II Peter 2:12-22

Carol will attest to the fact that I have trouble with pronouns. I’m consistently asking her which “him” or “her” she is referring to. So I had to ask myself in today’s reading, who are the “they”, “them”, and “these” to whom Peter is referring? And as I read and re-read today’s passage, I find that those three pronouns all refer to those “insiders” who are leading people astray with their false teaching. Two sentences refer to their unrighteous “evangelism” efforts: They entice unsteady souls (v. 14b) and 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. (v. 18) Clearly their target in these verses are new Christians or older Christians who have not yet been fully discipled. There are two other third-person plural pronouns in verse 18 cited above – “those”. Here the first “those” refers to those “unsteady souls” mentioned in verse 14b, while the second “those” refers to “unrighteous” persons completely outside the Christian community. So as you read this passage, all of Peter’s chastisement is falling on those “false leaders”.

The end of today’s reading challenges the “once saved, always saved” proposition. 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.” (vv. 20-22) Again, those third-person pronouns refer to the “false leaders” – they have come to Jesus, but then turned away. My Study Bible points to John 10:27-30 and Romans 8:28-39 as support for the “once saved, always saved” argument. So the question hinges on whether or not these false leaders are genuinely saved. And the last verse – the references to dogs and pigs – suggests that these leaders are not genuinely saved; they started as dogs and pigs and they are still dogs and pigs. Draw your own conclusion!

Slava Bohu!

II Peter 2:1-11

Unbelievable! Of our 11 (or 10, if you prefer) verses today, six and one-half of those verses (vv. 4-10a) are all one sentence!! Peter truly writes differently from Paul!

Much of what we have in today’s reading we also saw in Jude. Biblical scholars presume that Peter copied from Jude, or Jude from Peter, or they both worked from a third source. We’ll see this pattern for the next few days.

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. (v. 1) In bold above I highlighted …even denying the Master who bought them… and I felt so sad. I quickly had in mind people (some whom I know) who have turned away, even priests and “Christian” ministers who deny Jesus’ physical resurrection or do not believe in heaven or hell – especially a hell where people could suffer for all eternity. Yeah, that troubles me also, but it’s what Scripture seems to say. Maybe there is something “post-death” that has not been revealed to us; maybe there is something beyond the “Final Judgment” for which God has a plan. But for me, as I live now, I am humbled and fully grateful that my Master bought me and I trust that I would never deny Him.

Slava Bohu!

II Peter 1:12-21

…I know that the putting off of my body will be soon … And I make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things. (vv. 14-15) Peter here is speaking of his death and his intention to continue to remind his audience of the things he has thus far spoken of in this letter. When he says that he will make every effort (to keep them “reminded”) I wonder if he is talking about him dictating a Gospel to Mark? You may recall that at the end of his first letter he include his “son, Mark” in his closing remarks. Interesting…!

For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to Him by the Majestic Glory, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with Him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed… (vv. 17-19a) My interest is in that last sentence. My Study Bible spent a whole paragraph explaining that sentence and the next two verses, explanations that were mostly lost on me. However, I went back to the Transfiguration passage in Luke and was referred to Isaiah 42:1, Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights… (NASB) This Old Testament verse is also cited at Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3:17) and by Jesus Himself in Matthew 12:18. So when Peter says that he has the prophetic word more fully confirmed, it seems to me that he is simply referring back to that Isaiah prophecy, that he saw Isaiah’s prophecy fulfilled at the Transfiguration. He then goes on to warn us against interpreting prophecy by our own efforts, noting that we can only do so in the power of the Holy Spirit. I think that with these words he is also chastising “those people” who were misleading his audience – a major topic in his first letter. A good day’s reading…!

Slava Bohu!

II Peter 1:1-11

Back to Peter, this time his second letter. Just in reading him again after a three-day break with Jude, I often find it difficult to figure out what he is saying. Part of my comprehension problem is his long (to my mind, convoluted) sentences. His first “content” sentence takes two long verses: His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence, by which He has granted to us His precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. (vv. 3-4) Above I highlighted, “…through the knowledge of Him”, which to me sounded like “…through His knowledge”, which didn’t make sense – “through Jesus’ knowledge…??!!”. Then I wondered, could it mean “…through knowing Him”? And it all made sense. Substitute that yourselves and see if it’s clearer. Just a confusing construction!

Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election… (v. 10) Peter calls us to be diligent in confirming our calling. Two summers ago our Creative Arts Camp theme was the Holy Spirit. For my teaching Kelly asked me to cover John 14-16, Jesus’ Last Supper discourse to the apostles. In trying to distill for the kids the essence of Jesus’ teaching on the Holy Spirit, I was surprised at how much I was able to see how the Holy Spirit had been at work in my life. For example the Holy Spirit: (1) will teach us and remind us; (2) will testify about Jesus; (3) will convict us; (4) will guide us into all truth; (5) will disclose the future to us; and (6) will take Jesus’ words and explain them to us. For each one of those attributes of the Holy Spirit, I could point to a specific time when the Holy Spirit had been at work in my life. That later became a sermon in the Czech Republic as to how we can ask ourselves if we have the Holy Spirit in our lives, using my own life applications as examples. Back to the verse cited above – as Peter calls us to be diligent in confirming our calling, we need to also be diligent in seeking the Holy Spirit and in recognizing His work in our lives. We need constant confirmation that Jesus and His Holy Spirit are working in our lives!

Slava Bohu!

