01 - Faiths Convictions 2011

Peter wrote his first letter because he was deeply moved by the suffering of God’s people. He wrote the second letter because he was moved by the seduction of God’s people. He was moved the first time by what Satan, the old lion, was doing. He was moved the second time by what Satan, the old liar, was doing. When he wrote his first letter, the attack was from without. When he wrote the second time, the attack was from within, and it was much more serious. The church could not be destroyed from without by fierce torments, but it could be destroyed from within by false teaching.

Peter’s second epistle follows the same pattern as all the other second epistles of the New Testament—2 Corinthians, 2 Thessalonians, 2 Timothy, and 2 John: they all deal with error or apostasy. In his first letter, he had a burden to comfort those believers who were going through the fire. In his second letter, he had a burden to caution those believers who were playing with the fire.

His second epistle is full of warning. It is comparable in many ways to the epistle of Jude. Probably what had come to full fruit and flower when Jude wrote was only beginning to bloom and blossom when Peter wrote. Peter’s second epistle is in three parts—faith’s convictions (chap.1), faith’s contention (chap.2), and faith’s consummation (chap.3).

FAITH’S CONVICTIONS

1 “Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: 2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord…”

Peter identifies himself as a servant from the Greek word doulos, meaning slave. This was his lowly status. In the O.T., when a slave loved his master dearly, it was his option when the time of emancipation arrived, to deliberately choose to remain a lifelong bond slave (Ex. 21:1-6). Surely, this is how Peter loved Jesus.

He was also an apostle, meaning “sent one.” This was his lofty status. Peter was a miracle worker. His very shadow healed the sick on the side of the road. “…they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them” (Acts 5:15). The man named Peter was a mighty Apostle of the Lamb and the inspired writer of the letter we now study.

Peter next addresses his readers, describing them in three ways. First, to their beliefs. They were“…those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:”

The word for “like precious” faith is isotomos (ee-sot'-ee-mos). It is found only here and means “of equal value.” The faith of the humblest, weakest believer is of equal value in the sight of God as is the faith of Abraham, or that of the Apostle Peter.

Next, Peter describes his readers as to their blessings:

2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord…”

Grace is God’s provision for our every need while we live down here in enemy territory. All of the infinite resources of God’s throne are at our disposal to enable us to face each situation and to meet every demand made upon us.

Peace is God’s provision for our inner need. Paul called this peace “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,” and said that it will “guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” The NLT version says that God’s peace “exceeds anything we can understand.” The church of “like faith” also had a “like peace” that was supernatural, and part and parcel of the blessings God distributed to the saints.

And third, Peter addresses Christians and their behavior:

3 “…as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue…”

We cannot live the Christian life in our own strength because it is a supernatural life, so God bestows on us all things that pertain to living a righteous, godly life. So we have a great gift—“all things” and a great goal—“life and godliness.”

The word “knowledge” is epignosis (ep-ig'-no-sis) "knowledge gained through first-hand relationship," "contact-knowledge" first-hand, experiential knowing.

Peter is talking to those who are progressively coming to know, through personal experience, the person of Christ Jesus. And how to do we come to know Him in this way? How do we take on the beauty of His character, making it our own? Peter says:

4 “by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises…”

The promises Peter speaks of are the amazing promises made to us who are in Christ Jesus. These promises are backed by the absolute integrity of God Himself by all the power of His throne. There is a promise for every need. Literally thousands of promises are found in the Word of God.

The promises of God are blank checks, drawn on the bank of heaven, signed by the Lord of glory with the ink of His own blood, and given to us so that we can fill in our name, our need, and the “now” of our present emergency.

Peter next lays out what we might call the GREAT ESSENTIAL for every believer in Christ Jesus.

“…that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”

Partaker means “something we have in common with someone else.” Here it refers to the divine nature. According to Paul in the book of Romans, our old nature has been crucified with Christ and is to be reckoned dead. All Christians have this in common.

And as we yield to the indwelling Holy Spirit, our new life in Christ is made evident. One of the “exceeding great and precious promises” is that “sin shall not have dominion” over us (Ro. 6:14). Again, all Christians have this in common as well. We are fellow partakers of the divine nature.

Peter next turns his attention to something else we have in common—a GREAT ESCAPE.

