Assurance of Salvation

I’ve been fixated on 2 Peter lately. Particularly this passage:

May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and election sure, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall.
(2 Peter 1:2-10)

He’s speaking to people who are already Christians, of course. Notice the past tense, “has granted” and “having escaped.” We can’t earn our salvation, but once we have received that gift, we do have the responsibility to try to cultivate certain qualities - to pursue holiness. I also noticed how each quality is a foundation for the next - we start with our faith, and because of our faith, we attain virtue. Virtue is not simply “goodness.” The word is

ἀρετή
aretḗ; gen. aretḗs, fem. noun. Superiority or being pleasing to God, or the superiority of God revealed in the work of salvation. Aretḗ denotes in a moral sense what gives man his worth, his efficiency. In the NT: virtue, moral excellency, perfection, goodness of action. In 1Pe_2:9, aretás (pl.) is translated “praises.” The virtues as a force or energy of the Holy Spirit accompanying the preaching of the glorious gospel. In 2Pe_1:3 it stands next to dóxa (G1319), glory. Human virtue in general (Phi_4:8); courage, fortitude, resolution (1Pe_2:9; 2Pe_1:5 [cf. 1Co_16:13]); moral excellence.
Syn.: huperbolḗ (G5236), a throwing beyond, surpassing, an excellence; huperochḗ (G5247), the act of overhanging, hence superiority, preeminence, excellency; aínos (G136), praise; épainos (G1868), approbation, commendation; dóxa (G1391), glory; dúnamis (G1411), power; chárisma (G5486), gift; ōphéleia (G5622), usefulness, benefit.
Ant.: hustérēma (G5303), lack, want; tó phaúlon (G5337), that which is light, wicked or evil; páthos (G3806), passion, lust; tó kakón (G2556), that which is bad in itself; tó ponērón (G4190), evil, malevolence.

We add to that, knowledge. And in our knowledge of an eternal hope, we are able to have self-control; after all, when you have eternity, instant gratification is less of an temptation. Having disciplined ourselves to self-control, we attain steadfastness… and so on. Not only do we continue to gain these new qualities, they are ever-increasing. They keep us from being unfruitful. Peter is expounding on what Paul wrote in Galatians:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
(Galatians 5:22-23)

I keep coming back to this passage because I feel there’s more in it that I’m overlooking. Or maybe I’m just being led to meditate on these qualities. I get very frustrated with myself - even to the point of doubting my salvation at times because how can I be such an idiot and so sinful this many years after salvation? I think this is probably true of a lot of Christians. This is a very practical list of things to look for and cultivate by prayer and study. It’s also a checklist that helps gauge our progress, as such, it provides another assurance of salvation. As frustrated as I get sometimes, I can read that list and reflect on my life and see how God has changed me. And will continue to do so - the example speaks for itself. Peter, who was so impulsive and foolish in the four gospels went on to write this gentle, reflective, encouraging missive. There’s hope for me yet.

Added: Check out these two posts from Henry Neufeld on these verses - very interesting!
John Wesley on 2 Peter 1:3-11
A Gift, but What Type?