Introduction to 2 Peter

Joe “The Brown Bomber” Barrow

Holman New Testament Commentary: I & II Peter, I, II & III John, Jude I. Introduction: You Can Be Transformed

When Joey Barrow was a teenager, his schoolmates labeled him the class sissy. At eighteen, while the other guys were involved in more “masculine” activities, Joey was taking violin lessons. One day, they called him “sissy” one time too many. Joey smashed the boy who made fun of him smack on the head with (you guessed it) his violin. It didn’t help. The story simply brought another round of laughter from Joey’s classmates.

One boy did not laugh. Big, strapping Thurston McKinney decided it was time Joey got involved in something with a little more muscle. Thurston exercised regularly at a local gym and asked Joey to come along. As always, Joey had his violin with him. “If you want to work out with me,” said Thurston, “you’ll have to rent a locker.” Locker rental was fifty cents. The only money Joey had was what his mom had given him for that week’s violin lesson. So Joey borrowed some gym trunks and some old tennis shoes from Thurston, rented the locker with his violin money, and put the violin inside.

The first time Thurston invited Joey to spar with him, Joey clobbered him. Flattened him. The dazed response of Thurston McKinney, himself already a Detroit Golden Gloves Champion, was, “Boy, throw that violin away!” With the money his mother had intended to finance weekly violin lessons, Joey kept a permanent locker. In five years, Joey Barrow would turn twenty-three and be the heavyweight boxing champion of the world!

Joseph Louis Barrow (May 13, 1914 – April 12, 1981), known professionally as Joe Louis, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1934 to 1951. He reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1937 to 1949, and is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. Nicknamed the "Brown Bomber", Louis' championship reign lasted 140 consecutive months, during which he participated in 26 championship fights. The 27th fight, against Ezzard Charles in 1950, was a challenge for Charles' heavyweight title and so is not included in Louis' reign. He was victorious in 25 consecutive title defenses.[1][2][nb 1] In 2005, Louis was ranked as the best heavyweight of all time by the International Boxing Research Organization,[3] and was ranked number one on The Ring magazine's list of the "100 greatest punchers of all time".[4]

Louis' cultural impact was felt well outside the ring. He is widely regarded as the first person of African-American descent to achieve the status of a nationwide hero within the United States, and was also a focal point of anti-Nazi sentiment leading up to and during World War II.[5] He was instrumental in integrating the game of golf, breaking the sport's color barrier in America by appearing under a sponsor's exemption in a PGA event in 1952.[6][7][8]

The Bible is a book full of God’s power to transform lives!

Where in your life would you like to experience God’s transformation?

Introduction to 2 Peter

Nero dies, “What a showman the world is losing in me!”

Peter writes to remind the church whom they should follow.

Peter’s first letter was written to encourage and support Christians facing trial and persecution.

1 Peter = Encouragement in trial and persecution

Peter writes in his first book to encourage the church under fire. Yet the greatest threat to the church doesn’t come from the outside.

The greatest threat to the church doesn’t come from the outside.

Opening Up 2 Peter 1 Peter

Persecutors from outside build strength in the church by uniting it together; by contrast, critics from within bring problems. The church is challenged and sometimes weakened by the actions of self-centred people within it.

If the greatest threat to the church possibly comes from the inside. Then the opposite is true. The greatest strength of the church comes from the inside as well.

2 Peter = Wisdom to transform as a believer.

From the very beginning Satan has been questioning what God has said. Satan has sown seeds of doubt that lead us to question our faith and God. We fight Satan and His attacks by living by God’s Word.

Genesis 3:1 ESV

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”

Opening words-The key to the transformation God offers

Peter introduces himself and the gospel that gives hope to everything he teaches about later in the book.

Simeon— Means “God is heard”

Peter—Means a “stone”

God is speaking through Peter, he isn’t God.

Peter isn’t the Rock of the church, that title belongs to God.

God is our rock.

Psalm 18:2 ESV

2 The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

Jesus is the Rock on which the church is built

Matthew 7:24 ESV

24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.

Matthew 16:16 ESV

16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Matthew

Matthew 16:18 ESV

18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Acts 2:36 ESV

36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

A Servant and Apostle of Jesus Christ

Jesus was one whom Peter was willing to and did give his life for.

Apostles were those who had seen Jesus after his resurrection from the dead. (Except Paul whom God called especially.)

Faith, the hope of the Christian

We believe that God exists and that he loves this world He created.

Opening Up 2 Peter A Practical Illustration of This Truth

A practical illustration of this truth

A man was once called up to serve in the army of Napoleon Bonaparte, but he was fearful and did not want to be enlisted. A friend offered to take his place, and assumed his identity. He was posted up to the front line and was tragically killed, along with many others. At that time, Napoleon’s army was sustaining heavy losses and required more soldiers, and so the first man was called up again.

‘You cannot take me, for I am dead,’ he said. ‘In that battle you left me buried in the field; look up your books and see.’ So the enrolling officer duly checked his records and found it to be true.

‘It must have been a substitute,’ he said.

‘Yes, true,’ replied the man. ‘He died in my place and the law has no claim on me.’

For Christian believers that is gloriously true; Christ is their substitute and because of him they are free for evermore.

The experience of Faith for the Christian

Grace

Peace

Shalom

Eirene

Previously meant lack of war, in the New Testament this greek word means more because of what Jesus has done through the cross.

Opening Up 2 Peter Peace

It is peace with God, and as a result of this, the believer gains the peace of God.

Through knowing God and Jesus we find grace and peace.

Conclusion

The importance of a good foundation

Texas and cracking foundations.

Jesus and His Word = A Lasting Foundation