2 Peter 3:3-7 The Destabilisers

There are some Christians today who object to any criticisms being made of the beliefs and practices of other Christian groups, thinking that such actions are unloving.  Neither Jesus nor his apostles would agree.  There are times when firmness is right. Jesus was willing to call the religious leaders of his day ‘whitewashed sepulchres’, Paul denounced the false teachers in the early church as ‘false apostles, deceitful workmen masquerading as apostles of Christ’ (2 Corinthians 11:13) and Peter, in the book we are now looking at, devotes a third of his letter to these false teachers:

“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false prophets among you.  They will secretly introduce destructive heresies . . .” 2 Peter 2:1

Peter returns to the problem of these false teachers in today’s passage, describing them as ‘scoffers’.

“First of all you must understand this that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own desires.” 2 Peter 3:1

These false teachers scoff at the teaching of Jesus and his apostles and their motives are always selfish.  In the first two verses of this chapter we have seen that ‘wholesome thinking’ is the teaching of the Bible that has been given by God’s ‘prophets’ in the Old Testament and God’s ‘apostles’ in the New Testament.  No document was accepted by the early church as authoritative unless it came from one of the apostles, that small group of people who had been with Jesus from the beginning of his ministry and had been personally commissioned by him to establish his church by passing on his teaching.

‘Above all’

The subject of this letter is no trifling matter - it is of the first order of importance.  Peter had used this same phrase at the beginning of the letter when discussing the origin of the Old Testament:

“Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation.  For the prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God, as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” 2 Peter 1:20

Peter now uses the same phrase to stress the danger these false teachers pose; they are to be distinguished from apostolic teachers:

“First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come.” 2 Peter 3:3

With the coming of Jesus the world entered its ‘last days’, this means the Christian era.  Jesus repeatedly warned against these false teachers who appear to be so attractive but are actually opposed to him, they are his enemies.  Christ doesn’t recognise them because they are not teaching what God;s message.  In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus repeatedly warns against these false teachers:

“Watch out for false prophets.  They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.  By their fruit you will recognise them.” Matthew 7:15

Such church leaders, who fail to act as Christ’s spokesmen, will become apparent at the last judgment:

“Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’   Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you.  Away from me you evil doers.’” Matthew 7:22-23

Jesus follows up this cataclysmic statement with a warning about the significance of his words.  He is saying that to reject his words, the words of God, is the root cause of separation from God.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.  But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man . . .” Matthew 7:24-27

It is of no benefit to accept a Jesus of my own liking yet reject the Jesus of history and what he taught.  The authoritative words of Jesus are only passed on to us by his apostles.  To build our lives on the rock is to adhere to what Jesus taught.

Scoffers

Today there are unfortunately many in our universities, theological colleges and in leading positions in society who openly reject what the apostles taught.  They are contemptuous of the ancient creeds and ridicule those who hold to the apostolic teaching.  What are the characteristics of these scoffers?

a.  Self-centred lives

Today a common feature seen in the lives of the cynics or scoffers is self-indulgent lives.  This was true in Paul’s day:

“ . . . in the last day scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.” 2 Peter 3:3

Paul Johnson has written a most enlightening but provocative book called ‘Intellectuals’,  In this he describes the private lives of people such as Karl Marx, Shelley, Bertrand Russell, Jean-Paul Sartre, Victor Gollancz and others, who have influenced the thinking of our societies.  Promiscuity, unwanted children and financial abuse are all too common fetures.  Rejection of God inevitably leads to a personal rejection of God’s standards for the way I live.

The existence of ‘scoffers’, who reject the rule of God and build up pretentious lies to hide behind, is as old as humanity.  Isaiah wrote in the 8th century B.C.:

“Therefore hear the word of the LORD, you scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem.  You boast . . . ‘for we have made a lie our refuge and falsehood our resting place.’ So this is what the Sovereign LORD says . . .” Isaiah 28:14

The personal lives and the lives of their families are good indicators of the hearts of those who profess to lead in God’s name.  You only have to look at the private lives of some modern so-called ‘healing evangelists’ and other church dignitaries, to see that dishonesty and immorality can still co-exist with popular ministries.

We must always test ourselves before God and decide what our real motives are.  Many of the clergymen who are at the forefront of the movement to change sexual mores of society have openly turned their backs on what the Bible teaches,  they are sceptics.  False teachers may also follow Balaam, the way of greed with a religious facade.  They seek preferment in the eyes of man and power in a worldly sense, instead of honour in the eyes of God.  David wrote around 1000BC about those whose goal is clearly worldly success

“O Lord, by you hand save me from such men, from men of this world whose reward is in this life.” Psalm 17:14

b. Erroneous teaching

In Peter’s time the argument commonly used against the authority of the apostles was that what they taught, about the return of Christ, hadn’t happened.  This was clearly a common concern as Paul also discussed it in his letters to churches (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15). The scoffers deduced that as Jesus hadn’t returned it is probable that he never would.  Isn’t exactly the same argument used today?  People argue that as Christ has not returned, he never will; and as a result they convince themselves that God’s judgment is unreal?  They teach that the world just drifts along with no involvement from God; it is man who is supreme and who makes all the significant interventions and discoveries.  How blind we can be.  Have people not seen the miracle of the development of a baby?  Why is it that there are no atheists in the heat of battle?

I remember picking up a young hitchhiker who had been a soldier in the battle of Tumbledown hill during the Falklands War.  As he and his company were descending the hill down to Port Stanley they came under heavy machine gun fire and they hastily dug in.  His best mate next to him had been instantly killed by a bullet in the head.  He then volunteered, ‘We all prayed, even the atheists prayed!’  I did ask whether he still prayed but he replied,

“No, I don’t need to now!”

He didn’t realise that the God who had preserved his life still had to be reckoned with.

The stakes are high as we are told that to reject what the apostles’ record of Jesus’ teaching is to reject God and his salvation!  Paul wrote:

“I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding on to the teachings, just as I passed them on to you.” 1 Corinthians 11:2

“Now brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand.  By this gospel you are saved if you hold firmly to what I preached to you.  Otherwise you have believed in vain.  For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance . . .” 1 Corinthians 15:1-3

It is surely significant that Paul and Peter both consider the authority of the apostles as well as that of the prophets prophets to be  ‘of first importance’.

