The writer explained that the scriptures are inspired words of God in 1:21, all the Words are inspired Word of God, the Bible is inspired, inspired by the Holy Spirit. St Peter wanted the readers to grow and developing good virtues after reading the inspired Word, (1:5-8). And at the same time, he was warning against those “hurtful and harmful heresies.” (2:16). lastly he mentioned the Lord is coming soon, without the interference from the Lord, the world may had long before been destroyed. (3:8-12). It is God who had preserved the world until today.
There are some Peter called them as “wells without water,” “clouds that are carried in the mist of darkness is reserved forever,” “the pig returned to the mud again.” May God forgive some like us the unprofitable servants, God is merciful, and may God make us to be a well with water, a cloud which carries rain!
There are times in the past, God’s people had strayed from the truth, denying Christ, like Peter, 3 times he denied Christ until the crock crow, there were those who were fulfilling their lust like those Corinthian Christians, and some of them even did not believe the Lord is coming soon. Else where and there are still some who are walking in the way of “Balaam,” and these people will surely perished in fire and living in total darkness one day. (2:17-3:3-7)
Peter said “to know Christ is our glory, hope, dependence and power!” The writer was departing soon, he was at the end of his life, as he wrote in 1:14, he was living under the King Nero, and the king was persecuting the church. To Peter, King Nero is not the biggest threat to the church, there is another bigger threat, Peter point out what was that, “heresies, beware the false teachers and false prophets!”
Here are some of the descriptions about the heresies and the teachers, Peter said they did not witness the Lord Jesus who had saved them (2:1), they were not afraid of anyone and they were stubborn (2:10), they are lustful (2:13), they are adulterous, they are the fornicators and the greedy some (2:14), and then they are boastful (2:18), lastly and finally they are servants of destructions (2:19). These men were more dangerous than 10 King Nero, they endangered the spiritual growth of a church. These men were more dangerous than the Roman Empire which persecuted them. May God preserves and lead us, so that we will not become a false teacher or false prophet.
Dear God heavenly Father,have mercy on me, this weak and poor sinful man, I do not want to become one of them!
2 Peter 1:1, Knowing Christ is a blessing, a theme in Christianity, this is the medicine and remedy to defend and fight against those false teachers and their heresies.
1:2, Peter wrote 4 times “epignosis,” 3 times “gnosis,” knowing is not only knowing the mere knowledge of the world, but knowing Christ, there are blessings from God to them who know Christ, God bless us with grace, peace and even the eternal kingdom if we truly know Christ. What else we should murmur until we complaint about the inspired scriptures! What is the purpose of a perfect Bible is it not for knowing Christ?
1:3, by knowing Christ, He is called Lord, Lord over the theologians and all the pastors, and only He can fulfills all our spiritual needs. Peter said that Christ Whom he knew is a Glorious Lord, and Glorious God.
1:4, Christ promised us that we can be delivered from the bondage of lust and sin. A free man with the dwelling of the Holy Spirit, He can then enjoy and developing the virtues of God. In that man, the glory of God is shining from; he becomes the light in the world.
1:5, Peter agreed with Paul that faith must come with works, faith without works is death. Simple faith in Christ will bring along good morale in a man, by knowing God, a man may have self control, long suffering, and continue to live a devoted life, and continue in loving his brethren, and at last loving all men like loving God!
1:8, Christian must grow in these few virtues, and to be holy and perfect in faith. Freed from sins, and continue to be trained in pursuing good things until they can be called children of God.
1:9, there were some of them who said that a man can come to know God without the morale laws. So they disobey the morale laws, these morale laws are from the scriptures, even thought they said they believe the Bible totally, some of them said they believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, but they were liars, they choose to obey some scriptures, and choose to disobey some scriptures, strange! Peter said without the morale laws we are still in darkness!
1:10, Christians must live in and by morale laws, faith with works, spiritual life with good virtues, so that they can say they are elected, called and chosen, belong to God.
1:13-14, St. Peter exhorted us, “NOT TO be wavering,” his departing word?
1:15, traditionally people said, Mark was recording Peter’s sermon, and put in the Gospel of Mark, so Mark is closer with Peter than Paul, once Paul was angry with Mark, there was a quarrel in his missionary journey.
1:16-18, some say it is at the Mount Hermon the Lord shown His transfiguration, and Peter, James and John were up there watching with their open eyes, seeing the glory of God. Mount Hermon is a blessing for them.
Read Psalms 133:3 as the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.
But if we wanted to receive that blessing, there is a condition, read Psalms 133:1 A Song of degrees of David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! Psalms 133:2 it is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments.
