A potter in Punjab once told me, “A lamp is only dust until the flame enters.” Peter says the same in 2 Peter 1:4. Through “precious, great promises” God breathes His life into fragile clay—into us—so we blaze with His light. Peter’s words are strong yet clear. Believers do not become gods; we remain human.
Yet, just as iron in fire glows without losing its nature, we shine with God’s life while keeping our identity.
Freedom from “the corruption in the world” is no self-help trick or escape; it is a journey from selfish desire into generous love.
The early church received this promise with wonder and often said, “God became what we are so we might become what He is.”
This journey grows like dawn but changes everything it touches. The promise stretches from silent prayer to public justice, from personal healing to courageous service among neighbours.
They pictured the Holy Spirit as an artist repairing God’s image in us “from glory to glory.” Today teachers add that sharing God’s life is the heart of neighbour-love, drawing every culture into one family, and they warn that becoming like God never forms a proud elite but instead binds us to the small, the weak, the pushed aside.
Peter’s verse unfolds in three movements that guide us. Participation opens our lives to God’s love, justice, and creativity. Purification leaves corruption behind, letting the Spirit heal habits, relationships, and even our treatment of the earth. Progression climbs Peter’s ladder of virtues until the summit, love.