Intro:
This morning we are beginning an in-depth study in the N.T. book of 2 Peter.
A)Now we just finished 1 Peter
where we saw that the Purpose of that Letter was to strengthen Christians who
were facing opposition from W/ out
1)
In the Form of PERSECUTION
B) Well the Purpose of 2
Peter is also that of Strengthening the Believers who were facing opposition
but this time it is from WITH IN.
1)
Thru
the FALSE TEACHERS that were invading the Church.
C) Now when we look at life from a Spiritual Perspective – we see that things really haven’t Changed in 2,000 yrs
1)
Man
is still pre-occupied w/ Problems of War & Peace
– and w/ the availability of Nuclear weapons – Problems is much more serious
D) Man is still trying to
figure out how to be Happy / how to achieve
lasting Satisfaction
1)
Man
is still trying to figure out how we got here & why/ We could go on &
on Illustrating how Man hasn’t changed
much in 2,000 yrs
And
when you look at Problems that are facing the Church we discover that not much
has changed there either
A)The Church still faces problems from w/out –Persecution – although here in
the U.S. the forms are not as severe as in other
Countries
B) And the Church still wrestles w/ Problems from w/in – with False teachers –
1) This is a Problem that is
much more Prevalent in American Church life
C) Now here in 2 Peter / we
are given some very keen insights into the nature and the message of false
teachers– Focus of Ch. 2
1) We will Discover that not much has Changed in this area .
A)Says it in V.2 Grace and peace be
multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,
B) In V. 5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to
your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, so on and so forth
C) Then again in the end
– 3:18 –Grow in the Grace & Knowledge of our
Lord Jesus Christ
In Fact the word know or knowledge is used at least 13 times in this short epistle.
A)Now the word Knowledge
does not mean a mere intellectual understanding of some truth, though that is
included.
B) It means to Know
Intimately & personally by experience it is a living participation in the truth/ An APPROPRIATION of it in
our lives –daily!!
C) MLJ – gives this Key
insight concerning 2 Peter – Two Crucial things are
at the heart of this letter – 1st is that you know what you believe
/ the 2nd is that you add to it and grow in it, increase it
D) To put it another way
- Make sure
that the foundation is in place and then Build upon it !
1)
Key to this
book then is to Grow in our Knowledge
of who Jesus is/ who you are in HIM and what that Means to
our lives on a Daily Basis
Why is
this so important – Revelation of Who
Jesus is Brings about a transformation of our Character
A)Peter knew of this transformation in his own life and he
gives us a hint of it in the very first sentence – Simon
Peter bond …apostle of J.C.
B) Interesting
that he uses both of his names – Simon was his given name & spoke of who he
was Prior to meeting J.C.
1)
Simons meant – Shifting
Sand – spoke of something that was unstable like sand – also think of it as Unfaithful in life
C) That is who Peter was
before he met Christ – Unstable guy – shifting
stand / good intentions – but no faithfulness
Now When Peter met Jesus – Jesus said to him Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” OR PETER - (which is translated, A Stone).
A)No Longer shifting Sand / Peter was who Jesus was going to Change him into – Rock / Stable /Sure and Faithful
1)
So Simon was who
he was / Peter was who he was becoming
B) Think w/ me for a Moment – when did Simon
officially become Peter ?
1)
Matt. 16 – Who do men say that I am . J the B/ Prophets / The
Prophet Duet. 18
C) Jesus asked: who do you say that I am ?
16Simon answered
& said, “You are the Christ, the
Son of the living God.”
17Jesus answered and
said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for
flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
18And I also say to you that you are
Peter, and on this rock I will build My church,
and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
D) Now this is where Simon
discovered his true identity when he received revelation concerning who Jesus
is
1) When he received revelation that Jesus was the one that we have been waiting for, The Christ – Messiah – the son of the Living God !!
E) It was there that
JESUS said for the first time- YOU ARE PETER
– it was there that Peter discovered his true Identity – who the Lord was
making him
A Lot
of people today are trying to discover their identity – who they are – Popular
– advice in Psych. Is you need to find yourself
A)So people all over the World –set out on these quest to discover who they are / see people in 40’s 50’s still trying to figure it out
B) Pursuing one thing
after another – searching for who they are !!!
Bb) Listen you discover
YOUR IDENTITY who you ARE & who you
are meant to be when you receive Revelation about – who
He is /
1) AND WHO YOU ARE IN HIM !!!
C)
That is what Peter reveals in Ch. 1 of this letter – v.3 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,
D) Given all things that pertain
to LIFE – that is what man is interested
in Life – Living : real Living
What people
find about life is there are limits
A man
had just had his annual physical exam and was waiting for the doctor's initial
report. After a few minutes the doctor came in with his charts in his hand and
said, "There's no reason why you can't live a completely normal life as
long as you don't try to enjoy it."
