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...