Jude 17-25

Finishing Jude today… And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh. (vv. 22-23) Jude is listing three groups of people here. My take – the first group is new Christians or older Christians who may be leaning away from the faith, possibly led by those ungodly persons that Jude has been discussing in his entire letter. The second group is those newly saved Christians or those who are hungry to learn and are close to making a decision for Christ, but need to be pulled away from the influence of “the world” or those ungodly persons. Finally, the third group includes those who are “lost”, possibly fully in the clutches of “the world” and/or those ungodly persons. I think that to “show mercy with fear” means to be kind to those lost souls, but to be careful in interactions with them. My thoughts…

Jude draws a contrast in verses 19 and 20, an easy contrast to miss – those who are “devoid of the Spirit” in verse 19 and those who are “praying in the Holy Spirit” in verse 20. A full and clear contrast…! And so we close Jude.

Slava Bohu!

Jude 8-16

We’ve been reading Paul for so long that Peter seemed quite a change and Jude even more so! For example, Jude has two non-Biblical citations in today’s reading: But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses… (v. 9a) and It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied… (v. 14a). Jude is citing Jewish history here for which we have no Biblical account. There were a few occasions where Paul cited external sources of unknown origin, but (as I recall) not with a Biblical connection. So with Jude, since his letter was deemed inspired writing (canonical) by our Christian forefathers many years ago, we don’t dispute the truthfulness of his claims, but we also tend not to cite these two verses in building any theological arguments, as these verses do not stand up to the standard set long ago in the Pentateuch: …on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed. (Deuteronomy 19:15, NASB) Journalists and detectives today do not accept a story or a witness unless they can corroborate one person’s testimony with second sources. Jude, alone, makes these two claims.

Small item – I couldn’t help but notice the word “ungodly” used for times in one verse (15). Unusual!

Slava Bohu!

Jude 1-7

For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. (v. 4) There are a number of items in this one verse. First, …certain people have crept in unnoticed… This item intrigues me – I wonder where it all started. I recall that originally our great universities (Harvard, Princeton, Yale, etc.) were founded as training ground for religious leaders, primarily Anglican (later Episcopal). How did they, over time, become such bastions of liberal religious thinking? Where did it start? Who “crept in unnoticed”? And when we send our kids off to (historically) Christian colleges, are they getting a true Christian education? You would probably be surprised at some of the comments and stories I have heard about our dear neighbors, Asbury University and Asbury Seminary.

A second item in that verse above refers to these people …who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality… We have read Paul’s teachings on this topic, that because of God’s grace we are allowed to sin all the more (Romans 6:1, ff.). Enough said on that…!

What troubles me most in that verse above is that these certain people … deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. Religious leaders and educators with large followers today question not only Jesus’ teachings, but also His physical resurrection. As I see it, the whole of our Christian faith is based on Jesus’ resurrection. If He did not rise from the dead, we are, “of all people, the most to be pitied” (I Corinthians 15:19, NASB). How can someone call him/herself a Christian if he/she does not believe that fundamental truth? Jude is rightly troubled!!

Slava Bohu!

I Peter 5:6-14

As we were finishing Paul’s letters a couple of weeks ago, some of Paul’s last written words included a positive affirmation of Barnabas’ cousin, Mark. Now at the end of I Peter, we see Peter sending greetings that included Mark – a reflection of his own affection for Mark. My Study Bible says that early tradition held that Peter and Mark had a close relationship. Many Bible scholars also maintain that Mark’s association with Peter was so close that Mark’s Gospel, in fact, reflected Peter’s accounts of his travels and interactions with Jesus. We’ll never know, but it’s intriguing that Mark gets a mention from both Paul and Peter!

And after you have suffered a little while, … God … will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. (v. 10) I love it when I read this list of verbs and then see them all sequentially in order. After their/our suffering they/we will first be restored (from our suffering?), then confirmed as to our true identity, then strengthened (having suffered through these early travails), then finally established – no doubt, established in His kingdom forever and ever, amen!

Slava Bohu!

I Peter 5:1-5

Peter gives us a novel triad construction, using the word “not”: …not under compulsion, but willingly, … not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering, … but being examples to the flock… (vv. 2b-3) Peter has addressed these restrictions to “elders”, typically referring to church leaders. That reference notwithstanding, I have always inferred the word literally, to those of us who are older. So, as I have with Paul’s instructions to Timothy, I apply Peter’s instructions to elders to myself in my Christian walk, particularly in areas where I have a leadership role. So I ask myself if I am leading willingly, eagerly, setting an example…? As treasurer? At Avanza? With RTB? We all need to ask ourselves regularly how we are acting in our church roles as elders/leaders. But it’s not only in our church roles. In our “non-church” lives, are we leading willingly, eagerly, setting an example…? That might even be a more important question than how we are behaving “in church”.

The other half of Peter’s instructions above come in verse 5a: Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Again, I see that instruction applied to myself. Am I being subject to those placed in leadership over me? That instruction does not suggest blind obedience. It does, however, (at a minimum) suggest respect. I recall in my military days, in considering the chain of command over me that we were taught to respect the uniform (the rank) if not the man. That command is still with me today. I recall also (later, King) David’s comment that he would not raise his hand against “the Lord’s anointed” (referring to King Saul, in I Samuel 24:6). In applying that verse to myself, I have always tried to keep criticism of our church leaders to a minimum, both my own voice and those with whom I am conversing. Disagreement, yes, but criticism, no.

Some good questions for today…!