SEEING THAT HIS DIVINE POWER HAS GRANTED US EVERYTHING: hos panta hemin tes theias dunameos autou ta pros zoen kai eusebeian dedoremenes (RMPFSG): 

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Granted us everything - How much? What is lacking? Then why are we so anxious? (Mt 6:25-note, Mt  6:31-note, Mt 6:34-note) Why do we so often have an attitude of grumbling instead of an attitude of gratitude? (Php 2:14-note)

Everything (pas) means just that...everything with no exceptions. Of course in the context of His good and perfect will, this refers to everything that is good for us to grow spiritually. You will note that the order in the original Greek is first "everything He has granted..." (Young's Literal -see above- is always a good source to look for the original word order if you are unable to read the Greek) emphasizing the total sufficiency available in Christ. When we are born into the family of God by faith in Christ, we are born complete in Christ (Col 2:10-note). God gives you everything you will ever need “for life and godliness.” Nothing has to be added! “And ye are complete in Him” (Col. 2:10).

The divine bestowal is fully sufficient to resist all the assaults of the false teachers (remember the context of the book). We are possessors of everything we need to live the Christian life! Let us quit seeking broken cisterns that hold no Living Water (Jer 2:13). The goal is that we obtain life and become godly people that glorify our Father. The source of this life and godliness is divine power and the means by which this power produces this life and godliness is through the full knowledge of God and Jesus Christ.

Divine (2304) (theios) describes an attribute of God such as His power and not His character in its essence and totality.

Theios is used five times in the Septuagint (LXX) (Ex. 31:3; 35:31; Job 27:3; 33:4; Pr 2:17) three times in the NT (Acts 17:29; 2Pe 1:3, 4) and is translated divine, 2; divine nature, 1. The KJV translates theios once as "Godhead".

Theios pertains to having the nature of God or as related to God by nature. In the next verse theios is used to refer to believers, not to be God or "gods" but to be a "partaker of the divine nature." Some teach a "modern theology" that believers are now "little gods" which is a lie. We are complete in Christ but we are not little gods. He Alone is God. The "Source" however does assure the efficacy and reliability of the gift to follow. The idea is that this is power which belongs to deity, here specifically to Jesus Christ Who is God. Christ’s power is the source of the believer’s sufficiency and perseverance. Just as His power saves us in the first place, so His power energizes us to live holy lives from then on. As Lenski has said "The deity of Jesus is the foundation of this entire epistle. Cancel it and a jumbled ruin is left." 

In Acts Paul used theios in his famous sermon on the Areopagus refuting the thought that God was an idol (cf the altar inscription under an object of worship "TO AN UNKNOWN GOD" Acts 17:23) declaring that God

"made from one, every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times, and the boundaries of their habitation, that they should seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we also are His offspring.' "Being then the offspring of God (as even the pagan poets acknowledged), we ought not to think that the Divine Nature (theios - "the Godhead") is like gold or silver or stone (the logic is that God must be more than a man-made idol), an image formed by the art and thought of man. "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent." (Acts 17:26-30 notes)

Power (1411) (dunamis from dunamai = to be able, to have power) power especially achieving power. It refers to intrinsic power or inherent ability, the power or ability to carry out some function, the potential for functioning in some way (power, might, strength, ability, capability), the power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature.

Note that words derived from the stem duna— all have the basic meaning of “being able,” of “capacity” in virtue of an ability. Duna- is the root for English words like dynamic, dynamo, dynamite, etc.

Here in 2 Peter, dunamis describes that power which is uniquely God's and proceeds from Him. Jesus by this same inherent power presently "upholds all things by the word of His power" (note) (see note Hebrews 1:3). If He by this same power is holding all things together, can He not "hold my life together"? Can He can truly provide me with everything I need to weather whatever storm might come, to scale whatever mountain obstacle might be thrown in my path. Indeed He is able.

His divine power is a title for God used by Jews who revered Him so much that they would not pronounce His name.

