Second Timothy 1:9 and 10 tell us that God called us also according to His grace, “which was given to us in Christ Jesus before times eternal, but now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who nullified death, and brought life and incorruption to light through the gospel.” God’s grace is a matter of tremendous significance. In 1:9 grace is God’s provision in life for us to live out His purpose. The New Testament reveals that grace is actually what God is to us for our enjoyment (John 1:16-17; 2 Cor. 12:9). Grace is God in Christ dispensed into our being for our enjoyment in our experience. Grace is not mainly the work God does for us; grace is the Triune God Himself dispensed into our being and experienced as our enjoyment. In brief, grace is the Triune God experienced and enjoyed by us.
According to the New Testament, grace is nothing less than God in Christ dispensed into our being for our enjoyment. When God becomes our portion for us to enjoy, that is grace. Do not consider grace as something less than God. Grace is nothing less than the Triune God enjoyed by us in a practical way as our portion.
In 2 Timothy 1:9 Paul says that the grace given to us in Christ was bestowed upon us before the world began. The phrase “before times eternal” means before the world began. This is a sure and unshakable foundation, standing firmly against the waves of the downward current and exposing the total powerlessness of the enemy’s efforts to counter the eternal purpose of God.
In verse 10 Paul goes on to say that the grace given to us before times eternal has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus. God’s grace was given to us in eternity but was manifested and applied to us through our Lord’s first coming to nullify death and bring life to us. Because this grace was manifested through the appearing of Christ, the Old Testament saints did not experience it. The grace destined to be given to us came with the appearing of the Lord Jesus. This grace is not merely a blessing; it is the Triune God Himself given to us to be our enjoyment. This grace came when the Lord Jesus appeared, and now it is with us today. We have been called by God according to such a marvelous grace.
Second Peter 1:3b says that the believers have been called by God “to His own glory and virtue.” The Greek word translated “to” may also be rendered “through” or “by.” God has called us to His glory and virtue through His glory and virtue. His disciples saw His glory and virtue (2 Pet. 1:16; John 1:14) and were attracted by them. Then through this glory and virtue they were called by Him to this very glory and virtue. It is the same with all believers in Christ.
Glory is the expression of God, God expressed in splendor. This glory, God’s expression, is the goal of the divine calling.
God has not called us without a goal. Whatever God does, He does with a definite goal. This is especially true in the matter of God’s calling. Because God is a purposeful God, He called us with a goal, and this goal is to bring us into His glory. Therefore, God’s glory is the goal of God’s calling.
Literally, the Greek word rendered “virtue” in 2 Peter 1:3 means excellency. Virtue denotes the energy of life to overcome all obstacles and to carry out all the excellent attributes listed in 2 Peter 1:5-7. Whereas glory is the divine goal, virtue is the energy and strength of life to reach the goal. Virtue is the excellent attributes of God becoming to us the energy of life. This means that we have the energy and strength to reach the goal of the divine glory. This virtue with all things relating to life has been given to us by the divine power (2 Pet. 1:3a), but it needs to be developed on the way to glory.
We need to be impressed with the fact that in 2 Peter 1:3b virtue denotes the energy and strength of life for reaching God’s goal. When God called us, He imparted His life into us, and this life is the highest virtue of God. God dispenses His life into us as a virtue. The divine life has the energy and the strength to enable us to reach the divine goal. Second Peter 1:3a says that God has given us all things pertaining to life. This involves God’s virtue, which is the energy and strength for reaching the goal of God’s calling. We cannot reach the goal of the divine glory by our own efforts. We can reach this goal only by the divine life and by all things pertaining to the divine life that have been given to us by God. Because we have such “capital” within us, we have the energy and strength to reach our goal of God’s glory. Here we see the goal and the virtue through which God has called us.
God’s calling includes His own glory and virtue. Virtue as the energy and strength of life comes from what God is. In the divine dispensing, what God is, is given to us by God to be our virtue. God has given the divine life, including all things pertaining to this life, to us as a virtue. Because this virtue energizes us and strengthens us, we have the ability to pass through the long process to reach God’s glory as the goal of His calling.