2 Peter 2:10b-13a


2 Peter 2:10b-13a
(A Bible Study Led by Dr. Larry Reynolds)
                         May 29, 2014
                                                              
 
1.      You may have noticed the continuing changes to US currency, especially the $100 bill.  This is an effort to make counterfeiting more difficult.  The advent of the digital age has been a boon to counterfeiters. 
--a counterfeit ring in Iran and Syria is reported to have produced as much as $1 billion in fake $100 bills...
--another unnamed Middle Easter nation is reportedly sponsoring   the mass production of a counterfeit bill which is so well done it is being referred to as the superdollar...
--a raid the in the Philippines uncovered more than $50 billion in fake US currency and treasury notes...
--it was estimated that at one point several years ago 82% of the US $100 bills circulating in Europe were counterfeit...[www.syntac.net\hoax\counterfeit]
2.      Counterfeiting is a big problem not only for the US gov’t, it is a big problem among the people of God...wherever God’s people have gathered, fakes, charlatans, and pretenders have also gathered...2 Peter 2 warns us about these false teachers, counterfeit Christians...from middle part of v.10 through end of chapter Peter gives us graphic, detailed description of counterfeit Christians...tells us about their—
--attitude (10b-13a)
--life-style (13b-16)
--influence (17-19)
--fate (20-22)
3.      Going to look over a four week period at what this part of God’s Word tells us about counterfeit Christians... In this verses Peter takes the gloves off...he is direct...he is to the point... and he doesn’t worry about hurting anyone’s feelings...these people are so dangerous to the church and so hurtful to themselves and others, Peter pointedly exposes them for what they are...how do you spot counterfeit Christians?...don’t where sign around their neck identifying themselves as fakes...Peter tells us one way to identify them is by their attitude...in the last part of v.10 he clearly spells out three things about the attitude of counterfeit Christians...
 


I.       Counterfeit Christians have an overly inflated opinion of themselves
1.      The first word used in v.10 to described counterfeit Christians is translated “daring” in the NASB...that’s a translation of a word used only in this verse in the Bible...however the basic root on which this word is built is used numerous times...it comes from a word which means bold or courageous...
2.      Now there is a sense in which being characterized by boldness and courage is a desirable thing for God’s people...as matter of fact, God often encouraged His followers to be bold...for example, just before Joshua led the Israelites to begin the conquest of the Promised Land the Lord told him three times to “..be strong [bold] and courageous..” because “I am with you...”
3.      However, Peter is not referring to that kind of boldness...the kind which comes from being right with and dependent upon God...the word Peter uses carries the idea of boldness which has no foundation in God...it arises from an overly inflated opinion of oneself and ones abilities...one writer translates the word “audacious” [Barclay, p.389]...the people Peter is describing have egos which far outweigh their abilities...
 
1.      There’s story about former heavy weight boxing champion Muhammad Ali...I’ve come across it in several different places, but have not way of knowing whether or not it really happened...has flavor of one of those urban legends which are constantly going around...according to story was on airplane...came time to take off and announcement was made to fasten the seat belts...as flight attendant walked down isle checking to see that the seat belts were properly fastened, she noticed Ali’s as not...politely asked him to fasten his seatbelt, and the boxing champion known for his ego said, “Superman don’t need no seat belt.”...and without missing a beat the attendant said, “Superman don’t need no airplane either.  You need to fasten your seat belt.”
 
1.      Must never forget there is fine line between being confident in the Lord and being arrogant and over-confident in ourselves...counterfeit Christians just don’t seem to be able to find that line...one way to identify them is that sense of brashness and insensitivity toward others which says, “I’m better...more important...more valuable than you...”
2.      C.S. Lewis... “A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you’re looking down, you can’t see something that’s above you.” [Life Application Bible Commentary, p.194]
3.      That’s how counterfeit Christians are...they are so wrapped up in themselves they have no regard for others and they are out of touch with God...leads to the second thing Peter tells us about them...in addition...
 