Today, in our schools, universities and in the media all religions are treated as if they were equal and worthy of equal respect.  Yet these religions are all so different.  Is there no such thing as truth today?  The origins of the religions that have sprung up since Christ leave great concern.  Any impartial investigation of the origins of Islam, Mormonism or Jehovahs Witnesses should make people question why people prefer such ‘prophets’ to Jesus and his apostles.  These religions may have common moral teachings but the great difference is about how people are put right with God.  Religion says it is up to us to climb up to God’s righteousness, whereas Jesus teaches us that no-one can climb to God.  His great news, his gospel, is that he came down to earth to die as our substitute so we can be given his righteousness simply because we belong to him.

Truth does matter.  Either what Peter and the other apostles say about Jesus is true or it is a lie.  There is no middle ground.

Peter had personally witnessed the transfiguration of Jesus, he knew he was God incarnate.  This experience taught him that the divine Jesus was utterly different from the great prophets, Moses and Elijah, who were only human.  He refers to this at the beginning of this letter:

“We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eye-witnesses of his majesty.  For he received honour and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.’  We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.” 2 Peter 1:16-18

Christ’s return and judgment are highly relevant for us all.  If people lose sight of the fact that we will all have to give an account of our lives to a holy God then our behaviour will inevitably slip.

Scoffers often begin with a question doubting the validity of the Word of God.  Right at the beginning of the Bible the first temptation faced was the question:

“Did God really say?” Genesis 3:1

Essentially the same question has repeatedly been asked ever since:

“ . . . my friends taunt me, saying to me all day long, ‘Where is your God?’” Psalm 42:10

This is similar to the question Peter mentioned,

“They will say, ‘Where is this ‘coming’ he promised?  Ever since our father died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 2 Peter 3:4

Peter’s reply to such thinking is cutting:

“For they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word, the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water.  By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed.” 2 Peter 3:5-6

Peter stands unashamedly on the authority of the Word of God.  He says that the same God who created this world has acted against the world of Noah’s day and one day will act again in judgment.  The same God who acted in judgment against the rebellious ‘world of that time’ is still active.  Any Christian following in the apostolic line will teach this today.  The Scriptures are God’s authoritative Word, they always have been and always will be.

False leaders will fail to teach God’s word in its entirety.  They will tend to concentrate on trying to change the political order of the day rather that change the hearts of people back to their Lord and Saviour.  They will bow to the teaching of pressure groups in society rather that resolutely teach what God has taught us. They fear man more that God.  Just look at how many church leaders today have succumbed to the lobby advocating promiscuity, homosexuality and same sex marriages instead of reminding people of what Jesus, his prophets and his apostles taught about how God thinks.

The Bible is clear that Jesus ‘will come again to judge the living and the dead’, and this is what the historic Christian creeds affirm.

Peter is insistent that God will act in judgment again:

“By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.” 2 Peter 3:7

How God’s people need to recall this message and warn people that there is both a judgment and a Saviour.

Frank Jenner was a very polite elderly Australian living in Sydney.  He was a retired sailor.  Every day he would go down to George Street on the lookout for people he might talk to. He did this for thirty years and must have talked to around 100,000 people over this time.  Corporal Murray Wilkes was in a hurry to catch a tram on George Street when a voice behind him called,

“Hey, wait!”

The well dressed stranger then politely asked,

“Soldier, would you mind if I ask you a question.  I don’t mean to be rude but if you were to die tonight where would you go?  Would it be heaven or hell?

“I hope I’d go to heaven,.” the corporal replied.

“Hoping isn’t enough, you can know for sure.”

This strangers question resonated through Murray Wilkes mind over the following days.  He was a married , church-going man but he also knew that he was a hypocrite who had never seriously thought about his eternal destiny. He started to ask questions. Two weeks later Murray knelt in his army barracks and gave his life to Christ.  This question has helped many search for answers to the meaning of life, answers that can be only be found in God’s word.

BVP

2 Peter 3:1-2 An Urgent Message for Troubled Churches

Many churches in the west are facing difficult times.  A patient of mine was the church warden of a local village church.  At the end of the consultation I asked how the church was going.  She replied,

“It is getting difficult,  we are getting older and smaller.”

“I am sorry.  Tell me, do members of the church talk about the Lord Jesus with others in the village?”

“Good gracious me. No! We don’t even talk about him amongst ourselves.”

This is the situation in many traditional churches today, whether Anglican, Roman Catholic, United Reformed, Baptist or Methodist.  The root problem is how we are thinking and what the basis is for what we believe.

Peter’s problem

The apostle Peter was in a sorry situation.  He was imprisoned, probably in the Mamertine prison in Rome and he knew that he would shortly be executed.  He wanted to write a ‘last will and testament’ to all Christians.

“I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me.” 2 Peter 1:13

These were not new ideas he was bringing, but reminding his readers of the old apostolic truths.  Dr Johnson wisely said,

“It is not sufficiently considered that men more frequently require to be reminded than informed.”

In the final chapter of this remarkable epistle Peter repeats the reason for his final letter,

“Dear friends, this is now my final letter to you.  I have written them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.” 2 Peter 3:1

Three times in this chapter he calls his fellow Christians ‘Dear friends’ which is sometimes translated ‘Beloved’. There is no clericalism here.  Those ordained to lead churches are not in some way superior to other Christians.  Peter’s reminder is for all Christians in all times.  How deeply he must have longed that his readers would continue to live by faith.  He writes,

“Dear Friends, remember” 2 Peter 3:2

“Dear friends, . . . make every effort” 2 Peter 3:14

“Dear friends, . . . be on your guard” 2 Peter 3:17

It is significant that ‘remember’ comes first.  It is when we forget the basics that things start to go wrong.  ‘Dear friends, remember . . .’

At the end of this letter, in his last urgent plea, Peter reminds all Christians what is most important,

“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 3:18

Being a Christian is never a static acceptance of doctrines, it is a growing relationship with God through Christ.  This is not a mystical relationship, it is an increasing awareness of the Christ revealed in Scripture. We are never the finished article in this life, there is always more for us to learn and follow.  We are all meant to keep growing in our experience and knowledge of God.  But note the wording that Peter actually uses – he intentionally calls Jesus his Lord and Saviour.  In the Old Testament the Hebrew word for the great God, Jahweh, is translated in English Bibles with the word ‘LORD’, using capital letters.  When these Old Testament references about the LORD are quoted in the New Testament, the Greek word curios is used instead of ‘Jehovah’.  Here Peter is referring to Jesus as Lord, the Lord of the universe.

