all the more. So, as we come to know God in all His other glorious attributes, we come to know His grace and peace more and more.

Matthew Henry says, “What we have already received should encourage us to ask for more; he who has begun the work of grace will perfect it.” This may be why Peter extends this benediction to the recipients of his letter. He has experienced God’s grace and peace multiplied to him and knows how wonderful that is. He once denied Jesus three times in the course of one night. Christ extended His grace to him by forgiving him and restoring him to his Apostolic office. And He used him to bring the gospel to the Gentiles for the first time (Acts 10) and allowed him to understand the global extent of God’s grace. He experienced God’s grace by being lifted up and used as a pillar of the Early Church. Having God’s grace multiplied to him, he desired the same for his fellow saints. May this wonderful benediction be applied to us so that God’s grace and peace be multiplied to us! And as we experience it, may we also bless others with this prayer!