I Want To Let You In On A Little Secret

John Clardy

2 Peter 1:5-8

5          And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;

6          And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;

7          And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

8          For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

A young preacher that had just recently graduated from seminary received an invitation to become the pastor of a congregation in a small country town. Though he was a city slicker, he was anxious to learn everything "country" so that he could fit in.

One day, while trying to find the farm of Mr. Jones, an elderly widower that was ill and that was a member of his congregation, he got lost on the back roads. He saw a farmer walking into his barn so he stopped for directions.

The farmer was just beginning to milk his cow but took time out to tell the preacher how to get to the Jones' farm. "By the way," the city preacher asked, "Do you know what time it is?" The farmer leaned in to the udder of the cow and said, "12:30."

Amazed, the city preacher said to the farmer, "Hey, I've just moved from the city and I really want to know the ways of the country. What is your secret of being able to tell what time it was?"

"Sit right here on this stool, son,” the farmer instructed.  The preacher did.

"Grab hold of Bessie’s udder."  The young city preacher was nervous, but he did.  

"Now lean into the cow and lift up on the udder." Hesitantly, the city preacher did.

"Now,” said the farmer, “Lean over and look right over there on that wall. See that's a clock. When the little hand is on the 12..."

Comical though it is, this story illustrates how it is with us in those times when we are struggling to “fit in” to God’s family while it seems that other Christians around us have a special "secret" to be able to do what they do or to know what they know. But the truth is that there's no secret.

Paul in his letter to his son in the gospel, Timothy tells him that there was no mystery to what it would take for him to develop into the man that God wanted him to be.  There are no secrets, only study and commitment!

2 Timothy 2:15   Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Let me let you in on a little secret!

There's no secret to knowing the Bible -- just diligence in studying the Word of God.

There's no secret to spiritual maturity -- it's a lifetime of commitment to growing up in Christ.

So the next time you start looking for a secret sign to direct you as to what you should do, here’s the secret – Get your Bible!  Open it up! Start to read…!