1. Purpose of spiritual growth (5a) - “For this very reason…”
   1. Through God’s great and precious promises we:
      1. Participate in the divine nature, and;
      2. Escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desired 
   2. We should work hard with urgency and diligence to live life in a way that pleases God in participation with Him. How is that?
      
      
2. Practice of spiritual growth (5b-7) - Better translated “With and by your faith supply goodness…”
   1. Characteristics
      1. Faith - the faith referenced in v1
      2. Virtue (goodness) - moral excellence
      3. Knowledge - applied knowledge, wisdom (of moral excellence)
      4. Self-control - self-control, especially of one’s sensual desires (cf v4)
      5. Endurance - patient steadfastness, unswerving (stay the course despite difficulty and trial)
      6. Godliness - reverence, piety towards God
      7. Brotherly affection - brotherly/familial love for fellow believers
      8. Love - sacrificial, pious love for God and His church
   2. CF 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a (love), Galatians 5:22-23 (fruit of the Spirit), James 3:17-18 (wisdom from above)
      
      
3. Promise of spiritual growth (8-9)
   1. If present - Lit., “These things in you…”
      1. Growing - multiply and increasing, which is a sign of salvation and the presence of the Holy Spirit.
      2. Not idle nor unfruitful - not like a field left fallow/unworked, barren 
      3. As to knowledge of Christ - this is the goal of growth, increased knowledge (though experience and discipline) of Christ. This cannot be gained through the world.
   2. If not present
      1. Blind - Not “...will be blind…”, but “...is blind...”. He cannot see the things of heaven, though he may see clearly the things of the world. 
      2. Short-sighted - Lit., closing his eyes. He cannot see the things afar off, i.e., heaven. 
      3. Forgetfulness of purification of former sins - their lifestyles still resembled that of the world.
         
         
4. Perks of spiritual growth (10-11)
   1. Be diligent in making sure (certain, firm) your:
      1. Calling - Invitation to salvation
      2. Election - Chosen by God for salvation
      3. Cf Romans 8:29-30
   2. Practice them to keep from stumbling - this is not that our salvation is confirmed by works, because we just saw it is by God’s calling and election. Rather, this is to grant us courage (make sure) that we are among God’s chosen people because His Spirit is working within us.
   3. Rich entrance into the eternal kingdom of Lord and Savior Jesus Christ - better translated: “The entrance shall be richly bestowed or supplied…”. The word “receive” (NIV) is the same as the word “add” (v5). 
      1. According to Ellicott’s Commentary, Peter seems to be saying “‘Supply these graces, and an entrance into the kingdom shall be abundantly supplied to you’ — ‘abundantly,’ i.e., with a warm welcome, as to a son coming home in triumph; not a bare grudging admission, as to a stranger.”
      2. We only enter heaven because of Christ and He is our great reward.

1. Equally privileged faith - there are not levels or divisions of faith, but a common faith of all believers, whether apostles or children, all who call upon Jesus come on equal terms.
   1. Through the righteousness of God and Savior Jesus Christ - not due to anything we have done but through God’s righteousness, i.e., His moral perfection and sinlessness. (testimony to the deity of Christ).
   2. Received from God - this was a gift.
2. Knowledge of God - cf Matthew 11:27 All things have been committed to Me by My Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.
   1. Grace and peace in abundance (multiplying) - Through our growing experiential knowledge of God we can have increasing/multiplying grace and peace in a lost world. Why do you think that is the case?
   2. Divine power for life and godliness - (same power described in Romans 1:16 for salvation). 
      1. Present age - some have translated this to mean “godly life” (NIV) and that is of course true through the power of the Holy Spirit
      2. Eternal life - This seems to be the better interpretation. Our eternal life and godliness (participation in the divine nature, v4) flow from Him and are based in Him. We cannot have eternal life and godliness apart from our election in Christ.
   3. Calling through His glory and goodness - His calling to salvation through His divine nature and moral excellency. On what grounds are we saved? Through Christ’s righteousness alone. 
3. Highly valued promises - The glory and goodness of Christ has given us “precious” (i.e., highly valued) promises. What are those promises (after salvation and forgiveness of sin)?
   1. Participate in divine nature - Not that we would be God, for that is what the serpent taught. Rather, that we will fellowship with God and enjoy His life for all of eternity, free from the presence, power, and penalty of sin.
   2. Escaped the corruption of the world - In contrast to the life God has provided for the elect, the world and those of the world are perishing due to their depraved desires (godliness) and decay (life).

1. The road to Emmaus (13-35)
   1. The two disciples are going home after the Passover
   2. Jesus appears to them on the road
   3. He opens the Scriptures (25-27)
      1. He rebukes their unbelief
      2. He points them to the Scriptures
      3. He explains what was written was about Him - 
         1. Augustine wrote, The Old Testament is the New Testament concealed, the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed
         2. CF John 5:39 - “You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me…”
         3. Steven Lawson has said - “[T]he entire Bible is about the Lord Jesus Christ. The Old Testament says He’s coming. The Gospels say He’s here. The book of Acts proclaim Him. The epistles explain Him. And Revelation says He’s coming again. That’s the Bible in a nutshell.”
2. The upper room (36-49) - The same day, Sunday - the day of Jesus’ Resurrection
   1. The two disciples came back and told what had happened
   2. Jesus appeared and frightened the disciples. He ate fish to prove He was real
   3. The gospel is laid out (45-47)
      1. Jesus gave them the ability to understand the Bible; cf 1 Corinthians 2:10-12 - “...these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.”
      2. The summary of the OT is that Jesus will “suffer and rise from the dead on the third day”
      3. Because of this (the summary of the OT), “repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name…” - this is the summary of the gospel ministry. Paul echoed this in Acts 20:21. Repentance and forgiveness are inseparable.
         1. Repentance - this is not a work or act of the flesh, this is recognition of our sinful state and need for forgiveness from outside ourselves
         2. Forgiveness of sins - this is seeking and receiving God’s complete pardon for our sins based solely on the finished work of Jesus.
3. The ascension (50-53/ Acts 1:1-11)
   1. 40 days later 
   2. The Jerusalem, Judea/Samaria, Ends of the Earth - for the apostles, but still true for us. Also the outline of the book of Acts.
   3. Jesus re-promised the Holy Spirit - cf John 14, 16
   4. His return is also promised - The angels told the disciples to stop staring at the sky - the word used for “looking” means the disciples were trying to see spiritual realities with their physical eyes. They were probably trying to see into heaven. 
      1. The angels tell them to stop because Jesus will return from the sky physically again at the time of His choosing. 
      2. Cf 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 - “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”

A. The torn veil (23:44-49)

B. The borrowed tomb (23:50-56)

C. The empty tomb (24:1-12)

A. A statement of forgiveness 

B. A statement of assurance 

C. A statement of completion 

A. Deluded religious fanatics (22:66-71)

B. The proud atheist  (23:1-12)

C. The fearful agnostic (23:13-25)

A. Betrayed with a kiss

B. Denied with a curse

C. Blasphemed with contempt

A. Lesson in greatness (24-30)

B. The coming activity (31-38)

C. The trial in the garden (39-46)

A. Judas' Betrayal (1-6)
     1. The influencing of Judas
     2. The price of betrayal

B. Preparations for the Supper (7-18)
     1. Exact details
     2. The promise of the kingdom

C. The Bread and the Cup (19-23)
     1. The bread
     2. The cup

A. The widow's offering (1-4)

B. Sign of the times (5-28)

C. The lesson of the fig tree (29-38)