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Vision. Intention. Means.
= The Reliable Pattern for Change.

VISION

Spiritual formation in the way of Jesus is the process of being formed into a person of love in Christ.

Philippians 3:10–13 God has given me that genuine righteousness which comes from faith in Christ. How changed are my ambitions! Now I long to know Christ and the power shown by his resurrection: now I long to share his sufferings, even to die as he died, so that I may perhaps attain as he did, the resurrection from the dead. Yet, my brothers, I do not consider myself to have “arrived”, spiritually, nor do I consider myself already perfect. But I keep going on, grasping ever more firmly that purpose for which Christ grasped me.

2 Peter 1:3-4 His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust, and may become participants of the divine nature.

SO THAT YOU MAY BECOME PARTICIPANTS OF THE DIVINE NATURE.

Participants, Partakers, Sharers of God’s Nature.
These are bold words, and may be so understood as to excite the wildest and most presumptuous dreams. But bold as they are, and startling as they may sound to some of us, they are only putting into other language the teaching of which the whole New Testament is full, that men may, and do, by their faith, receive into their spirits a real communication of the life (the nature) of God.
Maclaren

Holiness = Weaned from the world. Goodness on fire. Purity of Heart. Response-able.

The vision we need for reliable change is caught as we stare at Jesus.

This is remarkably generous and loving of God. He could rescue us from hell without even inviting us to be partakers of the divine nature. It shows how deeply God loves us and wants to share His life – indeed, even the divine nature – with His people.
Guzik

INTENTION

2 Peter 1:3-4 His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

1. We must INTEND to trust Jesus.

Trust requires knowledge.

Have you set your intention to TRUST Jesus?
When did you decide to grow in the knowledge of Jesus?
And how did you implement that decision?

2. We must INTEND to obey Jesus.

Neo, sooner or later you’re going to realize just as I did that there’s a difference between knowing the path and walking the path.
Morpheus, The Matrix

The idea that you can trust Christ and not intend to obey him is an illusion generated by the prevalence of an unbelieving “Christian culture” In fact, you can no more trust Jesus and not intend to obey him than you could trust your doctor and your auto mechanic and not intend to follow their advice. If you don’t intend to follow their advice, you simply don’t trust them. Period. (Of course in this case you might well have good reason.)
Willard

Have you set your intention to OBEY Jesus?
When did you decide to follow the teachings of Jesus?
And how did you implement that decision?

MEANS

2 Peter 1:3-4 His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust, and may become participants of the divine nature.

It was this which digged the deep foundations of the earth and sea! Divine power, it is this which guides the marches of the stars of heaven! Divine power! it is this which holds up the pillars of the universe, and which one day shall shake them, and hurry all things back to their native nothingness.
Spurgeon

Ultimately, any progress in godliness that we make is due to God's enabling grace.

His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

2 Peter 1:5-8 For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your 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. For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

“Off The Spot” Training

If we are not training in Godliness “off the spot” it’s much more likely that when we are “on the spot” instead of the DIVINE NATURE shining through our SIN NATURE is going to come crashing through.

Necessary Means given to us include but are not limited to:

• The Bible
• Specific teachings and examples from the life of Jesus
• Life stories of those who have experienced authentic transformation
• The Holy Spirit
• The practice of Christian disciplines
• Any other resources or activities that help us identify and develop new responses that are like those of Jesus.