“Partakers of the divine nature.” – 2 Peter 1:4 (NKJV)

REFLECTING WHAT WE ARE

To be a partaker of the divine nature does not mean that we become God. That is impossible. The very essence of who God is cannot be shared with created beings. There will always be a vast gulf between the Creator and the creature. Yet, just as the first man Adam was made in God’s image, so we—through the renewing work of the Holy Spirit—are remade in a far greater sense into the image of the Most High, becoming partakers of His divine nature. By grace, we are made like God.

God is love, and by His Spirit we also become loving: “Everyone who loves is born of God.” God is truth, and we are made truthful, delighting in what is true. God is good, and by His grace we are made good, becoming the “pure in heart” who will see Him.

But we share in the divine nature in an even deeper way than this—higher than we could imagine, short of actually being God Himself. For are we not members of the body of Christ, the Divine Person? The same lifeblood that flows through the Head flows also through the members; the same life that gives power to Christ gives power to His people. “You died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

Even more, Scripture tells us we are united to Christ in marriage: He has betrothed us to Himself in righteousness and faithfulness, and “he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.” Oh, what a glorious mystery! We try to grasp it, but who can fully understand? One with Jesus—so truly one with Him that the branch is not more one with the vine than we are with our Lord, Savior, and Redeemer.

Yet while we rejoice in this high privilege, we must remember this: those who share in the divine nature must also reflect it. This holy relationship will show itself in how we live and interact with others. Our daily words, choices, and conduct must display that we have escaped the corruption of this world and its sinful desires.

O for more of God’s holiness in our lives!