2 Peter 1 | Superheroes? Who Needs Them!

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life
through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and
goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and
precious promises, so that through them you may participate
in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world
caused by evil desires.

II Peter 1:3-4

The new Avengers movie is out, and apparently, it is as action-packed as the others. My wife and I can’t wait to see it. One of the draws of the Avenger series is watching each Avenger use their superpowers to defeat the bad guy. Each one has their own unique superpower or amazing gift that makes them unbeatable (especially in the end). When you were a child, did you ever wish you had your own superpower? Did you ever put on a cape and run around like Superman or hang from some ropes and swing around pretending you were Spider-man? Interesting enough scripture says we do have our own superpower; it’s called ‘divine power’.

In the passage of scripture above we read some powerful truths about this divine nature.

1. It is a free gift – Jesus gave us His divine power in the form of the Holy Spirit, which he promised would come to the disciples (and all of us) before He died. They didn’t earn it. You and I can’t earn it. It is a free gift to those who believe.
2. It is everything we need – This divine power is everything we need to live a Godly life here on earth. You don’t need the Holy Spirit AND something else. We only need the Holy Spirit! He allows us to overcome the evil desires we have because of our corrupted nature.
3. It must be accepted and become a part of us – Peter says through Jesus’ own ‘glory and goodness’ we are given these precious promises that allow us to participate in the divine nature. There is a sense of accepting (belief) in the power of the Holy Spirit and then making it a part of who we are so we can ‘participate in the divine nature’. This, my friends, is Gospel transformation. How do I know that? Just read the next 5 verses. Peter goes on to spell out beautifully how we are to take this divine power and ‘make every effort’ to allow it to transform us. He even warns us we can ‘forget’ the power of the Gospel and how we have been cleansed of our sins and given that new nature.

This Scripture passage should be read on a regular basis not only as a reminder of the power of the Gospel but also as a part of the ongoing sanctification process in which our hearts and minds are renewed. It is only through the Gospel we escape the ‘corruption in the world caused by evil desires.’ 

Brethren we have our own superpower. We have a clearly defined enemy. And we know the end of the movie is going to end with us as victors! Remind yourself daily of those truths and watch the Gospel transform your life even more.