“Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires” (2 Peter 1:4).

In one sense this may be a familiar scripture but in another sense it is a startling text. As a believer, you literally participate in the divine nature – the very nature of the eternal God. How much do we participate?  Probably as much as we want…or as little as we want.

In preparing a study on the gifts of the Spirit it occurred to me that every spiritual gift we exercise is a participation in the divine nature.  If our gifts are spiritual gifts then they are not ordinary nor are they of this world.  Spiritual gifts are supernatural and are little explosions of the divine nature being released through us.

Peter also said, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms” (I Peter 4:10-11). As we exercise our gifts then we distribute God’s grace to others in all kinds of forms.  In other words, God releases himself through us so that his grace touches them.  We really are distributors of the divine. Your gift of healing releases God for he is Jehovah Rophe, the God who heals.  Your gift of encouragement releases God for it is his nature to encourage. Your mercy is a literal outpouring of him for he his mercy.

I speak to believers every day who doubt God’s love for them and hunger for some touch to prove that he really cares.  What they miss is that every believer who has hugged them, encouraged them, prayed for them, affirmed them, or laughed with them was God.  He was simply doing those things through his people who were participating in his divine nature.

One reason, among many, that we should want to hang out with God’s people is that God is going to express his love, his concern, his approval, etc. through his people to us.  If you want to hear from God you can do so in the quiet moments of your devotional but you can also hear from him in very concrete ways through his people who are prompted by his Spirit to dispense his grace and to leak a little of him onto you.  God is truly the fresh fragrance of life but we are the aerosol cans that release his fragrance into the environment.  It’s really a great gig if we understand that God is literally loving people through us or loving us through his people.

The more of God we store up, the more of him we have to release.  Jesus was filled with the Father so he literally left a touch of heaven everywhere he went. At times Peter was so filled with God that even his shadow imparted the nature of God to others which was healing.  The key is to realize that you are literally a partaker of the divine nature. That sets you apart from every other part of creation and gives you amazing significance.  No matter the gift or the call you are the dispenser of God’s heart and nature to the world. Wow.  You are a very, very important person.  Live like it!