II.  Counterfeit Christians are selfish
1.      Selfishness is the antithesis, the opposite of true Christianity...Jesus spoke of such things as denying self...putting others before self...laying down one’s life for others...counterfeit Christians have no idea what such things as that mean...


2.      Notice the second word Peter uses the middle of v.10 to describe them... he calls them “self-willed”...that translation doesn’t really capture the strength of the word Peter uses here...the word is from the same word family as our hedonism...hedonism describes the philosophy of life which says pleasure is everything...one characterized by this attitude views life only in terms of  self...what is important, what really matters are only those things I want, only my desires, only what makes me feel good...there is no room in the life of such person for others...there is not sense of servant-hood, of giving, of genuinely caring for anyone beyond self...
3.      The only other time this word is used in the Scripture is in Titus 1:7 where Paul says that pastor’s must not be characterized by this quality... and the reason for that is a person who is “self-willed” cannot possible care for others...
 
1.      He was one of the most self-willed people who ever lived...all he really wanted in life was more...
--He wanted more money, so he parlayed inherited wealth into a billion-dollar pile of assets.
--He wanted more fame, so he broke into the Hollywood scene and soon became a film-maker and star.
--He wanted more sensual pleasures, so he paid handsome sums to indulge his every sexual urge.
--He wanted more thrills, so he designed, built, and piloted the fastest aircraft in the world.
--He wanted more power, so he secretly dealt political favors so skillfully that two U.S. presidents became his pawns.
He was absolutely convinced that a self-centered, hedonistic life-style would bring him true satisfaction. Did it work?  You be the judge.  At the end of his life he was emaciated and colorless; with a sunken chest; fingernails in grotesque, inches-long corkscrews; rotting, black teeth; tumors; and innumerable needle marks from his drug addiction. Howard Hughes died, a billionaire junkie and insane by any normal standards, clinging to the illusion that a self-willed life is the way to fulfillment. [Bill Hybels, Leadership]
2.   Jesus does not call us to a life of self-will, He calls us to a life of self-sacrifice...He said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake shall find it.” [Matt.16:24-25]
3.      Counterfeit Christians simply do not understand that...instead of living for Him and for others, they invariably live for self...
 
III.  Counterfeit Christians make light of spiritual things


1.      In last part of v.10 Peter says they “..revile angelic majesties..” and they do so with no fear...while some debate about who the identity of the “angelic majesties” to whom Peter refers, but their identity is not the central issue to point Peter is making... he is saying that counterfeit Christians do not take seriously the spiritual dimension of life...in v.12 speaks of them “..reviling where they have no knowledge..”

2.      Point is, they are basically spiritual skeptics...while they used spiritual language and talked about spiritual things, they weren’t true believers... they even make light of spiritual things and of people who have deep spiritual commitments in their lives...

 

1.      In the book The Magnificent Mind by Gary Collins...writes, “There are only two reactions to a holy God: a bowed head or a turned back.”...

2.      Instead of bowing in wonder and awe before a holy God, counterfeit Christians exhibit a contempt for spiritual things...they live as if the spiritual dimension of life does not exist...

3.      That’s why Peter compares them to animals in v.12...the difference between humans and animals is that we have in us the imago deo, the image of God...animals have the capacity of living only in the physical realm, but humans have the capacity of living in two realms--the physical and the spiritual...however, counterfeit Christians live only on the level of the physical...

CONCLUSION

1.      You may remember the events surrounding the execution of Timothy McVeigh for the Oklahoma City Bombing. McVeigh’s closing statement included a familiar poem by William Ernest Henley, "Invictus". It begins with the words:

                                    Out of the night that covers me Black as the Pit from pole to pole. I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul.

      And ends with these words:

                                    It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.

2.      Those words express well the deficiency of counterfeit Christians...they leave God out of their lives...self becomes God...may we have the wisdom to avoid their error...instead of—

--arrogantly looking to self for strength, may we look to God...