At he beginning of this letter Peter used a similar phrase:

“To those who through the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours.” 2 Peter 1:1

Notice how he openly interchanges ‘Lord’ and ‘God’.  Peter has no doubt that he is talking about the creator of this universe who entered this world in human form and who is therefore not to be trifled with.

Think Clearly

Peter wrote his two letters to get Christians thinking clearly.

“I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.” 2 Peter 3:1

There are churches you can enter today where it seems that emotionalism is everywhere and thinking is limited.  It is as if people should leave their minds as well as their coats at the door as they enter.  Emotionalism will only prosper for a short time.  An American study has shown that under 6 per cent of those who make a decision for Christ at evangelistic meetings will go on to live their lives for Christ.  They may have been stirred but emotions pass or a replaced by other emotions. People need to be convinced that the path they are entering into is indeed God’s true path.  Wholesome thinking is what is required.

Peter goes on to explain how this can come about.

“I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Saviour through your apostles.” 2 Peter 3:2

It is our minds that need feeding, not just our emotions.  Peter appeals to all Christians to return to understanding Scripture.  Today many are dying of ‘biblical malnutrition’.  Peter uses the term ‘holy prophets’ to mean the Old Testament.  The command given by our Lord and Saviour through your Apostles refers to the New Testament.  The only way the early church accepted a book into the canon of Scripture was if they were certain it was written by an apostle.  It wasn’t the church authorities who later decided on what books to include.  The decision about authenticity was made during the lifetime of the apostles themselves.

Good ministers will ensure that their main purpose is to teach the Scriptures to their congregation.  We hear the voice of God in Scripture.  Some churches today are trying to survive by becoming a hub of social activity with jumble sales, food banks and advisory programmes.  These are not bad but the danger is that they can supplant man’s greatest need, to hear what God wants to say to all people.  When the leaders of the early church in Antioch felt that meeting the social needs of church members was becoming too demanding they made a decision,

“It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables.  Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom.  We will turn this over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.” Acts 6:2-4

It is all too easy for Church leaders to be swamped with the mundane and fail to feed God’s sheep with His word.

Some churches emphasise praise and prayer but these can become distractions if teaching God’s word is not the main reason for meeting together.  This is the message of the whole of Scripture.  Psalm 119 has 176 verses almost all of which emphasise the centrality of God’s word which must be obeyed.  The last verses summarise this Psalm’s message,

“I long for you salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight.  Let me live that I may praise you, and may your laws sustain me.” Psalm 119:174-175

This is no legalism, being saved by trying hard to follow God’s rules.  We all know we fail at this.  The psalmist ends,

“I have strayed like a lost sheep.  Seek your servant, for I have not forgotten your commands.” Psalm 119:176

We are all so weak.  We will stray if we are not constantly hearing God speak to us through his Word.  As we will see there always have been those who think God speaks directly to them, both in the days of the early church and today.  False prophets have always been a menace to the church.  The apostle Peter longs for us all:

“ . . . to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Saviour through your apostles.” 2 Peter 3:2

Peter is here referring not to the missionaries who came and shared the gospel with local groups of people but the twelve apostles who were given authority to teach the church all about Christ who is the ultimate authority.  It is they and they alone who were put on the same level as the prophets of the Old Testament.  Their ministry was to serve the church by teaching God’s Word, their role was not to dominate but serve.

Watershed

Too often churches today are all at sea about what they should be teaching.  It doesn’t matter whether it is about sexuality, spirituality, spiritualism, whether Jews or Muslims should be evangelised or the priority of social concerns, so many teachers are being blown by the winds of fashion.  In contrast, the Old and New Testaments of the Scriptures clearly teach what God thinks about such timeless issues.  God is not a fickle God, his mind doesn’t change about what he judges to be holy living and what is repugnant to him.  Furthermore he has never changed his mind on how people can have a close relationship with him and this is what people need to hear.

The secret of church growth today is to teach the Word of God in a faithful, interesting and challenging way.  No-one should be allowed into a pulpit if they are not committed to this task.  In Anglican Ordination services, those being ordained are given a Bible and are commissioned to teach nothing else but the truths this contains.  Deacons are told:

“Receive this book, as a sign of the authority given you this day to speak God’s word to his people.  Build them up in its truth and serve them in its name.”

Those being ordained as presbyters are told:

“Receive this book, as a sign of the authority which God has given you this day to preach the gospel of Christ and to minister his holy sacraments.”

Bishops are told at their consecration,

“Receive this Book; here are the words of eternal life.  Take them for your guide, and declare them to the world.  Keep watch over the whole flock in which the holy Spirit has appointed you shepherd.  Encourage the faithful, restore the lost, build up the body of Christ; that when the Chief shepherd shall appear, you may receive the unfading crown of glory.”

Note how the Anglican reformers wanted the more senior ministers to prioritise teaching the Bible.  In the earliest days of the church, the deacons were asked to administrate the affairs of the church so that the presbyters could give their time to teaching and praying.  Too often today bishops (biblically they are the same as elders and presbyters) concentrate on administration whilst leaving the teaching to the less experienced juniors!    

It was always recognised that the prime role of the church leader was to teach the word of God.  In the early church, as in the synagogue, the elder who was teaching the Word would sit in a chair, a cathedra (Latin), to teach.  Remember there were hardly any church buildings until Constantine recognised the Christian faith in the 4th century.  When an elder was ordained he would sit in the teaching chair and the other church elders would lay hands on them and pray for their ministry.  This was the origin of the consecration of bishops.  What a disaster it was when bishops were given political power and their enthronement meant this chair took on a very different meaning, it became a throne!.  Cathedrals became political bases instead of centres for teaching the Word of God!

Let us all ensure that we keep growing as Christians by adding to our faith in Jesus Christ those characteristics that Jesus has.  By doing this we become like our Lord Jesus and so will become more effective and productive Christians.  Peter started this short letter in just this way:

“He has given us his very great and precious promises so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape from the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.  For this very reason, make every effort to add to you faith goodness, and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.  For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The foundation of our faith is the word of God which tells us all about Jesus, our Lord and Saviour. If we fail to prioritise teaching God’s word to ourselves, to our families, to our churches and to our society, there will be dire consequences.