Knowing Christ? We all know Christ? We said we know Him, what the scriptures required of us? Brethren to live in unity! Unity is more important or the theological debates? Paul and Peter also united with Mark at last, what about us? Are we cleverer than them? Are we more fundamental than Peter? Mount Hermon is still there, it brings what blessing to us today? Unity or debate? Debates only?
Christ’s transfiguration is to show the glory of God, likewise, brethren, be transformed in knowing Christ, if we can live in unity, then we can show others the glory of God in our Christian fellowship. We need that glory of God and brethren’s unity from Mount Hermon! Not debates! Only debate we want? What is the value of debate, if we lost our glory?
1:19, the Bible is a long prophecy about Christ, and a lamp onto our feet, so that we may see where we are heading!
1:20, Peter knows someone had misinterpreted the scriptures in his time, even in the first century, with the manuscripts at hands, there were people making misinterpretation. Peter said we cannot interpret the scriptures with our likings; we cannot interpret the Bible scripture out of context. Who are we to judge the mss with a few verses taken from here and there?
Psalm 12, for example, this psalm is a spiritual song, how come it had become a song of lament for many because of the teaching of VPP? How come a spiritual, awakening song, sung by the Jew, lament about human oppression, being misinterpreted to a “debate” about Holy Scriptures by some theologians? Only debate in Psalm 12, nothing else?
In the context of Psalm 12, the Psalmist laments the decrease of good men. The pride and deceit of the wicked provokes God's wrath, whose promise to avenge the cause of pious sufferers will be verified even amidst prevailing iniquity.
The scripture is inspired by God, every word is from God. God dwell with men, they wrote the scripture, men were co-labor with God, the Holy Spirit, taught by the Holy Spirit, the scripture is without errors. But Peter said there is the danger of misinterpretation! What about us, let us reduce the misinterpretations and increase the unity!
2:1, furthermore, with more and more misinterpretations of the scriptures, without delay, Peter warned us; there come the false teachers and false prophets, even the whole New Testament gives warnings about the false teachers and prophets in the church. Do not be surprised. At the end of the world, some even dare to use Christ’s name, in order they may cheat their disciples (Matthew 24:3, Act 20:29-30, Gal 1:6-9, Phil. 3:2, 1 Tim 1:3-7 and Jude 3-4)
These men with impure motives, preying for weaker believers who may be misled and taught with false teachings and false prophecies! Their characteristics are:
1. Denying Christ (2 Peter 2;1)
2. Denying the second coming of Christ (3:3-4)
3. Denying authority and disobey the authority (2:10)
4. Denying holiness in living (2:12-16)
5. Denying morale laws (2:18-22)
All heresy is harmful! The teachers are liars! The prophets are false. They will perish with their false teachings.
Matthew 13:25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.
Matthew 13:27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?
Matthew 13:30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.
2:2, Peter knew who were these men who sow the tares among the wheat, they were living in sin, disgrace Christ’s name and His truth!
2:3, their motives are to make profit from the debates, make gains from the statues, selling truths to make money!
2:4, God’s judgment is sure and perfect! Fair and just, He will judge those false teachers and prophets accordingly. Sinful and fallen angels are sending to the lake of fire! No excuse. What about us?
2:5, Peter gave an example, Noah was a prophet, preaching about righteousness, a perfect and needed truth in his time, at the end of preaching, only 8 persons, his family and him know the way to the ark! The rest perished together with the flood!
2:7, another example is Lot, he was imperfect, and he was not called to work like Noah, he also did not manage his house whole wisely, but Peter called him “a righteous man.” Lot does nothing, just laments! He lamented for the sinful world! Lament, for the end is coming soon! Sodom and Gomorrah were then perished with the brimstone and fire from the sky! Lot was saved with fears and trembling, losing his wife and properties.
2:8-9, St Peter comforted us, not to be torn down by those false teachers, false prophets, misinterpretations, debates. We are living in these ungodly generations, God know how to save those devoted single hearted men and women! Do not start to worry, and try to save ourselves! Follow Christ example, when He took His cross and walk His way to the hill.
2:10, but those who spread harmful and hurtful heresies and false teachings, they will be punished, perished like Sodom and Gomorrah.
2:11, Peter said, the angels do not rebuke! Rather, because the seriousness of the false teaching, even a donkey was provoked to rebuke Balaam.
2:12, Peter said, there were those heretics, more or less, the “Gnostic” they thought they had the mystical knowledge about the whole cosmos. But they had none of the simple truth!
2:13-14, these false teachers and false prophets had joined the feast of the agape, but they continue to tempt those weaker in faith to follow their false teaching and heresies.
2:15, Peter said, they were following “the way of Balaam,” it is a way of compromise, self seeking, even the donkey was touched with their falsehood and became angry, the donkey rebuked Balaam. Even donkey cannot tolerant these false teachings!