--instead of being self-centered, may we be God centered...

--instead of living only in the realm of the physical, may we recognize the spiritual dimension of life as well...

3.      For if we think we are “the master of our fate and the captains of our soul” we are not really disciples of Jesus...

 

 

2 Peter 2:4-10a


2 Peter 2:4-10a
(A Bible Study Led by Dr. Larry Reynolds)
May 15, 2014
                                                              
1.      There is a story about some people on an airplane that was late getting to its destination...five of the passengers had a connecting flight to catch, and their first flight was so late they missed the connection...they gathered at the ticket counter trying to work with the agent there to get them on another flight...the agent told them there was another flight to their destination leaving in about an hour and she would do very best could to get them on that flight...four of the five passengers were very understanding and cooperative, but one was not...he was belligerent and treated the agent very rudely...as he berated her for events over which she had no control and for which she was not responsible, the agent just smiled and continued treating him with the same courtesy she showed the others...at the end of his tirade the man by saying to her in a threatening way, “I specifically requested an isle seat when I made my reservation, and you had better make sure I have an isle seat on the next flight.”...the agent worked on her computer for awhile she announced to the group, “You will be glad to know that I was able to get all of you on the next flight.”...then she looked at the man who had been so difficult to deal with and said, “Sir, I am happy to tell you that I was able to get you an isle seat.”...she handed him his boarding pass and without even saying thank you he grabbed it from her hand and begin to walk away...but before he left the ticket counter area she said to the other four in a voice just loud enough for him to hear, “And I’m happy to tell you four nice people that I was able to get you seats in first class!”
2.      Like that story because reminds me of a basic life principle...and that principle is that we reap what we sow...as continue our study of 2 Peter 2 going to focus on a passage which clearly spells out that basic life principle...in our last session we saw that 2 Peter 2 is an expose of the false teachers, the counterfeit Christians, the fakes, the charlatans who have always been among God’s people...they were present in ancient Israel in the OT...they were present in the church in the NT...and they are present among God’s people today...
3.      In our last session we saw three characteristics of these false teachers or counterfeit Christians...they deceive...they deny...the destroy... v.3 ends with this statement, “...their judgement from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”...essentially what that means is that God knows who they are, God knows what they are doing, and God is not going to give them a free pass...then, beginning in v.4 and going through the first part of v.10 is one long, complex sentence reminding us that God does not neglect the wicked or the righteous...

4.      Look at 2 Peter 2:4-10a...before read, want you to see structure of this sentence...will help you better understand what this portion of the Scripture is telling us...this is an if/then sentence...begins with a series of if clauses in vv.4-8...follows that with a then clause in vv.9-10...saying, If (or since) God has done all these things, then can count on Him to do the following.”...now with that in mind, look at 2 Peter 2:4-10a...(text)..
 
T.S. – Some time ago I had an interesting conversation with a man who had a family member who was very ill...at end of our conversation told him I would be praying for him and for his family...he response took me by surprise...in effect said, “I appreciate that, but if prayer worked we wouldn’t be in this situation.”...what he was really saying was, “Where is God in all this?  Does He know what is happening?  Is He going to respond in some way?”
 
That’s a question which has often been asked by people...when Israelites were in bondage in Egypt...when Israelites were taken into captivity to Babylon...when Jesus hung on the cross...suspect question that was being asked by the original recipients of this letter...”Does God see what is going on?  Is He aware of the false teachers and counterfeit Christians?  How is He going to respond?”...based on what Peter knew God had done in the past, he tells his readers and us that God is not asleep...God does indeed see...God will indeed respond...
 
Want direct your attention primarily to v.9...”...the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment.”...that verse tells us two things about God of which we can be sure...two things that we can know without doubt that God will do...
 