Piper adds that

"the Christian faith is not merely a set of doctrines to be accepted. It is a power to be experienced. It is a tragic thing to ask people if they know the Lord and have them start listing the things they believe about the Lord. Brothers and sisters, believing things about Jesus Christ will save no one. The devils are the most orthodox believers under heaven. It is divine power that saves. If the power of God does not flow into your life and make you godly you are not Christ's. "All who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God" (Ro 8:14). The mark of sonship is divine power. And the mark of power is godliness; which means a love for the things of God and a walk in the ways of God." (Read or listen to the full sermon Liberating Promises on 2Peter 1:1-4)

He gives the power supply (that reflects God's sovereignty). Man's part (responsibility) is to walk daily in this full knowledge, trusting Him that He Who called us is faithful and He will bring it to pass.  The choice is ours to receive and believe, to walk by faith (Col 2:6-note).

Philippians 4:11-13 teaches that our circumstances are some of our best ''tutors'', so that like Paul we too might come to know by experience

"the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need" and that we "can do all things through Him who strengthens" us. (notes on Php 4:11-13)

The false teachers may have claimed that they had a “special doctrine” that would add something to the life of Peter’s readers, but Peter counters this false teaching. Just as a baby is born with all the “equipment” he needs for life and only needs to grow, so the Christian has all that is needed and it remains then for him or her only to grow. God never has to call back any of His “models” because something is lacking or faulty. When you are born into the family of God by faith in Christ, you are born complete.

Granted (1433) (doreomai from dorea = gift <> from doron means to bestow gratuitously or to make a gift of and is not the usual word for give (didomi) but a richer, more munificent word which emphasizes the generosity of the Giver. It carries the idea of grace by the giver. God gives His promises with no strings attached.= free gift which stresses gratuitous character)

Doreomai is used 3 times in the NT in NASB (Mark, 2 Peter 2x). There are 4 uses of doreomai in the Septuagint (Ge 30:20; Lv 7:15; Esther 8:1; Pr 4:2)

In the present use doreomai denotes the free giving of the power of God resulting in life and godliness. Doreomai  indicates that this divine power does not give life and godliness because somebody deserves it, but because it is a free gift.

The English word "grant" means to give as a favor or a right, to bestow or transfer formally and implies giving to a claimant or petitioner something that could be withheld.

Arndt & Bauer say that doreomai means to

"present something as a gift or confer a benefit, probably with some suggestion of formality."

Wuest quoting Strachan adds that doreomai

“and its cognates always carry a certain regal sense describing an act of large-handed generosity.” 

Doreomai is used when Joseph of Arimathea came before Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate upon

"ascertaining (that Jesus was already dead) from the centurion, granted (doreomai) the body to Joseph." (Mk 15:45)

The body of Christ having been freely given by Pilate to Joseph of Arimathea, implying that Pilate had complete authority over the body.

Doreomai is in the perfect tense which pictures the past completed act of presenting the gift ("everything pertaining...") with the present result that it is in the possession of the believer with no strings tied to it. In other words God gave us these promises in the past with the result continuing to the present. All along our spiritual journey, God gives us spiritual equipment for the pilgrim pathway. You may not "feel" like you have these gifts as you read this truth, but the fact is they are your present possession in Christ and nothing can change that truth. What you do with what you possess however is your choice. Remember, beloved of God, it makes no difference how you feel because praise God our feelings do not determine our spiritual status (position) in Christ (see notes in Christ and in Christ Jesus). Notice however that believers do have a responsibility. Peter says "everything necessary for life and godliness" is "through the true knowledge of Him" which implies that we become aware of the specific promises God has granted us as we learn about Him in and through His Spirit illuminated Word of life. Are you eating the Word of Truth daily as if your (spiritual) life depended on it? This truth was the secret that Job had "tapped" into and which sustained him during one of the most difficult trials any human has ever experienced (see notes Job 23:12). See a parallel principle in notes on Ezra 7:10.

As Jerry Bridges rightly states...

It is impossible to practice godliness without a constant, consistent and balanced intake of the Word of God in our lives

Charles Hodge echoes this truth writing that believers...

are transformed into the image of the Lord by beholding it, not by reflecting it.

