The State of Real Participation in Jesus as the Christ

This is the third blog in the series “The Apostle Peter’s Relational Framework: The Structure of the Spiritual Life”.

In our last blog we looked at Peter’s first spiritual state: spirituality before knowing Jesus. In this blog we will discuss Peter's second spiritual state. The spiritual state of being in a genuine relationship with Jesus: This is Peter’s second, or middle state of three states.

2. The Middle State: Real Participation in Jesus as the Christ

The middle state is the decisive transition. Peter describes individuals who have genuinely encountered Jesus and who have entered into a new relational reality. They have escaped corruption “through the knowledge—(ἐπίγνωσις) of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2:20). They have come to know—(verbal form of ἐπίγνωσις) “the way of righteousness” (2:21). They have been “cleansed from former sins” (1:9). They have become “partakers of the divine nature” (1:4). These are not metaphors for mere external affiliation or for observing Jesus from a distance; they are substantive words that describe the salvation experience.

Peter’s deliberate use of ἐπίγνωσις underscores this point. Unlike γνῶσις, which can refer merely to basic information or awareness, ἐπίγνωσις denotes full, relational, experiential knowledge—the kind of knowing that binds a person to someone and transforms the knower through the full relational knowing-experience. It is this kind of this knowledge, that enables God to grant us his divine power to provide us “all things that pertain to life and godliness” (1:3). Through this kind of knowledge, believers become “partakers of the divine nature” (1:4). Through this kind of knowledge, they “obtain a faith of equal standing” (1:1). And through this kind of knowledge, they become fruitful, for Peter says that if these qualities abound, believers will be effective and fruitful “in the ἐπίγνωσις of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1:8).

The broader New Testament witness confirms this interpretation. Escape from corruption echoes Paul’s language of liberation from sin (Rom 6:6–7). Knowing the way of righteousness parallels Jesus’ teaching that disciples walk the narrow path (Matt 7:14). Cleansing from former sins resonates with Hebrews’ imagery of the conscience cleansed by Christ’s blood (Heb 9:14). Becoming “partakers of the divine nature” parallels Paul’s new‑creation language (2 Cor 5:17). 

The author of Hebrews uses experiential terms that cannot be reduced to superficial exposure. He speaks of those who have been “enlightened,” who have “tasted the heavenly gift,” who have “become partakers of the Holy Spirit,” and who have “tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come.” Each expression carries deep covenantal relational overtones.

“Enlightened” in Hebrews refers to the decisive illumination that accompanies conversion (cf. 10:32). “Tasting” in this context is not sampling but experiencing the reality itself, as seen in Hebrews’ use of the same verb for Jesus “tasting death” (2:9). To be a “partaker of the Holy Spirit” is to share a genuine experience in the Spirit’s life and gifts, not merely observe them. The author of Hebrew’s cumulative vocabulary describes genuine participation in the new‑covenant realities inaugurated by Jesus.

Even though Peter avoids the term “salvation,” yet every element he mentions is the substance of salvation itself, not a superficial external matter of salvation.  Peter’s words indicate that the people to whom he refers entered a genuine, relational participation in Christ—marked by true knowledge, true cleansing, true righteousness, and an actual escape from the world’s corruption. A genuine salvation experience.

Peter’s language in 2 Peter 1–2 unmistakably identifies these individuals as people who truly knew Jesus as the Christ—as real participants in His cleansing, righteousness, and liberating knowledge—not merely exposed to the gospel but genuinely believing that He is the Messiah.

We have seen in this blog that the people to whom Peter writes had their sins forgiven, walked in the way of righteousness and obtained a faith of equal standing to other believers because they truly understood who Jesus was and were able to confidently and accurately answer the very same question Jesus posed to Peter, “Who do you say that I am?”

In our next blog we will look at Peter’s third and final state of spirituality: the unfortunate state of denying the Master who bought them.