I.       God will take care of His people
1.      “...the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation...”...that statement could be the basis for an entire sermon in itself...
--”the godly” doesn’t mean super-spiritual people...that’s clear from the two examples Peter gives of people God rescued in history--Noah and Lot...those two men were far from perfect... they both had their character flaws...but they were people who ultimately trusted in God...”the godly” means people who trust their lives to God...
--”temptation” can be translated trials or testings...think that’s the meaning here...not so much temptation to sin as it is times of difficulty and trial in our lives...
--”rescue ... from” does not mean exempts us from trials...the preposition “from” does not mean that God takes trials away from us or us away from trials...idea is that in the midst of trials God rescues us...the examples Peter used of God taking care of His people make that clear...
--God didn’t exempt Noah from the flood; He saw Noah through the flood...
--God didn’t exempt Lot from living for years in silent torment over the sinfulness of Sodom...


2.      Scripture does not teach, as some would have you believe, that Christians will never suffer or face trials...but it does teach that God is faithful to walk with us through the trials...as I’ve often said to people who are going through times of trial and testing and are wondering where God is, “He is standing beside you, walking with you, loving you through the experience.”
 
II.    God will judge the unrighteous
1.      God’s judgment is not a subject people in our culture like to think about or hear about...the prevailing philosophy of our day is that God is somehow too good to be judgmental...when we get to the end of the life, He just gives everyone a free pass...it doesn’t matter—
--what your commitments are...
--how you live your life...
--whether obedient or disobedient...
God is going to treat everyone the same...
2.      In the postmodern society in which we live, the idea of judgment seems to be antiquated...the prevailing mindset is that—
--one person’s philosophy/approach to life is as good as another...
--one religion is no more true than any other religion...
all that matters is what works for you...there is no room for judgment in that kind of thinking...
3.      That may have been what the false teachers Peter describes in this chapter were saying...don’t worry about judgment...do what you want to do...do what makes you feel good...God is not going to hold you accountable...and in response to that Peter says, “Don’t fall for that kind of thinking...it is not true’...the Lord knows how to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment...’ (v.9)...
4.      In this passage Peter reminds the people that if they are aware of the activity of God in history, they must know that God has consistently judged those who rebelled against Him...he reminds them of three specific acts of God’s judgment recorded in the book of Genesis...
--in v.4 speaks of God judging the angels who rebelled against Him...
--in v.5 speaks of God judging the world with the great flood in the days of Noah...
--in v.6 speaks of God destroying the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah because of their wickedness...
And while there is a lot of background to each of those three illustrations we could explore, the basic Peter is making is this: “If God judged the angels who rebelled against Him...if God judged the people who rebelled against Him in the days of Noah...if God judged the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah which rebelled against Him, what basis do you have to think God will not judge you when you rebel against Him?”
 
1.      If you’ll look carefully at that phrase at the end of v. 9 you’ll see Peter speaks of two kinds of judgment...there is a present judgment and there is a future judgment...


--the phrase about the unrighteous (those who live their lives apart from God...those live with no regard for God’s laws) being “under punishment” refers to a judgment in the present...most people tend to think of God’s judgment as something that, if it happens, happens way out there in the distant future at the end of time...but there is a sense in which God’s judgment is immediate...it’s built in to the world in which we live...disobedience, failure to obey God has its own built-in penalty...for example--

--if you abuse your body with tobacco, alcohol, or drugs, if you have unhealthy eating habits, if you fail to exercise, if you don’t get the right amount of rest, eventually you are going to pay the price for that kind of life-style...

There is a present judgment, a judgment we experience in this world when we rebel against God... that’s why God’s Word forbids certain things...that’s why we have the 10 commandments...God tells us not to steal...commit adultery...murder...bear false witness...covet because those things have in them their own built in judgment...they diminish our lives...they make us less than God intended...He wants us to avoid the judgment which inevitably comes with violating the basic laws of our universe...

--the phrase at the end of v.9 about “...the day of judgment” refers to judgment in the future...the Scripture is quite clear...at some point there will be a time of separation...righteous/wicked ...faithful/ unfaithful...wheat/tares...sheep/goats...children of God/children of Satan...