R B Kuiper adds that...

He who attempts to stress Christian living by disparaging Christian doctrine is guilty of a most serious blunder. He neglects the important fact that Christian living is rooted in Christian doctrine.

Erwin W. Lutzer notes that...

The difference between worldliness and godliness is a renewed mind.

The great Scottish Bible expositor Alexander Maclaren wrote:

‘We may have as much of God as we will. Christ puts the key of the treasure-chamber into our hand, and bids us take all that we want. If a man is admitted into the bullion vault of a bank and told to help himself, and comes out with one cent, whose fault is it that he is poor?” (2 Peter 1:3 Man Summoned by God's Glory and Energy; 2 Peter 1:4 Partakers of the Divine Nature)

Life and godliness are now our permanent possession, having been given by pure grace. Maybe you are thinking just now that you really don't have what it takes to "make it" in this life. Peter says that God’s power gives us what we need to experience real life in a way that pleases Him. God wants to affect every area of our lives—work, marriage and family, relationships, church, and community. How can you make God’s power operational in your experience? Peter says that it comes “through the knowledge of Him who called us.” In other words, we must grow closer to Christ (see discussion below). And remember that while the writings of teachers and preachers can help us better understand the Bible, only the Bible can impart life to our souls (cf Mt 4:4, Job 23:12).
 
EVERYTHING PERTAINING TO LIFE: hos panta hemin pros zoen:

Everything (pas) in simple terms means everything without exception. Believers have all they need to live the Christ life.

To is the Greek preposition "pros" meaning toward or in the direction of.

Life (979) (zoe) (Click for more detailed work study on zoe) speaks of life in the sense of one who is possessed of vitality and animation and is the direct antithesis of "death". It is used of the absolute fulness of life, both essential and ethical, which belongs to God. It is used to designate the life which God gives to the believing sinner, a vital, animating, spiritual, ethical dynamic which transforms his inner being and as a result, his behavior.

Zoe then is real, genuine life, the way God intended for man to live...the way Adam & Eve lived in harmony with God & each other before Satan tempted them with his ''counterfeit'' life -- only God gives the ''real'' thing.

Zoe - 135 NT uses - Matt. 7:14; 18:8f; 19:16f, 29; 25:46; Mk. 9:43, 45; 10:17, 30; Lk. 10:25; 12:15; 16:25; 18:18, 30; Jn. 1:4; 3:15f, 36; 4:14, 36; 5:24, 26, 29, 39f; 6:27, 33, 35, 40, 47f, 51, 53f, 63, 68; 8:12; 10:10, 28; 11:25; 12:25, 50; 14:6; 17:2f; 20:31; Acts 2:28; 3:15; 5:20; 8:33; 11:18; 13:46, 48; 17:25; Rom. 2:7; 5:10, 17f, 21; 6:4, 22f; 7:10; 8:2, 6, 10, 38; 11:15; 1 Co. 3:22; 15:19; 2 Co. 2:16; 4:10ff; 5:4; Gal. 6:8; Eph. 4:18; Phil. 1:20; 2:16; 4:3; Col. 3:3f; 1 Tim. 1:16; 4:8; 6:12, 19; 2 Tim. 1:1, 10; Tit. 1:2; 3:7; Heb. 7:3, 16; Jas. 1:12; 4:14; 1 Pet. 3:7, 10; 2 Pet. 1:3; 1 Jn. 1:1f; 2:25; 3:14f; 5:11ff, 16, 20; Jude 1:21; Rev. 2:7, 10; 3:5; 7:17; 11:11; 13:8; 16:3; 17:8; 20:12, 15; 21:6, 27; 22:1f, 14, 17, 19

