Peter 1:3-4 NLT‬
[3] “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. [4] And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.”

God’s declared purpose is to have a human family like His Son who will share in all the blessings and benefits of His kingdom and even reign with Jesus throughout eternity.

God gave us a planet perfectly suited for human life on which to serve our apprenticeship for our eternal lives with Him. He gave us His instructions for life in community with one another on this planet under His authority.

Instead of carrying out God’s instructions, our forefather, Adam, chose to go it alone. He made the rules to suit his own desires, and led the human race on a path to self-destruction.

Nevertheless, the Father went to great lengths to achieve His goal, sacrificing His own Son to get His plan back on track.

‭Hebrews 2:10 NIV‬
[10] “In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered.”

God has no plan B.

[5] “In view of all this, make every to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, [6] and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, [7] and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. [8] The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

God’s plan for His people is not to have a comfortable life on earth. “Down here“ is our apprenticeship for “up there”. Part of our apprenticeship, then, involves discipline and suffering which teach us submission and obedience to the Father, the hallmarks of true sons.
‭2 Peter 1:5-8 NLT‬

The Father has certain requirements for the life to come. Faith in His Son, empowered by His Spirit, gives us entrance to and life in His eternal kingdom now.

‭John 3:16 NLT‬
[16] “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”

‭1 John 5:11-12 NLT‬
[11]”And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. [12] Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life.”

Holiness is His requirement for seeing Him.

‭Hebrews 12:14 NLT‬
[14]”Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.”

Good works, the fruit of our fellowship with Jesus through the Holy Spirit in us, confirm that we belong to Him.

‭James 2:19-20, 24 NLT‬
[19]” You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. [20] How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?…
[24] So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.”

This life, then, is a partnership with the Holy Spirit, all the way.

‭Romans 8:11, 14 NLT‬
[11]”The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you….
[14] For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.”

God works in us but, without our co-operation and obedience, He can do nothing to change us into the image of Jesus.

‭Philippians 2:12-13 NLT‬
[12]”…Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. [13] For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”

[10] “So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. [11] Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Since our faith in God is of supreme importance because…

‭Hebrews 11:6 NLT‬
[6]”… It is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”

God constantly tests our trust in Him through the trials and hardships we suffer. When testing comes and we keep questioning His love, He will continue to allow trials and hardships to teach us His faithfulness and goodness through everything we suffer.

The real issue is, how far will God go to ensure that we fulfill His plan? The answer is, all the way, no matter what it takes. This means that He will continue to chip off everything in us that does not resemble His Son until He brings us to perfection when we see Jesus.

‭1 John 3:1-2 NLT‬
[1] “See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!… [2] Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.”

‭1 Peter 1:6-7 NLT‬
[6]”So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. [7] These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.”

As a loving Father, He disciplines us to teach us to live in complete dependence on Jesus because…

‭John 15:5 NLT‬
[5] “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.”

Unfortunately, much preaching in churches today focuses on our comfort and convenience in this world rather than our training and preparation for the world to come. Unscrupulous false teachers lure God’s people away from the truth by promises of health, wealth, and happiness. They couch their lies in the words of Scripture cleverly manipulated to sound like the truth.

Peter warned against those who twist the truth to their own destruction.

‭2 Peter 3:15-16 NLT‬
[15] “And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him— [16] speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction.”

How much better, then, to recognise the goal of God’s work in us, work with Him by trusting Him no matter what, and keep our eyes on the prize… likeness to Jesus, God’s perfect Son.

‭2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NLT‬
[16]“That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. [17] For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! [18] So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”