2 Peter Chapter 2

False Prophets and Teachers

2 Peter 2:1–3 ESV

But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

There are false prophets and feel good teachers all around us.

Scripture isn’t all about the Feel- Good, its about showing what you did is wrong, its about how to repent from it and how to not be tempted again.

2 Peter 2:4–10a ESV

For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked (for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard); then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment,

God can end everything with a blink of an eye.

How many people know about the Avengers? (now I am talking about the Superhero movies) In one of the final Avengers movies it was called Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: EndGame.

Ok I am bringing out the nerd side of me. In Avengers: Infinity War they fight the villian which is Thanos. He wanted to to be God and there was an item they were looking for called the Infinity Guantlet. Now it had 5 stones in the guantlet and if all 5 stones were collected he could rule the world. Now Most people have the seen the movie or heard about the snap that took out 50% of the population in the World.

Ok bringing back to Scripture.

In 2 Peter Chapter 2, Peter states on how God preserved people whom He has called.

We all know that God, if he wanted to, could snap his fingers and we would be no more. But that’s not what happens right. Why? Because then the God would be lying in His Word and everything we believe would be for nothing right.

God does not lie. But if we think He does, we are sinning.

1 John 1:9–10 ESV

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

2 Peter 2:9 ESV

then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment,

God is the only one to do all this. He is the only who can save us, He is the only one who can free us from the chains, He is the only one that can defeat SIN and DEATH. GLORY TO HIS NAME. AMEN!

2 Peter 2:10–16 ESV

and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority. Bold and willful, they do not tremble as they blaspheme the glorious ones, whereas angels, though greater in might and power, do not pronounce a blasphemous judgment against them before the Lord. But these, like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed, blaspheming about matters of which they are ignorant, will also be destroyed in their destruction, suffering wrong as the wage for their wrongdoing. They count it pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions, while they feast with you. They have eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children! Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray. They have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved gain from wrongdoing, but was rebuked for his own transgression; a speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

Blasphemy - the act or offense of speaking sacrilegiously about God or sacred things; profane talk

When fully looking up the definition of Blasphemy, under the definition it said “Example of Blasphemy”. Now I like to read before and after to get a full understanding of things. But the example it gave was “John Lennon said the Beatles were more popular than Jesus.”

Blasphemy is verbal or written reproach of God’s name, character, work, or attributes.

This scripture talks a lot about it.

1 John 2:18–19 ESV

Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

1 John 2:22 ESV

Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.

The antiChrist is a real person. But John talked about how they are many AntiChrists.

That is scary to think about.

Now looking into the readings of John and doing research, there is a blog about this written by Pastor Brian of WeAreFaith.org.

John warns the readers that this isnt THE AntiChrist that comes at the end, but rather there is a spirit that opposes God that is at work in the world right now and we need to be on guard.

Now we can read about the THE AntiChrist in Revelation and that would be something down the road that we could do a study on, however, there are false prophets and teachers in the world today stating they know the Word of God.

We don’t get to determine who is saved and who isn’t we only read the Word of God and pray to Him that He will help up discern what is His will and what is not His will.

Matthew 7:15–20 ESV

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

This is Jesus speaking. He says BEWARE!!!!

BEWARE

2 Peter 2:17–22 ESV

These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm. For them the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved. For, speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh those who are barely escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

We are going to fall, We are going to fail. Being a Follower of Christ is not easy. God has never said it will be easy. It’s how we get back up, dust ourselves off, ask God for forgiveness, REPENT (Try to not do it again), and pick up your cross, and follow the narrow path until He takes us home.