If EVERY saint has EVERY thing they need to live the ABUNDANT LIFE, why are so few living on that high plane? Maybe many are like Chief Crowfoot. When Crowfoot, the chief of the Blackfoot nation in southern Alberta, gave the Canadian Pacific Railway permission to lay track from Medicine Hat to Calgary, he was given in exchange a lifetime railroad pass. Reportedly, Crowfoot put the pass in a leather pouch and wore it around his neck for the rest of his life—but he never once availed himself of the rights and privileges it spelled out! How many Christians are like Chief Crowfoot, possessors of "all the treasures of wisdom & knowledge" in Christ (note Colossians 2:3) and yet living day by day as veritable spiritual paupers? What's the solution? Stop living in the world (loving the world), letting it squeeze you into its mold and begin getting into the Word and letting it conform you into the image of Jesus Christ, growing in the grace and knowledge of Him (note 2 Peter 3:18). If you're not in a serious Bible study, for the sake of your spiritual health, you cannot afford not to be. And if you say you're too busy for a serious Bible study, then the truth is that you are too busy! (See "The Key: Inductive Bible Study")

Maurice Roberts was right when he said that...

If society is to be awakened one day from its deep slumber, it will only be done by Christians who have first woken up themselves to the full splendour of their privilege and who have taken seriously the call to live wholly and entirely for God.

Spurgeon in his sermon (2 Peter 1:1-4 Faith and Life) flatly states that...

The two most important things in our holy religion are faith and life. He who shall rightly understand these two words is not far from being a master in experimental theology.

Faith and life! These are vital points to a Christian. They possess so intimate a connection with each other that they are by no means to be severed; God hath so joined them together, let no man seek to put them asunder.

You shall never find true faith unattended by true godliness; on the other hand, you shall never discover a truly holy life, which has not for its root and foundation a living faith upon the righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Woe unto those who seek after the one without the other! There be some who cultivate faith and forget holiness; these may be very high in orthodoxy, but they shall be very deep in damnation, in that day when God shall condemn those who hold the truth in unrighteousness, and make the doctrine of Christ to pander to their lusts.

There are others who have strained after holiness of life, but have denied the faith; these are comparable unto the Pharisees of old, of whom the Master said, they were “whitewashed sepulchers-.” they were fair to look upon externally, but inwardly, because the living faith was not there, they were full of dead men's bones and all manner of uncleanness.

Ye must have faith, for this is the foundation; ye must have holiness of life, for this is the superstructure.

Of what avail is the mere foundation of a building to a man in the day of tempest? Can he hide himself among sunken stones and concrete? He wants a house to cover him, as well as a foundation upon which that house might have been built; even so we need the superstructure of spiritual life if we would have comfort in the day of doubt.

But seek not a holy life without faith, for that would be to erect a house which can afford no permanent shelter, because it his no foundation on a rock-a house which must come down with a tremendous crash in the day when the rain descends, and the floods come, and the winds blow, and beat upon it (see notes Matthew 7:24).

Let faith and life be put together, and, like the two abutments of an arch, they shall make your piety strong. Like the horses of Pharaoh's chariot, they pull together gloriously. Like light and heat streaming from the same sum, they are alike full of blessing. Like the two pillars of the temple, they are for glory and for beauty. They are two from the fountain of grace; two lamps lit with holy fire; two olive-trees watered by heavenly care; two stars carried in Jesus' hand. The Lord grant that we may have both of these to perfection, that His Name may be praised. (Amen and Amen!)

AND GODLINESS: kai eusebeian:

Godliness (2150) (eusebeia from eu = well + sebomai = reverence. Sebomai is in turn derived from "seb" which refers to sacred awe or reverence exhibited especially in actions) (Click word study of eusebeia) means  "well worship" and reflects an attitude of one's life to live with a sense of God's presence and a desire motivated by love to be pleasing to Him in all things we say, do and think. It is that inner attitude of reverence which naturally manifests itself in God pleasing activity. The godly man or woman lives above the petty things of life, the passions and pressures that control the lives of others.  The order of "life" before "godliness" in the Greek text is significant for it is not by godliness that we obtain life but by life that we attain to godliness. Supernatural life and godliness are not native to the human heart but only the result of God's gift freely "granted".

