November 27 - 2 Peter 1:1-21 - Adding It All Up

Sarah Pardee married William Winchester in 1862. Winchester was the manufacturer of the "Gun that Won the West," the Winchester repeating rifle. When William died, Sarah became the heiress to a 20 million dollar estate. Sadly, the death of her husband came soon after the death of their infant daughter, Annie, a loss that had thrown Sarah into a deep depression. In this severe state of grief, Sarah sought out advice from a medium whose strange assessment and counsel for Mrs. Winchester's depression initiated the building of what is now known as The Winchester Mystery House. A small eight-room Victorian in San Jose, California became a sprawling mansion containing 160 rooms, 2,000 doors, 10,000 windows, 47 stairways, 47 fireplaces, 13 bathrooms, and 6 kitchens. Briefly put, the construction of the house was supposed to preserve the life of Mrs. Winchester. As long as the building work continued, Sarah's life would continue also.

Sarah Winchester's Obsession

Of course, building a house is NOT the way to eternal life. Sarah Winchester died and her legacy is one of sad superstition and spiritism. Rather than adding windows and doors and other architectural elements, today's text suggests we build more meaningful elements into our lives. Peter writes ...


"make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love." 


Just like a construction project, one phase builds on the previous.


Begin with the foundation of faith. Sink the cornerstone of Christ and let everything else in your life rest upon Him. Christ can be the basis for everything because He has shown Himself to be so good. Imitate His goodness. And after committing yourself to a life of good, commit yourself to study to learn more about your great, good God. This is the knowledge we add. And as we add knowledge of His Word, pride can sneak in with its Pharasaism. So the next phase of building must be self-control. We must know how to use that knowledge wisely and under the Spirit's control. 


Faith, goodness and knowledge under divine control is a manner of living that must be persevered in. Can't live like that short-term or in spurts; we must persevere. With an enduring character like this, we begin to reveal God to others. Godliness comes and adorns the structure of our lives. Then, even as God acted in the best interest of others with mercy and generosity, so too will we demonstrate His affection toward others. A life constructed like this becomes other-oriented. And the ultimate expression of this Christ-like lifestyle is true 'agape,'  self-sacrificing love.


Unlike the misguided counsel of a Boston medium to a vulnerable Sarah Winchester, this building program from the letter of Peter will indeed lead to eternal life. 


Pray: Builder of the Universe, help me to fashion a life worthy of your goodness and mercy toward me. Guide me away from false prophecy and hollow counsel and found me firmly in your Word and Spirit. Take me through the phases that will produce a life that reflects keenly my Architect.