The great Himalayan Mountains, located in Asia, are known to have the highest elevation points in the world. More than 110 mountain peaks are registered to rise at approximately 24,000 feet or higher above the sea level. In the southern part of this Asian mountain range (bordering between Nepal and Tibet) resides the highest known elevation point in the world surveyed at 29,035 feet above sea level. This high peak belongs to the mount we call Everest. It has amazed and astonished its inhabitants as well as tourists from all over the world for several years with its majestic and intimidating appearance. Hundreds and thousands of professional mountain climbers have been enticed by Everest’s challenge to reach it’s peak and etch their names in history with the very best. Although several have accepted Everest’s challenge, the majority have been defeated by her. The climb to Everest’s peak is snared with a dangerous, frigid, and unstable climate, a very high volume of avalanches, atmospheric pressure and lack of oxygen produced by it’s altitude. Needless to say that reaching the top of this mountain is arguably the most difficult challenge any man can face. However, because of the level of difficulty, when the top is reached it becomes the greatest feat any man can accomplish, proving that what may appear to be impossible can be achieved. The few who have reached this amazing goal are said to have “conquered Everest” because they were able to endure everything she had to throw at them and never quit the climb. When the second letter of Peter was written, a similar, yet more difficult challenge was set before all those who sought to reach eternal glory. Very much like Everest, the challenge of being a Christian in a world ruled by doubt and mockery may appear daunting and discouraging, making us believe that it is an impossible height to reach. It was this same reason why Peter wrote his second letter (2nd Peter 1:1-4). He wrote it as a result of the mockery of Christ’s second coming by the masses which led to the faith of many of our brethren to wither away (2nd Peter 2:1-3, 3:1-9). The apostle, with great urgency, worked ceaselessly on reaffirming the foundation of our hope by proving beyond the shadow of a doubt that Christ would return one day for all of those who wait for Him (2nd Peter 1:10-11, 3:14-18). The message of this letter is clear; living the life of a faithful disciple of Christ in this world is like climbing to the top of Mount Everest. It is a very arduous and narrow path toward the peak that many will try, but only a few will be able to reach and etch their names in the book of life (Matthew 7:13-14, 22:14, Revelation 3:5-6). Of the privileged mountaineers that conquered Everest and live to tell their story, when asked what was the secret to their success the answer they provided was simple; climb the mountain in stages, remain patient and steadfast during the climb, remain vigilant of your surroundings, and never lose sight of the goal. Peter’s counsel to those of us who have made the choice to conquer this world is no different from those who put their flag at the top of Mount Everest. In fact, our Lord Jesus Christ said to His disciples, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:34). We are encouraged to take this life one step at a time. He teaches us that spiritual growth is achieved patiently and steadily. That it is necessary not to ignore the events surrounding us in this world so that we may be vigilant for our souls. The Lord reminds us that He has conquered this mountain before and He is our guide to eternal salvation. Perhaps what caused the faith of many of our brethren during the days of Peter to weaken, was the absence of patience. The targeted focus of those who mocked the Christians was the “delay” of our Lord’s return (2nd Peter 3:4). Listening to the wicked mind games played by these evil men provoked a spirit of hopelessness and made them become desperate. This, however, is not a new practice by men. In the days of Moses, the people of Israel became impatient as well and fell prey to their desperation. God had commanded Moses to climb up Mount Sinai so that he may receive the law. Because Moses was in Sinai for forty days, the people of Israel became weary and doubted that Moses had survived the climb. As a result of their desperation from waiting on Moses to return, they turned to Aaron and convinced him to make them a new god, for they were convinced that Moses had perished in the mountain (Exodus 32:1-4). Because their faith had dwindled in Jehovah God, the people of Israel erroneously turned to venerate and offer worship to a golden calf that was made before their very eyes. Impatience makes us lose focus; it can lead us to make rash decisions that will result in taking a misstep causing us to fall and severely, or even fatally, injure ourselves. Our writer also points to other events in biblical history where corrupt conversations such as these provoked righteous men to sin or suffer before God because they allowed fear and intimidation from these impious men grip their hearts (2nd Peter 2:4-11). Therefore, inspired by the Holy Ghost, our author describes our pilgrimage as a climb up a spiritual mountain. He battles the uncertainty that mockery may infuse in a faithful Christian’s heart by revealing that to reach the peak we must begin to do so one level at a time. Emulating the words of Christ, the apostle provides us with the levels of the spiritual mountain we are to ascend. His instructions begin by noting that we are to be “giving all diligence” to our mission of reaching the top, but diligence excludes by nature recklessness. So it is important that with an alert mind we recognize that he interlinks the spiritual stages of Christian maturity with the word add. This is important because what he is teaching us is that on this climb there are no short cuts, there are no other routes. Having understood this, Peter reveals the stages and the order in which we must follow them to conquer this spiritual Everest. If we want our names permanently etched in the book of life we must “add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love” (2nd Peter 1:5-7). These are the seven recommended steps by our God to reach spiritual maturity. Each one leads in to the other and together they provide us with the spiritual strength we require to remain faithful on our path to God’s eternal kingdom (2nd Peter 1:10-11). Let us then examine each stage carefully and grow spiritually so we may all reach the top of the mountain of God. To be continued…