Eusebeia - 15 NT uses - Acts 3:12; 1Ti 2:2 = prayer for our leaders that we may life this quality of life; 1Ti 3:16; 1Ti 4:7, 8 - a quality worthy of disciplining ourselves to achieve; 1Ti 6:3 - godliness should result from teaching sound doctrine, 1Ti 6:5, 6- Godliness associated with contentment, 1Ti 6:11- Quality to be actively chased after!; 2Ti 3:5-there is a fake godliness but it lacks spiritual power; Titus 1:1-The fruit of gaining knowledge of Christ should be godliness.2Pet. 1:3, 6, 7; 2Pe 3:11-The promised dissolution of this present earth should motivate a pursuit of godliness.

George Swinnock has an interesting "definition" of godliness writing that...

Godliness is nothing but God-likeness.

Godliness pictures a man or woman who is empowered by grace (sanctifying grace) and the indwelling Holy Spirit to conduct themselves in reverence and awe of God, maintaining such a consciousness of God’s presence (cp "Coram Deo" - before the face of God) that they live as if He were ever watching (which He is!) and strive by His power to live as Christ lived when He walk this earth as the God-Man. Godliness means to live seeking to be like God, ever seeking to possess the very character, nature, and behavior of our glorious God. The godly man or woman of follows and even runs after godliness as if pursuing the precious treasure which it in fact is (see 1Ti 4:7-note;1Ti 4:8-note). They seek to gain and continually live in the atmosphere of the consciousness of God’s presence.

John Piper adds that

if the way of godliness is rejected so is the hope of eternal life. So Peter forbids us to turn our faith into a fire insurance policy for escaping hell while our lives remain unchanged. The hope of life and the way of godliness stand or fall together. (read or listen to Dr Piper's full message entitled Liberating Promises)

MacArthur writes that

To be godly is to live reverently, loyally, and obediently toward God. Peter means that the genuine believer ought not to ask God for something more (as if something necessary to sustain his growth, strength, and perseverance was missing) to become godly, because he already has every spiritual resource to manifest, sustain, and perfect godly living (MacArthur, J.: The MacArthur Study Bible Nashville: Word or Logos)

Hiebert explains Godliness:

There is an intimate connection between truth and godliness. A vital possession of truth is inconsistent with irreverence…Real truth never deviates from the path of piety. A profession of the truth which allows an individual to live in ungodliness is a spurious profession

Godliness is not talking "godly" but living "godly".

John Calvin wrote...

Godliness separates us from the pollutions of the world, and by true holiness unites us to God.

There is a certain secret majesty in holy discipline and in sincere godliness.

J. I. Packer rightly said that...

The godly man's dearest wish is to exalt God with all that he is in all that he does.

Jerry Bridges said that godliness...

is devotion to God which results in a life that is pleasing to him.

The OT would say godly living is living with a proper "fear of the Lord", where fear conveys a sense of reverential awe, of living Coram Deo (before the face of God), recognizing that all evil is a direct affront ("in His face") to His holy character. Such a God focused person will not sin presumptively, taking no thought of the insult such sin is against God's holiness. Thus we see "godly men" in the OT like Job "fearing God and turning away from evil" (Job 1:1). Evil will be constantly "in our face" until glory but we are to constantly make the conscious decision to turn from evil, motivated by a heart desire to be pleasing (2Cor 5:9) to our Lord Who has loved us.

In Titus 2 Paul speaks of adorning the doctrine of God our Savior or make the teachings of Christianity "attractive" (Titus 2:10-note). The best way to do is not by our "lips" but by our "life", by our behavior before the looking lost (and saved) world, for as Geoffrey B. Wilson put it...

A godly life is always the best advertisement for Christianity. (Amen).

THROUGH THE TRUE KNOWLEDGE OF HIM: dia tes epignoseos:

Through (dia) means the instrument by which something happens and here means by means of true knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Dia unlocks the door of the abundant life (Jn 10:10). This life in turn is "energized" by true knowledge of God & Christ which emphasizes the absolutely critical importance of saints letting the Word of Christ continually dwell in us richly (Col 3:16-note), partaking of the "pure (no additives) milk of the Word" (1Pe 2:2-note).