In verse 3 Peter says that the divine power has granted to us all things which relate to life and godliness “through the full knowledge of Him.” This full knowledge is a deep, thorough, experiential knowledge.
The preposition through used in relation to full knowledge indicates that we need to pass through a process. If we have the practice of gossiping, this practice is an indication that we have not yet passed through the process leading to the full knowledge of the One who has called us. If we have the full knowledge of the One who has called us to His glory and virtue, we will not waste our time gossiping.
The divine power has infused us with all things pertaining to life and godliness. However, this infusion, this impartation, requires that we have the full knowledge of God. If we do not pass through the process to gain the full knowledge, it will seem that what the divine power has planted in us has been in vain. The divine power is operating, but there is the need for us to cooperate with this operation. There is the need for us to be trained by the Lord so that we may gain the full knowledge of the One who has called us.
In verse 3 Peter does not speak of the knowledge of God nor of the knowledge of the Father, Son, and Spirit. Instead, he speaks of the full knowledge of the One who has called us to His glory and virtue. Here Peter does not say that God has called us to heaven, nor even that He has called us to redemption or sanctification. In this verse Peter says that God has called us to His own glory and virtue. We need to have the full knowledge of this. We can know the One who has called us to His own glory and virtue only by passing through a long process.
We definitely need the full knowledge of the One who has called us for the purpose of bringing us into His glory and virtue. If we have such an experiential knowledge of Him, the divine power will operate in us effectively. For the divine power to work in us, we daily need to cooperate with God. In the morning we should open to Him and say, “Lord, I am here before You. Go on, Lord. I would not hinder You. Rather, I would give You a free way within me. Lord, whatever You speak to me I will proclaim.” The more we cooperate with the divine power within us, the more we are brought into God’s glory, enjoy His virtue, and express this virtue as godliness.
Glory is the expression of God, God expressed in splendor. Literally, the Greek word rendered “virtue” means “excellency,” denoting the energy of life that enables us to overcome all obstacles and to carry out all excellent attributes. Glory is the divine goal; virtue is the energy and strength of life that enable us to reach the goal. This virtue, with all things relating to life, has been given to us by the divine power, but it needs to be developed on the way to glory.
God has called us to His glory and virtue, but this calling needs to be worked out. Although we have been called into God’s glory and virtue, are we actually in this glory, and are we participating in this virtue? The truth is that sometimes we are in the glory, and sometimes we participate in this virtue. God’s calling us to His glory and virtue can be worked out through His precious promises (v. 4).
Second Peter 1:4 goes on to say, “Through which He has granted to us precious and exceedingly great promises that through these you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption which is in the world by lust.” The Greek word translated “through” in this verse means “on account of, on the basis of.” The Greek word has an instrumental sense, but here it also denotes cause. The relative pronoun which in 2 Peter 1:4 refers to glory and virtue in verse 3. Through and on the basis of the Lord’s glory and virtue, by and to which we have been called, He has given us His precious and exceedingly great promises, such as in Matthew 28:20; John 6:57; 7:38-39; 10:28-29; 14:19-20, 23; 15:5; and 16:13-15. All these promises are being carried out in His believers by His life-power as the excellent virtue, unto His glory.
According to 2 Peter 1:3, the Lord has called us not only by His glory and virtue but also to His glory and virtue. The disciples saw the Lord’s glory and virtue. During the time He was with them, they saw the virtue in His conduct and daily living. They also saw His glory on the Mount of Transfiguration. They saw the Lord’s glory at other times as well, for example, when He fed the five thousand and when He called Lazarus out of the tomb. Having seen the Lord’s glory and virtue, the disciples were attracted. This means that they were called by the Lord’s glory and virtue. After the Lord’s resurrection, on the day of Pentecost, Peter was full of glory and virtue. The disciples were in a situation that was full of glory and full of virtue, the glory and virtue to which they had been called.
Through this glory and virtue God has given us promises. This means that because of the glory and virtue, God has given us the precious and exceedingly great promises. Because we all have been called to glory and virtue, God has given us promises in order that He may work out this virtue and glory for us.
The impartation into us of all things which relate to life and godliness is through the full knowledge of God, the One who has called us by and to His own glory and virtue. How can we live a life that expresses God as our godliness? We live it through knowing Him. Therefore, we need to know the One who has called us by and to His glory and virtue. Furthermore, through this glory and virtue He has granted to us precious and exceedingly great promises. By these promises He assures us that He will work out the virtue so that we may reach His glory.