A)That is how life is
–People think / this is going to be it – but the car doesn’t go fast enough –
the House view isn’t good enough
B) There is always –
desire for more something else
A young mother examined a
toy , then asked the salesman, "Isn't this rather complicated for a small
child?" The clerk replied, "It's an
educational toy. It's designed to adjust a child to live in the world today.
Any way he puts it together, it's wrong.
C) Some People view doesn’t matter how they put it together/ Wrong.
AND GODLINESS
A)That which resembles God – is of God – Wholeness / Completeness
B) For some People life is like biting into COTTON CANDY –affects of this life been attracted to certain things - think – substance –
1) Bite into it and it is like Cotton candy – Air – No weight / substance
D) See people pursing things –
this is going to be it - Not Cotton candy
1) The O.T. word for glory is a Word – KABOD / a word that is translated elsewhere – Weighty / heavy – substance
Mankind is hungering for the KABOD – the Glory – that which
has weight & meaning
A)Personally I believe in the Garden that Adam & Eve before the fall lived in the Presence of the Kabod – aspect of Glory (Adam walked….)
B) But when they sinned there was ICHABOD !!!!
1) Ichabod = The Glory has departed – they had the Kabod but then they sinned & it was Ichabod – the glory departed
C) And from that time on man has been looking for some substance to bite into – something –weight and meaning !!
1) Man
today is painfully aware of His lack of Substance in life and that is why he
goes from one absurd extreme to the next in looking for it
But Peter says I have discovered where it is found it is
found in the KNOWLEDGE OF HIM !!!!
A)When a Person comes to realize who Jesus is & that Life is about Him
He is the creator of all things all things are made by Him & for him
B) All
things made by Him & for Him / For His PLEASURE ….created
C)This world doesn’t
revolve around me – doesn’t exist for me – but it is all about Him made us / who came to us
& died for us
1) and is risen from the dead to LIVE W/
IN US
D)To the extent that a
person realizes that life is about Christ and is to revolve around Christ –
That person discovers what true living is all about
Give me a high school student who understands that they exist to please Jesus Christ & that Christ does not exist to bring them a B or G friend
A)Give me a
house wife who knows that the day is
not just about getting her kids off to school so that she
can have a break
B) But that everything in
that day is a reason to please Christ even more than to please her kids or her
husband – everything centers around JESUS
C) Give me a Business man who understands that it is not
just about him climbing the vocational ladder
1)
But his job gives me
an opportunity to please Christ at the
office on the Job site
D) Life exist to please Jesus – I exist to bring Him
Pleasure / He doesn’t exist for me but I exist for Him
1)
When a Person finally
gets that – when the Revelation of that finally comes – finally sinks in – You
find your identity
E) Who you are is found
in Christ & Who you are in Him !!!!
Your Identity
is not found in being a Charger fan
A)Not found in your Job / kind of car you drive or house that you live in it is not found in anything but Him
B) I exist for Him – Life is to Revolve around Him – Life is about growing
in My understanding of who He is / who I am in Him
C) Now Peter would still
have pts of failure just like you and me but
the transformation took place
1)
when the Revelation
came concerning who Jesus was / and continued
the more He came to know of Who Jesus
was
So the
Foundation of our lives is in discovering who Jesus is and who we are in HIM
A) That is the foundation that we are to build upon
B) Before we go this morning lets consider what Peter says
about that foundation v.1 1st –
Like Faith
C) It is the SAME FOR all CLASSES of People – Jew of Gentile –
1John 5:1 Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God,
Romans 10: if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your
heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For
with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession
is made unto salvation. 11For the Scripture says, “Whoever
believes on Him will not be put to shame.
D)
God is not a respecter of persons / doesn’t
have one standard for rich another for the poor –
1)
One for Politicians another for – Prisoners – all the same
E)
There is one way to be saved – Faith in Jesus Christ !!!
2nd Like faith in that it is the faith of the
apostles
A)V.1 You have obtained a like faith WITH US
B) Galatians
1: 8But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other
gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. 9As
we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to
you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
C) Crux of some of the Modern Heresies of today – that our changing times
demand different gospel
1)
Problems
haven’t Changed why should the message Change
But those who
are Proponents of the Seeker Sensitive Movement – Argue that these are
days where we as the Church need to watch not offensive
A)People are offended by
all this talk about Sin / and Blood / death
Watch movies
filled w/ Blood & Death
B) Listen Paul &
Peter & the rest of the Apostles didn’t preach a milky watered down gospel
1)
They Preached Christ
& Him Crucified / they called men to Repentance from sin & a Turning to God
C) The Result of that produced some
of the most powerful & Dedicated Christians the world has ever Known/
1) Should we settle for anything less than
that?