“…having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”

The word “escape” is from a Greek word meaning “to flee away.” This is the Bible’s best advice for dealing with temptation. FLEE from it. Lingering in sin’s neighborhood is dangerous.

The word for “corruption” comes from a word that is used to describe a corpse (1 Cor. 15:2), and to depict the condition of creation under the curse (Ro. 8:21). It carries the idea of destruction by means of corruption. Peter uses this word to portray the effect of lusts upon human society.

People outside of Christ become slaves to their lusts. “Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin” (John 8:34). The gospel is the only way of escape from the death grip of sin.

Peter next tells us how to achieve the great essential of partaking of the divine nature. It is largely a matter of addition. “Add!” he says. Then he sets before us a sevenfold progression in our spiritual growth in Christ and in our knowledge of God.

First, we must behave as those redeemed from the dead:

5 “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue…”

The phrase, “for this very reason, giving all diligence…” comes from a Greek word that conveys the idea of “bringing something in to be placed by the side of something else.” Peter has already mentioned “like precious faith,” a faith that is nourished by “exceeding great and precious promises.”

But faith does not stand alone apart from works. Faith, Peter says, needs to have virtue brought in and placed by its side. Virtue speaks of “moral excellence.” Paul taught that we should only think about “virtuous” things. He said:

“…whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.”

But we must not only have integrity but also be informed.

“and to virtue add knowledge.”

Again, the word for knowledge is gnosis, which refers to knowledge acquired by learning, effort, and experience. It is the acquisition of spiritual truth. God places no premium on ignorance. Jesus said, “You shall know (ginosko) the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).

Next, we must not only be taught but also be temperate:

“and to knowledge add temperance” (1:6)

Temperance refers to “self-control.” This was Solomon’s great failure. He possessed immense knowledge and wisdom, but his personal life descended into a scandal. Solomon failed to add self-control to his knowledge. Paul said: “I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified” (1 Cor. 9:27).

Then, too, we must not only be in possession of ourselves, but also have patience:

“and to self-control add patience…” (1:6b)

Patience comes from the Greek word hupomoné (hoop-om-on-ay'). hypó, "under" and ménō, "remain, endure") –so, remaining steadfast under adversity.

The patient person does not act in a hurry. He allows time to sort things out. He knows how to put up with things. This doesn’t mean that he apathetically endures things that call for action. It means that, ultimately, he has learned to wait on God without fretting or anger.

Moreover, we must not only be patiently good, but also be patiently godly:

“and to patience add godliness…” (1:6c)

“Godly” means literally “to be devout.” It carries the idea of doing that which is pleasing to God. Jesus said, “And the one who sent me is with me—he has not deserted me. For I always do what pleases him” (John 8:29). Jesus is our chief example. To be godly is to seek to “always do what pleases Him.”

In addition, we must not only be godly, but also be kind:

“and to godliness brotherly kindness…”

Since all believers are members of God’s family, there ought to be a genuine spirit of brotherly love between us. Being godly does not mean that we are holier than thou, distant, grim and humorless. The Lord Jesus was the holiest man to ever live, yet he was also the most approachable of men. Mothers brought their children to Him. Lepers and the demon-possessed came to Him. The rich and the powerful gladly approached Him. Outcasts felt comfortable approaching Him. He was kind.

Finally, we must not only be kind but also loving:

“to brotherly kindness add love…” The word for love is agape. It refers to the highest kind of love, the kind of love that God has for His Son (John 17:26). The only way we can add this godlike attribute to our other spiritual traits is through the power of the Holy Spirit because it is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22).

Agape love is not a product of our natural feelings because it often runs counter to our natural desires. It seeks the well-being of all and is known by what it does, not what it says.

Next, Peter gives an incredible promise:

8 “For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1:8).

Christianity is not a dull creed or a sterile set of rules. It is knowing Christ and taking on His divine nature! The guarantee is that to by adding these things to your daily walk will assure fruitfulness and abundance!

In closing, Peter gives a warning:

“For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins” (1:9).

The professing believer who fails to exhibit the characteristics of the Christian life, the things that Peter says must be “added,” is blind. He is describing the perpetual babe in Christ. They have never grown up, never learned to walk by faith, and are living more carnal lives that spiritual ones.