Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 6
In discussing “partakers of the divine nature,” the speaker ties it to hungering and thirsting for righteousness and being filled; what do you think Peter (and early Christians) meant by actually sharing in God’s nature, and how does this confront a “forgiven-but-unchanged” version of Christianity?
Another way to ask: What do you think it means to “share in God’s nature,” and how would early Christians have understood that? How does that challenge a kind of Christianity that is “forgiven but still basically unchanged”?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
Based on the speaker, sharing in God’s nature means real inner participation in God’s life that results in character change—becoming more like Him as God fills those who hunger for righteousness. This directly challenges any Christianity that stops at pardon while expecting little transformation.
- He reads 2 Peter 1:4: “partakers of the divine nature…having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
- He points to “exceeding great and precious promises” and illustrates promises through the Beatitudes, especially: “hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.”
- He explains: believers grow because “they have tapped into the very essence of God our Father.”
- He connects faith and filling to change: “We hunger and thirst…God fills us, which means we become more like Him.”
- He says this involves active trust: “There’s a lot of faith that needs to be exercised for this process to work.”