D) Much of the Watered
down preaching of today – produces wishy washy believers at best / some are not
really saved at all
A
Friend of mine was at one of these Seeker Churches in our area once
Where
there was no talk about sin / repentance
A)Pastor concluded the
service by saying now if you want Jesus to come
into your life / make it better & brighter / assurance of Heaven/ raise
hand
B) My friend was watching
– said – probably 300 people raised their hands
1)
Pastor prayed that God
would bless them – sent them on their way
C) No leading them in
praying asking – sins be forgiven / No
encouragement to forsake their sin – live for Christ – Just
better life – Respond
2)
Who wouldn’t respond –
yea I want a better life I will try anything /
D) Here is the Problem – 300 people walk out the door
thinking they just became Christians / thinking on their way to heaven - /
1)
Continue to live the
way they were Get radically frustrated when – their life doesn’t get better in
the way that they were thinking -
Sad thing is still lost in sin going to hell – but now have false assurance
3rd
Jesus is the Central figure of our Faith
A)Notice how Peter describes Jesus those who have obtained like precious faith
with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:
B) This verse affirming the DEITY of Christ – that He was fully God yet fully man
1) He is the only one who could have been the Savior !!!! For man !!!
C) A savior is “one who brings salvation,” and the word salvation was familiar to the people of that day.
1) In their vocabulary, it meant “deliverance from trouble,” particularly “deliverance from the enemy.”
D) It also carried the idea of “health and safety.” A physician was looked on as a savior because he helped deliver the body from pain & limitations.
E)A victorious general was a savior because he delivered the people from defeat.
1) Even a wise official was a savior because he kept the nation in order and delivered it from confusion and decay.
It is easy to see how this title “Savior” applies to our Lord Jesus Christ. A)He is, the Great Physician who heals the heart from the sickness of sin.
B) He is the victorious Conqueror
who has defeated our enemies—sin, death, Satan, and hell—and is leading us in
1)
He is the wise
official – who has showed us how to avoid
living by the Confusion & Chaos – that marks the mindset of Our world
Lastly – Like
Precious Faith -Why is it Precious
A)Precious = Beyond
Calculation –it is so valuable it is
beyond Calculation
B) Word Precious is sort
of an uncommon word today – especially among men / Precious – think – little
light in Loafers / England – Ken / Brilliant
C) But Peter was a guy who used this word a lot/ Commonly & Uniquely
1) Peter was a big guy – Big fisherman –Bally’s Gym - Precious Blood/ Stones/ Promises / faith /
Romans 5:1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom also we
have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of
the glory of God.
B) Faith in Christ – Justified – Declared Righteous – just as if never sinned
1) Didn’t work for it – but believing in Christ the righteousness of Christ is imputed to me /transferred
2nd Faith that Sanctifies Sanctification, being set apart as God's own possession. – From the World to the Lord
1John 5: 4For
whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has
overcome the world—our faith.
5Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus
is the Son of God?
A) The word faith – comes from the same root word to
believe – to cling to, to trust in & to rely upon
1)
Faith keeps me abiding in Christ / pressing into
Christ / drawing near to Christ /
B) The more that we do that – we are inviting the H.S. to do that work of transforming us to be Like Christ
Michelangelo,
the great sculptor and painter, was pushing a heavy rock up a small incline to
his work area so that he could do some sculpting. A neighbor watched him for
over an hour as he worked to get this rock in place. Finally he asked, "Michelangelo, why do you labor so hard over that ugly,
heavy piece of rock?"
Michelangelo said, "Because there is an angel inside that wants to come
out."
3rd
Faith that Glorifies This is the Ultimate end of our faith / that one day either in
death of in Rapture – Leave earth go to heaven
A)We are going to see Jesus - & we are going to be like Him
B) In 2Cor. 4,5 Paul talks about how these bodies for this earth – New Bodies for the next one – Spiritual Habitation
16Therefore we do not lose heart. Even
though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by
day. 17For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is
working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18while
we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not
seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not
seen are eternal.
C) 1 Cor. 15 - This mortal is going to put on Immortality –
2 Cor. 5
1For we know that if our earthly house,
this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with
hands, eternal in the heavens. 2For in this we groan, earnestly
desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, 3if
indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. 4For we
who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be
unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. 5Now
He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the
Spirit as a guarantee.
6So we are always confident, knowing that
while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. 7For
we walk by faith, not by sight. 8We are confident, yes, well
pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.
Precious Faith – Justified / Being Sanctified / Shall Be Glorified