Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things, you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Crist. For this reason, I will not be negligent to remind you of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. 2 Peter 1:10-12
One of the many interesting features that stands out to me about the Bible is how each book builds on what came before making the picture of salvation history clearer with each subsequent “brush stroke.” We must keep this progression in mind as we work our way through the text as doing so will steadily increase our understanding of God’s nature, His intentions for blessing humanity, His mind-bending providence in bringing about those blessings, and His will for how we are to live in order to receive those intended blessings.
As is the case with learning anything, we need to be reminded of what we know already in order to build upon it as we continue learning and growing. As we go about this, we will see connections between texts we never saw before. This is one of the things that makes the text of the Bible so awe-inspiring. Though the text has never changed, no matter how many times we go through it, each time we will see things that we missed every time before. This is imperative because as we engage the text we “…beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
With this lofty purpose in mind, another interesting feature of the Bible is the repetition that is used to remind the Lord’s people of foundational principles throughout the text. This is the thrust of Peter’s statement above from 2 Peter 1. He had just concluded a section about adding to faith certain essential characteristics: virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, kindness, and love. His conclusion is that in so adding these “Christian graces” we can make our calling and election secure to the point that he could say if we continue doing the things named, we will never stumble (1:10). With literally everything on the line, Peter declared his intentions to remind them “…always of these things” (1:12; cf. vs. 15).
Sometimes people balk at being reminded of things they already know or have heard. This is especially prevalent in children. I wish I had a dime for every time our six-year-old has declared with frustration in his voice “I know!” when we remind him of things that he should know but has not displayed in his deeds. This is part of the process of maturing, so we will keep reminding him. God has always given reminders to His children as the text often repeats things that had already been said before.
The entire book of Deuteronomy is a case in point. The name comes from a compound Greek word deuteronomos, the parts of which are deuteros- second, and nomos- law. Put it together, and it means second law. It was not, however, a second law in the sense of a new law, but it was a repetition of the law with a historical review and some divine commentary on the law to help the new generation avoid the prior generation’s failures. Clearly the first attempt to go into the land of Canaan ended in tragic failure, so God reminded them to never forget Who delivered them and the law He gave to guide them in their new life of freedom. They needed this reminder lest they disregard His law and perish from the land (Deuteronomy 8:1-20). Sadly, despite this reminder and the subsequent reminders from the prophets, they still disregarded His law in the end and perished from the land.
So, may we readily receive the Lord’s loving reminders whether it be through reading the text or through His people reminding us of the text, so that we may never forget and forfeit His tremendous gift to us. If we accept these reminders as part of His loving discipline towards His children, we will yield “…the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:11).