In 1990, 34 per cent of regular churchgoers in the united Kingdom were evangelicals, Christians who accept the the Bible as God’s Word to the world.  By 2020 that figure had risen to 45.9 per cent.  It is clear that churches grow most when people believe in the authority of Scripture, that this is how God speaks to us, and the decline is most in those churches whose teachers do not.  The emergence in our cities of large vibrant churches packed with young people and people with African or Afro-Caribbean backgrounds who hold fervently that God speaks through his word, is most striking.  Many overseas churches who hold to the authority of Scripture are even beginning to send missionaries back to Britain.  How the whole world needs to know that there is a sure and timeless word from God.

BVP

2 Peter 3:8 Deliberate Ignorance

Peter, in this his last letter, is very concerned over the influence sceptics, or as he calls them scoffers.  They were infiltrating the early church and people were listening to them instead of to the apostles.  It is still happening in our generation.  When I was a student the Dean of Emmanuel college Cambridge was Don Cupid, an ordained Anglican minister was an outspoken scoffer.  He said,

“Anyone who believes in an afterlife must be barmy!”

David Jenkins was consecrated Bishop of Durham in spite of his scepticism about what the apostles taught.  He gave an interview for a BBC Credo programme in which he admitted that he doubted whether God would have arranged a virgin birth for Jesus, or allowed him to walk on water. Two months later he gave an interview saying:

“To believe in a Christian way, you don't necessarily have to have a belief that Jesus was born from literally a virgin mother, nor a precise belief that the risen Jesus had a literally physical body.”

We have just seen in 2 Peter 3:3-7 a brilliant analysis of ‘scoffers’.  Peter writes that they do not accept the witness or authority of either the prophets of the Old Testament or the apostles in the New Testament.  This why this letter was written to all Christians:

“I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.  I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Saviour through your apostles.” 2 Peter 3:1-2

Note that for Christians to think Biblically was not an option but a command of God!  There is good evidence that scoffers empty churches but for some reason they remain popular interviewees on the radio and in the press.  Could there be some agenda going on here?

The scoffers argue that because God has not clearly intervened supernaturally in world events within living memory, he is never going to do so.  Consequently man is on his own and needs to find solutions to all his problems just as he has in developing the physical sciences.  The obvious problem with this is that man’s greatest problems are not physical but spiritual.  How should we live?  Can we experiment with sexuality and see how far we can get away with things?  Is lying really bad, many seem to be successful by doing this?  Do children really have to honour their parents?  Can we not experiment with drugs?

Scoffers need to face two issues head on, the intellectual questions and the moral questions.

Intellectual Questions

Jesus claimed to be the one and only Son of God who was equal to God.  He taught people that they could only become acceptable to God by becoming his followers.  Consequently the most important question people need to ask is ‘Who is Jesus?’, is he who he claimed to be? There is much evidence for people to get their teeth into.  Did he did fulfil those 330 prophecies about the coming Messiah given in the Old Testament, was he was crucified and killed and did he rise of the third day?  Were his apostles really were so convinced that they gave their lives to tell the world about Jesus?Why did the early church spread so rapidly in spite of persecution.  If there is any substance in such arguments then Jesus cannot be simply overlooked.  On top of this comes his attractive character, his selflessness and his willingness to speak out against evil.  Most significantly Jesus speaks of my need.  I know I am not the person I ought to be and of my own I have no hope of being acceptable to my creator.  I do need a Saviour.  Jesus says that the only way to find answers to these spiritual questions is through the gracious revelation of  our creator and Lord.  All these arguments make him someone to be reckoned with.

Consequently in one corner stand those who think that man has now ‘come of age’ and has to find answers to all our questions by ourselves as we are on our own.  They think that if we can make such progress in the sciences can we not do the same and answer spiritual questions without reference of God?  Such secularists tell us ‘Don’t listen any more to the Word, look at the World, that is all we have.’  In other words, man’s thinking has been deified – it is only in what man thinks and discovers that is valid!

In the other corner stands Jesus with his extraordinary statements about his own importance.

“I and the Father are one.” John 10:30

“I am the way, the truth and the life.  No-one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

He even contrasts what he says to what the passing worldly can offer,

“Heaven and earth will pass away but my words will not pass away.” Matthew 24:35

Jesus is saying that this world we live in is not the final authority, it is God.  No real answers to the big questions of life, death and eternity can be found in studying man and this world.  They can only be found in what God has revealed.  Moreover the evidence for the dependability of Jesus can be thoroughly investigated as outlined above.  The sciences teach us how things work but not why.  Scoffers, even those with a Christian title, stand against this authority of Jesus and his Word but so force themselves into what is logically a life without a meaning or purpose.

Moral Questions

Scoffers deny the anger of God yet this is central to the teaching of the Bible.  Adam and Eve disobeyed God and were consequently expelled from his presence and we are all now facing this same problem.  This issue of the wrath of God is not popular today.  The revised liturgies of many Anglican churches have markedly reduced this emphasis, warnings given in Scripture have often been deleted from the liturgies.  At present the English revisions are not so bad as those of North America but there is one glaring example of the change in thinking that is going on.

The Venite, Psalm 95, has been used in the morning prayer of churches since the earliest of days.  The first seven and a half verses are a call to worship, and the psalm starts,

“Come (Latin venite), let us sing for joy to the LORD, let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.” Psalm 95:1

However the second part of the psalm is a warning that when we come to god in worship we must listen to what God says.  The end is severe, addressing those who reject God’s teaching,

“I said, ‘They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they have not known my ways.’  So I declared in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’” Psalm 95:10-11

It is striking that in the old Book of Common Prayer the whole Psalm is included.  However in the Alternative Service Book the warning in the second half has been been replaced by a softer substitute ending. Perhaps this is why the gospel, the good news that we can be put right with God by Christ meets little eager reception – we are not teaching people basic Christian truths.  The Bible is clear however,

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23

There is only one answer to the eternal danger we face,

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord

Peter’s Answer

Peter keeps reminding us that our problems come from a failure to think clearly.  He started the chapter,

“I have written both of them ( his two letters) as reminders to stimulate you into wholesome thinking.” 2 Peter 3:1

