Stirred up by being reminded of the truth ....

Reminding and being awake......

2 Pet 1:12 For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth.

2 Pet 1:13 Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you,

2 Pet 1:14knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me.

2 Pet 1:15 Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.

In the above verses, Peter explains his intention to remind the readers of what they already knew, and were actually established in. 

He also believed it was the right thing for him to continue to stir them up by way of reminding them. He went on to talk about his own coming death, and his determination to make sure they would always have a reminder of the truth. 

The fact is, as stated here, is that there is tremendous value in simply being reminded of what we already know. And, as a faithful Pastor, Peter was going to remind his readers, and continue to remind them. 

Peter had also been told by the Lord that he was going to die soon. He called it shortly, and used the metaphor of a tent for his body. The Bible does speak of our physical bodies as being temporary, like a tent would be to someone, you don't normally live in a tent, but rather in a permanent home. These bodies are like tents for our souls, and we have an eternal body waiting for us in heaven. 

Peter was also going to be faithful in his ministry right to the end. He says 2 Pet 1:15 Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.

This means, that he was dedicating himself to making sure that the flock of God would always have a reminder of the truth of Jesus Christ, even after his death. 

After being saved, Peter entered the ministry of Jesus Christ, and taught and preached the Word of God. That is what he gave himself to. And, even while alive, he was thinking of the future, and of the importance of the Word of God for those who would be living after his death. 

All of that makes a real statement about the importance of the Word of God. But, the thing that is mentioned a couple of times, is this issue of being reminded and then being stirred up through that reminder. 

What happens to us, is that we can grow settled if you will, and need to be stirred up, or awakened to the truth. So, hearing the Word of God can have that effect upon our lives, of waking us up from from sleep. The word stir was also used to speak of arousing the mind, and rendering service to Jesus Christ. 

May we have the same mind as Peter did regarding the Word of God, and not grow weary of it, but benefit from giving ourselves to it, and receiving it with an open and humble heart. 

In Jesus name, amen...

Pastor Bob Grenier.