2.      God is not asleep and judgment will come...

                                                 CONCLUSION

1.      Read interesting thing about actor/comedian W.C. Fields this past week...obviously wasn’t a spiritual man...was in hospital nearing end of his life...friend went to hospital to visit him and found Fields reading a Bible... friend was surprised to see him reading that book and asked why he was doing so...and in typical W.C. Fields fashion he said, “I’m looking for loopholes.”

2.      When it comes to God’s judgment there are no loopholes...God is not asleep...He sees what is happening...and His judgment is sure...

 

2 Peter 2:1-3


2 Peter 2:1-3a
(A Bible Study Led by Dr. Larry Reynolds)
May 1, 2014
                                                              
Chapter 1 of 2 Peter contains a beautiful description of what it means to be a genuine follower of Jesus.  True believers--
--have equal standing before God (v.1)
--know God in personal, intimate way (v.2)
--share in the power of God (v.3)
--are recipients of the precious and magnificent promises of God (v.4)
--grow and mature in their walk with God (vv.5-9)
--persevere in the faith (vv.10-11)
--understand that Christianity is rooted in history (vv.12-18)
--focus on God’s Word
 
Now is chapter 2 Peter turns to the subject of false believers. In this chapter Peter warns us that there will be people who claim to be followers of Jesus and who claim to speak for Jesus, but they are really charlatans and fakes...always have been two kinds of people among the people of God...there are—
--true believers/those who only pretend to believe...
--really know God/only profess know God...
--faithful/unfaithful...
--committed/uncommitted...
--God-centered/self-centered...
In 1st chapter of this letter Peter described true believers.  In 2nd chapter he turns to the pretenders.
 
At the end of chapter 1 Peter says that God produced for us the “prophetic word” or the Bible through true prophets, through people who were moved by God’s Spirit.  Now, he begins chapter 2 by pointing out that in addition to those true prophets who were among God’s people, there were also false prophets among God’s people.
 


T.S. - The “false teachers” to whom Peter refers in this passage were people in the church pretending to be in touch with God, passing themselves off as spiritual leaders, as teachers of others, but who were not in touch with God and who were leading not closer to God but further away from God...
 
Warren Wiersbe points out three things that false teachers, pseudo-spiritual leaders will invariably do...
 
I.       False teachers deceive
1.      One of the marks of false teachers/spiritual leaders is that they never put their true face forward...they don’t want you to see who/what they really are...they want you to see an illusion, a contrived image of them...
2.      Jesus warned of “...false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves...” [Matt.7:15]...and that is precisely the kind of people Peter describes in this passage...notice how they are deceptive—
--in their approach (“secretly”-v.1)...don’t operate in the open...they move in the shadows...are not comfortable being exposed to the light...their agenda is always hidden...they are always manipulating, scheming, working in under-handed ways to get what they want...
 
--in their motive (“greed” – v.3)…refers to much more than just the desire for material things...can be greed for power, for popularity, for getting one’s own way...point is their purpose is always selfish and self-centered...
 
--in their purpose (“exploit” - v.3)...their motives are always less than pure...instead of genuinely desiring to help people, to build up people, their mind-set is to use people...the word means “to make merchandise of”...people just become objects, a means to an end...
 
--in their words (“false words”-end v.3)...the Greek word is “plastos” from which our word plastic comes...it means they twist words to make them mean what they desire...you can’t really trust the plain, obvious meaning of the words they use...they always have a hidden, under-the-surface meaning as well...their words cannot be trusted...
 