“But they deliberately forgot that long ago by God’s word . . .” 2 Peter 3:5

He then proceeds to remind the sceptics that each stage of the world’s creation was initiated by what God said and that this same God later judged the rebellious world in the time of Noah.  He urges his readers to look at the facts, or, more specifically, not to forget just one fact,

“With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” 2 Peter 3:8

Peter answers the issue of the apparently delayed return and judgment of Christ head on.  This quote comes from Psalm 90, a Psalm written by Moses, is so apt.  This Psalm contrasts the eternity of God with the brevity of human life and Peter contrasts the eternity of God with the impatience of humanity.  We are warned never to think that we are anywhere near the same league as God!  The scoffers were saying that the only permanent reality is in matter, in what can be seen and measured.  In contrast Moses taught us that God was God even before matter was created,

“Before the mountains were born, or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” Psalm 90:2

Peter is taking us back to the profound truth that the prophet Moses passed on to us and with which this psalm begins,

‘Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.” Psalm 90:1

We have no home and can find no security outside of a relationship with the Lord our creator.  The possibility for this has been won by Jesus and this is now open to all.  What a wonderful teaching this is to the many restless souls in our world today.  Real satisfaction is only found in such a relationship; this is what Jesus came to offer us all.

The Psalm, unlike many modern churches does not overlook why we desperately need this salvation,

“We are consumed by your anger and terrified by your indignation.” Psalm 90:7

“You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.” Psalm 90:8

“All our days pass away under your wrath; we finish our years with a moan.” Psalm 90:9

“For who knows the power of your anger?  For your wrath is as great as the fear that is due to you.” Psalm 90:11

Alexander Solzhenitsyn has analysed what has gone wrong in Russia and also what is going wrong in the West.  In receiving the Templeton prize he analysed the reasons behind the Russian revolution, the French Revolution concluded,

“Men have forgotten God.”

The history of the Jews, God’s original people shows they have faced immense opposition from the Ancient Egyptians, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Nazis and many others over thousands of years yet they continue to exist.

King Louis XIV of France once asked Blaise Pascal for a proof of the existence of God. The reply was immediate. “The Jews, your majesty”.  The Jews have repeatedly faced the judgment of God but have survived because, as the bible makes clear, they are a people he loves.  Look at what is happening to churches throughout the world, many are losing influence.  It can only be the judgment of God on the people he loves.  Is Covid also a warning from God, is God saying to our societies, ‘You have forgotten me!’?

The churches keep repeating the limited mantra, ‘God is love, there is nothing to fear,’ and leaves out warnings about God’s judgment.  To do this is to be unfaithful to Jesus and his message, a message that the apostles have faithfully passed on to us.  We need to remind each other that God really does become indignant when rejected.  Psalm 90 concludes with the only reasonable response people can have,

“Relent, O LORD!  How long will it be?  Have compassion on your servants.” Psalm 90:13

“May your deeds be shown to your servants, your splendour to you children.  May the favour of the LORD our God rest upon us.” Psalm 90:16

This is the prayer of humble people begging the Lord God to return and to give their tiny short-lived lives significance.

Anthony Trollope’s ‘Barchester Towers’ is the story about a mid nineteenth century humble but Godly clergyman, the Red Mr. Harding, the vicar of a small village church.  The villain of the book is the outwardly religious Mr. Slope.   A film of the story unfortunately omits the ending of the book which reads,

“The author now leaves him (Mr Harding) in the hands of his readers.  Not as a hero, not as a man to be admired or talked of, not as a man who should be toasted at public dinners or spoken of as the conventional absurdity of a public divine, but as a good man without guile, believing humbly in the religion which he has strived to teach and guided by the presepts he has striven to learn.”

Mr Harding’s one concern was to take his Lord and God’s word seriously and put it into practice in how he lived and taught.  This is what matters most.

Peter is similarly reminding us that man, in his pride may extend his life for a few years but God can sweep us away at any moment.  Yet our small lives can have an eternal significance, whatever our lot in life, if we repent and return to our Lord and Saviour.  This is the message all people need to hear.

BVP

2 Peter 3:10 The Final Judgment

Peter is not reticent to remind his readers about what they already know,

“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.” 2 Peter 3:10

In the church’s calendar Advent refers to both the first and second coming of Jesus.  Yet today few refer to the second coming, preferring to focus on the celebration around the birth of a baby and presents.  It was very different in medieval times.  The church controlled people through fear as the church insisted that only through allegiance to the Holy See in Rome would anyone go to heaven.  This picture ‘The Ladder of Judgment’ found in St. Catherine’s monastery in Sinai shows men trying to climb to heaven with the wicked being dragged by devils from its rungs and falling into hell.  Such ideas were typical of this medieval religion.  As people reach the top they are judged on how they have lived as to whether they should be admitted to heaven.

St. Fulgentius was a bishop of the city of Ruspe, a Roman province of Africa, North Africa, in modern day Tunisia, during the 5th and 6th century.  He strongly opposed the prevalent Arian doctrines saying that Jesus was not equal to the Father but he is also said to have taught, ‘Mary the Mother of God came down from heaven.  God came down this ladder that men may, through Mary, climb up to him in heaven.’  There are medieval pictures in churches of a fierce Jesus standing at the top of a ladder as an angry judge pointing to another ladder held by Mary!

Such images are so opposed to the teaching of the Apostles.  Everything centres of Jesus.  Jesus himself is the ladder who came down from heaven.  He alone is the way back to God.  It is his love that is welcoming us.  The most important feature of apostolic teaching is that it is not our efforts that can ever make us acceptable to God.  We cannot climb up to God by good works or by being religious.  We are utterly dependant on what Christ has done by sacrificing himself on the cross, once for all time.  He took on himself our sin and gave us his righteousness.  The only way to be reconciled to God is to submit to Christ, to accept the forgiveness he alone won for us, to be credited with his righteousness he alone can offer, and then submit ourselves to his rule.  Paul made this appeal to members of the troubled church in Corinth,

“Be reconciled to God.  God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21

The apostle John wrote,

“Dear friends, now we are children of God . . . But we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.  Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.” 1 John 3:2

What a relief it is to know that anyone can be given the righteousness of Christ and so become acceptable to God, even if we are a dying thief on a cross, simply because of who Jesus is.  The apostle Paul wrote,

“For in the gospel a righteous from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last.” Romans 1:17

What a tragedy it is when churches suggest that we can earn ourselves a place in heaven.  The emphasis on the role of Mary in assisting in our salvation is completely contrary to apostolic teaching. It is always Christ who is central in their message.  It is he and he alone who we need.  Read through the Bible and you will find no other message.  These deviations show how far some churches have drifted away from apostolic teaching even if they formally repeat the orthodox creeds.  The first Council of Constantinople (381 AD) improved on the original creed of the council of Niea (325AD) and included the words that are now in the Nicean Creed,

“I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church . . .”