2:17, they were descript as “well without water,” useless.
2:18, the spiritual babes were easily fallen in prey by these heresies.
2:20-21, if a man is born again, he will not left Jesus Christ, whom he had believed, and become a reprobate! (John 10:27-30, Rom 8:28-39). Do not like Judas Iscariot, he had been following Christ, and he heard the truth, but he chooses not to obey, but he like money more than his Lord!
2:22, animal cannot change its animal instinct.
3:1, the purpose of Peter’s writing his epistle is to “remind” and “motivate us.”
3:2, Old Testament prophets and New Testament apostles were called and sent to tell people about God’s commandment, they had the higher authority, and what they taught is from the Lord Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit.
3:3-7, all those prophecies about the end time will be fulfilled, at those moment, false prophets will arise, and come to deny the coming of the Lord, they scorned that God will never intervene the history of mankind. The Bible tells us God will destroy the earth and the ungodly. He is the creator of the whole universe and He will put an end to the wickedness!
3:8, quoting from Psalm 90:4, a thousand years is like a day in God’s prospective. God is not delaying, He is mercifully forgiving and forgiving, He is giving opportunities for us to repent.
3:9, so let us look at God’s will in 3 different ways:
1. God’s sovereignty (Isaiah 46:9-11, Daniel 4:17, 35; Hebrew 2:4, Rev 17:17)
2. God’s morale laws (Rom 3:20, Eph. 6:6, Heb 13:21)
3. God’s love (Ezek 33:11, Matt 23:37, 2 Pet 3:9)
There are a lot of people who are not saved in the end. (Rev 21:8) Do not blame the CUV, and NKJV Bible! They had chosen not to follow Christ, and they had chosen not to know Christ!
3:10, Christ is coming soon, it is called the day of Yahweh. (Joel 1:15) Our knowledge of His coming is limited:
1. The Lord is sure to come at another time, only God know the time. (Matt 24:36)
2. Suddenly He will appear, and cannot be expected (1 Thess 5:1-3)
3. It is the time when God judge the world (Act 17:31)
Peter said the whole world will be destroyed with a loud noise (2 Pet 3:12) What about those manuscripts, those manuscripts in goat skins, and the TR? Paper printed Bible like KJV Bibles, the text books in all the reformed bible colleges? Who is going to take care of them? Why quarrel now for the underlying texts?
There was a tree, with 7 roots it was being planted. When the tree grown up to be a tall tree, all the birds came to settle on it, happily all the birds dwell on that tree, but sadly one day, a man who watered the tree came, and he shoot all the birds away, and he said to his companion, “from this day onward, only white myna is allow to settle on my tree!” Why only white myna?
He forget to read Mark 4:32 But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.
We may not forget the 7 roots tree, but it is better for us to look for our better inheritance in heaven!
3:11-13, Peter wrote there is a new heaven and new earth, this is what the prophets in the Old Testament was hoping and looking for! The present civilization will be changed, the bright future is ahead, and God will come into human history, making history, His Story.
3:15, God is still forgiving, there is still hope for salvation until that Day, for all mankind, life and death of the world is in God’s hands.
Lastly, in this epistle, Peter called Paul as a beloved brother, they were together at last in heaven, very close in Christ, and they had quarreled once on earth, but they never quarrel all the way to heaven. They were well known for their life and works, and they were well respected in heaven, they stop quarrel on heaven or on earth?
3:16, how holy we live our life? This is an important question Peter will ask us today. The Holy Scripture is called a “Holy” scripture because it is holy, why it is holy, because it is teaching us how to live a holy life. Does your Bible in your hand teach you to live a holy life? If the Bible in your hand teaches you to live a holy life! The Bible in your hand is inspired and inerrant word of God. There were people who do not trained in the Gospel truth, lacking of the foundation of the truth, and they are those who easily misinterpret the Bible.
3:17, St Peter reminds the readers, false teachers and false prophets had come to the world, beware of them, there are those who fall way. But God is able to carry us through, until we meet with Him face to face. (Jude 24, 1 Peter 5:10)
3:18, finally Peter ended his letter, he wishes all to grow in spirit, to become a mature Christian, and he concluded, “KNOWING GOD IS OUR GLORY, DEPENDENCE AND POWER!” Only God is able to give us true life, and bring us into His kingdom.
Question:
1. Why Knowing Christ is blessing?
2. What is more dangerous than 10 king Nero?
3. NOT TO be wavering, why Peter said so?
4. What was the misinterpreted the scriptures in Peter’s time?
5. Who are false teachers and false prophets?
6. Why donkey cannot tolerant Balaam?
7. The purpose of Peter’s writing his epistle is?
8. Why KNOWING GOD IS OUR GLORY, DEPENDENCE AND POWER!
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