1.      Deceptiveness is a consistent characteristic of the kind of people being described in this passage...read interesting thing about Joseph Stalin this past week...despite the mind-numbing brutality of the Joseph Stalin regime in the Soviet Union, his propaganda machine did its job well. Many Russians hailed him as a hero and a savior, including a young school girl who was chosen to greet Stalin on one occasion.  Years later, this woman recalled Stalin taking her onto his lap, smiling like a loving father. She was starry-eyed, and she cherished the moment for many years. Only later did she learn that during this period, Stalin had her parents arrested and sent to the labor camps, never to be seen again. [Today in the Word, October, 1997, p. 36]


 
II.  False teachers deny
1.      In v.1 Peter says these counterfeit Christians are “...even denying the Master who bought them...”...several things about that phrase are important to understand...
--”who bought them” does not mean that they are genuine Christians...while Christ died for them and while His death potentially paid for their sins, it is obvious from how Peter describes them in this chapter they had no real relationship with Christ...they were not true believers...perhaps they thought they were, but they did not have a saving relationship with Jesus...
--”denying the Master”...Master obviously refers to Jesus...how were they denying Him?...two possibilities...
--possible was a theological denial of Jesus, denying His deity or denying that His sacrificial death on the cross was necessary for our forgiveness or denying His resurrection...I think that is unlikely because anyone teaching such things would have been immediately recognized as a fake and would not have been tolerated in the early church...
--more than likely, talking about a practical denial of Jesus... denied Him by the way they lived...while claiming allegiance to Jesus, their life-styles said they obviously had other priorities, other loves in their lives more important to them than Jesus...their real heresy was professing Jesus with their mouths but denying Him with their lives...in v.2 Peter refers to the “sensuality” of these false teachers...the word refers to sexual impurity...the NIV translates it “shameful ways”...by the way they lived they were denying their professed commitment to Jesus...
2.      It is not that Christians will never make mistakes...the Scripture does not teach that…as a matter of fact, many of the great characters of the Bible had deep flaws…not any one of us is perfectly, 100% consistent all the time...all of us, in some way or another, fall short of God’s ideal...if you expect perfection from any person, you are going to be disappointed...
3.      But the habit of our lives, the direction of our lives must not deny the faith we claim to have...
 


1.        He made free use of Christian vocabulary. He talked about the blessing of the Almighty and the Christian confessions which would become the pillars of the new government. He assumed the earnestness of a man weighed down by historic responsibility. He handed out pious stories to the press, especially to the church papers. He showed his tattered Bible and declared that he drew the strength for his great work from it as scores of pious people welcomed him as a man sent from God. Indeed, Adolf Hitler was a master of outward religiosity—with no inward reality! [Today in the Word, June 3, 1989]

 

III.  False teachers destroy

1.      In Psalm 23 David proclaimed “Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life...”...in the wake of genuine Christians you will find good, positive things...where they go lives are improved...people are made better...but not so with false teachers...they do not bring good things, they bring destruction...

2.      If look carefully at text will see the destruction they bring is on several levels...

--last part of v.1 speaks of them “bringing swift destruction upon themselves...”...that is, God is aware of what they are doing and He will not leave their actions unpunished...we’re going to develop this idea further next week...

--also bring destruction upon others...v.2 says that “many will follow them...”...can’t always judge the truth of what someone is saying by the size of the crowd...often times false teachers are saying what people want to hear...people gladly follow because many times the demands of God on our lives are minimized or ignored...

--finally, the bring destruction on the church...last part of v.2 says “because of them the way of truth will be maligned...”...non-believers see the excesses and abuses of false teachers and assume that is real Christianity...and they reject, not the real thing, but a distortion, a caricature of the real thing...nothing hurts the cause of Christ more than those who misrepresent Him to the world...

                                                      Conclusion

1.      What a sorry legacy--deception, denial, destruction...I don’t know about you, but when my life is over and done, that is not what I want written on my tombstone!...that’s the legacy of counterfeit Christians, of false teachers...

2.      The legacy of true believers is just the opposite...

--instead of deceptiveness, true believers are characterized by openness and honesty...

--instead of denying Christ by their life-styles, true believers live in such a way that affirms their commitment to Christ...

--instead of causing pain and destruction, true believers are a source of healing and comfort...