An apostolic church is one that is built on the teaching of the apostles and on nothing else.  This is the common feature of Christ’s universal church, which is what the word ‘catholic’ means.

The Bible repeatedly warns the churches that when God comes he will judge unfaithful churches severely, just as he did his own people in the Old Testament times.

When Peter was told to go an explain the gospel to the Gentile centurion, Cornelius, and his household he was insistent that God’s message first begins with judgment.  He said to them,

“He (Jesus) commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead.  All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” Acts 10:42-43

Notice also how his message is all about Jesus, he is both judge and Saviour.  This should be the Christmas message of an apostolic church.  There is a judgment to come.

Prince Philip gave a sermon in St Georges Chapel in 1988 and the headline of a national newspaper subsequently read,

“Prince Philip warns of the end of Mankind.”

This idea was somewhat ridiculed then but now people are much more concerned. Ecological disaster, global warming, Covid and other lethal pandemics, Iran, Russia, China and radical Islam all threaten us.  But, some may say, man is learning to deal with these problems.  Yes, but it cannot change the fact that God has appointed the day when he will judge us all.  The Bible is not talking about nuclear war or any other threat but about the great day of judgment when Christ returns.  There will be a fixed point when God will bring this universe to an end although we don’t know the details.  For most of us the reality will be the day we die.  We will certainly face God’s judgment then.

The writer of the book to the Hebrews made this clear,

“Just as man is destined to die once and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people.” Hebrews 9:27

What does this mean for us today?

Dreams of humanism can never be fulfilled on this earth

The humanist says that we have to depend on ourselves to achieve anything.  Man must grow up and become responsible.  If there is to be a heaven on earth it is up to man to build it.  Marxism was such a dream. 
I have just been reading Alexandre Solzhenitsyn’s ‘Gulag Archipelago’ in which he describes the effect of the communist revolution in Russia.  In search of the ideal state where everyone was cared for, horrendous atrocities were perpetrated.  Millions were murdered in the quest for an eventual ideal state.  Similar tragedies occurred in the French Revolution.  Solzhenitsyn, in his Templeton Prize address said this,

“It was Dostoevsky who drew from the French Revolution and its seeming hatred of the Church the lesson that “revolution must necessarily begin with atheism.” That is absolutely true. But the world had never before known a godlessness as organized, militarized, and tenaciously malevolent as that practiced by Marxism. Within the philosophical system of Marx and Lenin, and at the heart of their psychology, hatred of God is the principal driving force, more fundamental than all their political and economic pretensions.”

When man forgets God, any behaviour can be rationalised.  Yet history shows us that whenever man tries to build heaven on earth without reference to God he always makes a hell on earth.  It is the recognition that all we are and do will be scrutinised by God that is the ultimate check on our behaviour whether we are Presidents, Prime ministers or peasants!  One survey concluded,

“If a person is religious they are fundamentally concerned about others.  If they are not religious they are only concerned about themselves.”

Pagans can dream because all people are made in the image of God with a reflection of his aspirations.  Without him however they will never materialise.

God has a Plan

Without God, this world is meaningless and people will become increasingly selfish and depressed.  Some suggest that we shouldn’t tell young people that there is a creator and a judgment to come because this will make them increasingly depressed.  Yet cut us off from where we come from and where we are heading leaves people in an existential madhouse with no way out.  Real answers give us real hope.

This is why it is a disaster for churches to become just a medium for social care.  The voids of people’s needs can never be filled, social, medical and financial needs are like a black hole.  If all that churches can offer are groups to entertain children, keep-fit classes, foodbanks and jumble sales then we have slipped disastrously away from what Jesus came into this world for.  The Bible gives us real answers to our deepest problems.  We are not on our own.  We have a creator who loves us but who longs for us to be secure within a relationship with him and his Son.

Security is always found in certainty.  God wants us to be convinced that just as there was a beginning to this world, so there will be a climax when everything will make sense.  There is no security to be found in the teaching of liberal churchmen, such as Bishop Robinson. He said,

“If you want God, you must find him in your own head, in the depth of our being.”

That is not good news, there is no gospel within ourselves. The great news is that the real God has acted for us and entered his world.  We do have a King who was prophesied in the Old Testament and was authenticated in the New.  Our hope is based on facts, facts about Jesus, and not on our feelings.  Christians have a date to look forwards to because of what happened at a time in the past.  We live in the light of this. To live without a plan is madness.

In the mid twentieth century people living in Hong kong knew that 1988 was approaching, when that state would be returned to the sovereignty of China.  That future certainty should have affected how people lived and planned.  So we also should live and plan in the knowledge that our lives are finite and that there is an end that we should be working towards.

BVP

2 Peter 3:11-18. Real Spirituality

Spirituality is a broad concept which is understood by different people in a host of different ways. It usually includes a sense of connection to something bigger than ourselves, and it typically involves a search for meaning in life. As such, it is a universal human experience - something that touches us all. Even atheists recognise that they have a spiritual side, which is somewhat illogical as they do not recognise anything bigger than themselves!

When people reject God’s rule and deny that there is a future, after their short existence here on earth, it inevitably affects how they live.  There is a direct link between how people think and how they behave.  Some ancient heathen tombstones have been discovered that epitomise this link.  Disbelief in a real future can lead to hedonism now; one inscription reads,

“I was nothing; I am nothing; so you who are still alive, eat drink and be merry.”

Disbelief can also lead to meaninglessness.  Another tombstone reads,

“Once I had no existence; now I have none.  I am not aware of it.  It does not concern me.”

Finally it can result in desperation.  Another stone reads,

“Charidas, what is below?” “Deep darkness!” “But what of the paths upwards?” “All a lie” . . . “Then we are lost.”

Logically if life is heading nowhere, if the truth about a second coming is lost, then life loses purpose.  What are we to live for that will be as real when we are old and infirm as when we are young and active?  Peter wrote,

“Since everything is going to be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?  You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.” 2 Peter 3:11-12

Christian spirituality has distinctive characteristics

1.  People matter more than things.

We tend to think that the world is more enduring than people.  The bible rejects such thinking.  People will outlast matter.  The world will be destroyed but people are eternal, we have been made in the image of God.  Peter writes,

“Since everything (the earth and everything in it) will be destroyed . . . what kind of people ought you to be?” 2 Peter 3:11

A man’s character is the only thing we can take out of this life.  How foolish it is for the Egyptian Pharaoh’s to have placed in their tombs all that they would like in the next life.  At least it showed that they knew there was an afterlife!

A Christian spiritual person will therefore treat all people as God’s creation, they do matter to him and he longs to have them join him in eternity.

When Paul wrote to the Corinthian church he was critical of their tendency to favour people with gifts, whether preaching abilities, money, linguistic skills or whatever over the needs of ordinary people in the church.  The real mark of people filled with the Spirit is that they love other people, especially those within God’s family.  The famous passage on love, so often read at wedding services, is actually a critique of those who value gifts more than loving hearts (1 Corinthians 12:27 – 13:13).

This doesn’t mean that leaders should be weak and indecisive.  They must love not just certain individuals but the church as a whole and sometimes good decisions may hurt individuals in the short term for the greater good of others.  It is not easy to get this balance right

2.  Righteous living matters

There are many horrendous stories about people who have claimed to be Christian leaders but whose lifestyles betray their real perspective on life.

“Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?” 2 Peter 3:11

“So then . . . make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.” 2 Peter 3:14

Peter used the same phrase about Jesus in his first letter,

“Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” 1 Peter 1:19

If Christians really have the Spirit of Christ they will also adopt the character of Christ.  False leaders often portray these faults,

“Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight.  They are blots and blemishes, revelling in their pleasures while they feast with you.  Their eyes are full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed – an accursed brood.” 2 Peter 2:13-14

I have recently read a book called ‘The Popes’ which describes the morals and the lifestyles of several medieval popes.  Some of their lives were so far from that of emulating Christ that it is very doubtful that they were Christians.

“So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of sinful nature.” Galatians 5:16

We are told to ensure that when Jesus comes we do no, he doesn’t find us to have uncorrected blemishes in our characters.  God’s people must be sensitive to the faults within ourselves.  Psalm 15, a Psalm of David, beautifully describes the sort of lives that God wants to see in us, his people.  Peter extols the virtues of both Noah (2 Peter 2:5) and Lot (2 Peter 2:7) who lived righteous lives amongst ungodly people.  It is an important feature of God’s people that we are vexed when we see ungodly behaviour and moral filth around us.  We must never become hardened, Lot wasn’t!

How difficult this is for young people who naturally want to like their peers.  This is why strong groups of young people with close friendships within churches are so important.  Holiness entails being distinct from others.

The existentialist writer, Jean-Paul Sartre tells the story of a man who was enjoying sitting quietly on a park bench when he suddenly becomes aware of someone in the distance staring at him.  The man is startled out of his serenity into a profoundly uncomfortable awareness of himself and thinks,

“What does the stranger think of me?  Are they judging me?  Do they value me?  Are they for me or against me?”

Everyone knows what this is like.  When we are wrapped up in ourselves, we can feel no moral or relational obligations.  However the stare disrupted his sense of autonomy.  In Sartre’s tale he discovers that the stare is coming from a mannequin!  He explains how relieved he felt when he understood that the fear was just in his mind.  His conscience, about some other being seeing what he is doing and thinking, is unreal.  Or is it?  If there is a God who created us and entered his world as Jesus Christ then what the Bible teaches about God seeing everything we do and think is real.  Peter reminds the Christians,

“You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day and speed its coming.” 2 Peter 3:11-12

3.  Patience is needed

Peter repeatedly stresses the need for patience as we look forwards to the return of the lord Jesus,

“ . . . as you look forward to the day . . .” 2 Peter 3:11

“But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth.” 2 Peter 3:12

“So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.” 2 Peter 3:14

Waiting can be so frustrating if we are looking for a job, recovering from an illness or operation, or trying to get into a team.  Children find waiting for Christmas and the presents a real trial.  For Christians, living in a fallen world with all its ungodliness is also be frustrating.  We are looking forwards to something so much better.

The Lord is delaying his return because he is patient and longs for others to be saved.

“Bear in mind that the Lord’s patience means salvation . . .” 2 Peter 3:15

Advertisements repeatedly tell us we can have everything now, whether holidays, possessions or borrowed money.  There are even churches who teach ‘Name it and claim it.”  These false teachers raise peoples expectations.  Blessings from God will come in heaven but until then we all have to live in a fallen world and share in the consequences.  We will become ill, we will die, we will be subject to unfairness in this life but we have something much better to look forward to, when our Lord returns.  When he does return, then we shall have perfect health, purity, unity among God’s people.  Until then we must wait as we are all still sinful.

This patience is a sign of maturity, we learn to accept the difficulties we face with calmness.  A famous Christian healer himself suffered from an illness and shared this with many who shared his thinking.  Four hundred people said that God had told them to pray for his healing and lay hands on him.  The four hundred did just that but there was no healing..  I well remember a Pentecostal church minister who developed ulcerative colitis.  Friends prayed for him and assured him he had been healed.  He was reassured about this, although his symptoms did continue.  He didn’t think follow up or drugs were now necessary.  When I met him he had already developed cancer of the bowel that had spread to his liver and he eventually died.  Such childish thinking refuses to recognise that God’s will for us is not always our will for ourselves!  Prayer is not always answered as we would want.  Peace is not always given.  Holiness does not always reign now.  We should ask God to be involved in everything we do, knowing that he is able to to do above all we ask or think, after all he did raise Jesus from the dead, but learning to wait is part of Christian discipline.

One of the virtues of the early church was patience under Roman rule and persecution.  They were not impatient but trusted God.  This made them so attractive to those looking on.  Tertullian was a church father early in the third century.  He wrote a treatise called ‘De Patienta’ which means ‘Of Patience’ and in this he wrote about patience,

“It attracts the heathen . . . adorns a woman, perfects a man.  It is loved in a child, praised in a youth, esteemed in the aded.  In both man and woman, at every age of life, it is exceedingly attractive.”

Today we live in an impatient hurried world that becomes easily upset when things don’t go as hoped.  Should we be talking more about this virtue?  The prophet Isaiah recognised how important this virtue of patience is,

“For the LORD is a God of justice.  Blessed are all who wait for him.” Isaiah 30:18

James also strongly advocated this virtue,

“Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming.  See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains.  You too, be patients\ and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.” James 5:7-8

Anger, impatience and irritability are the very opposite of patience and betray both a lack of trust and portray to others a restless spirit.

4. A Growing knowledge of Jesus Christ

Some interpret such Godly patience as a prescription for being laid back with a ‘laissez faire’ approach to life and its problems.  This is not Christian either – the apostles were certainly not passive in their commitment to serving christ in this world.  Peter’s final longing is fundamental,

“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 3:18

Being a Christian is never a static acceptance of a creed but a growing relationship.  A Christian’s love for the Lord Jesus must keep growing.  It is significant that this is how peter starts the letter,

“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him . . . he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” 2 Peter 1:3-4

This is so important.  God speaks to us through his word which contains God’s promises to us.  We accept these by living according to what he has taught us in the Bible.  We live by faith and this will enable us to grow both in knowledge and righteousness.

There is one fascinating point that Peter includes here when discussing Paul’s letters.  They were obviously well circulated before 65-68 AD when 2 Peter was written.  Paul’s writings were accepted by that early stage as being on the level of the Old Testament Scriptures.

“ . . . just as our dear brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him.  He wrote the same thing in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters.  His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.” 2 Peter 3:15-16

This twisting of Scripture has been all too apparent over the years.  Millerism first began in 1831 when William Miller began to share his belief that the second advent of Jesus Christ would occur in 1843-44.  He made this conclusion based on prophecies in Daniel.  He was an influential speaker and these ideas spread even though they were contrary to the teaching of Jesus. who had said that the actual timing of his second coming is not for us to know.  Jesus said,

“No-one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man” Matthew 24:36–44

Miller established several newspapers that spread his ideas and, by April 1843, six hundred thousand papers were being distributed each week.  Even when the deadline of 1844 passed, the majority of those taken up with his ideas maintained their beliefs by changing the date.  However when the next date, October 22, 1844 passed without incident a movement called ‘The Great Disappointment’ sprung up.  However some Millerites went onto form a new group, the Seventh Day Adventists and out of that group sprang the Mormons and the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Such religious crazes were common in Victorian times and are all too common today.  A sure sign of trouble is when the affiliation to an organisation, denomination or church takes precedence over knowing Christ.

The apostles were clear, to grow in Christ we must grow in our knowledge of Scripture.  All other paths lead to disaster.  No-one grows in their experience of Christ without growing in their knowledge of God’s Word.

This is the last word of Peter.

BVP

2 Peter 3:9. God Knows When

The ‘scoffers’ from both inside the church and outside have criticised Jesus for failing to keep his promise to return in judgment and doubted his ability to do this.  Peter now responds by saying that the delay is not because of his inability but because of his love for people.  He explains that God is not impotent but is being gracious and merciful in giving people the opportunity of entering his kingdom.  He writes,

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.  He is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9

The Bible’s message is the very opposite to that of the sceptic,  God, who has revealed himself in Jesus, longs for our salvation.  Paul wrote similarly,

“ . . . God our Saviour, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.  For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men.” 1 Timothy 2:4-5

The criticism over the apparent inactivity of God is nothing new.  People have always wondered why God stays in the background.  Why doesn’t he act in more obvious miraculous ways.  Why is he such a slowcoach!  The prophet Ezekiel explained the gracious nature of God, saying,

“Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign LORD.  Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their wicked ways and live?” Ezekiel 18:23

However long people are given and however many reminders they are given that there is a deeper meaning to life, many will use their freewill to turn their backs on their creator and Saviour.  The consequence of this will be that people will be eternally separated from God and all the good he has lavished on us.

“ . . . being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. . . He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:7-9

The logic behind this verse is that God’s people must prioritise the sharing of the Christian gospel with as many people as they can.  When Jesus returns, it will be too late for many to change direction.  This is why God is waiting.

Deep down many people think that God cannot control his world.  They may even say they believe in God but they live as practical atheists.  These scoffers don’t know God because they do not know the Scriptures.

God and Moses

When the Lord introduced himself to Moses on top of Mount Sinai he described his own character,

“The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished . . .” Exodus 34:6-7

This is the same character that Peter had seen in Jesus, slow to anger, patient, kind and loving but who in the end will not tolerate rejection.  Yet as so often happens the chosen people rebelled.  Moses urges the angry people,

“Only do not rebel against the LORD.” Numbers 14:8

Then comes a remarkable statement that describes in what form the Lord’s almighty strength was to be displayed.  The people are then reminded of the earlier Scripture God had given them.

“Now may the LORD’s strength be displayed, just as you have declared: ‘The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion.’

God’s power is demonstrated in his loving patience.  We see a reflection of this is the way a loving parent calmly disciplines a rebellious child.  They don’t immediately lose their temper and thrash out.  They calmly wait.  Self-control is the mark of power, not weakness.  Scoffers do not know God because they do not know the Scriptures.

God and Jonah

All of God’s ministers are dependant on there being a valid word from God that they can pass on to others.  Jonah was given a message from God, a message of impending judgment for the exceptional wickedness of the people of Nineveh.  Eventually Jonah did obey God and preached in Nineveh.  Remarkably the people responded and turned back to God.  Even the king had a complete change of heart and made a public proclamation,

“Let every one call urgently on God.  Let them give up their evil ways and their violence.  Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn aside from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.” Jonah 3:8-9

Jonah was distraught at this change of heart, he became angry and complained to God,

“I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.” Jonah 4:2

It is this nature of God that Peter had come to understand,

“He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9

A New Mysticism

There is a new kind of mystical religion floating around today which says that people whatever their religious affiliation, or lack of it, can still know God better and better.  It doesn’t matter if it is called Feng Shui, Transcendental Meditation or the mystical feeling of being taken up into the spirt of melodious liturgies or other forms of ecstatic worship.  None of these will bring anyone to God.  If people have moved away from the Jesus revealed by his prophets and apostles in the Bible, they have moved away from God.  This passage is not teaching a form of universalism, that everyone will be saved in the end - that would fly against the very clear teaching of the rest of the Bible.  The Bible is clear that after his second coming, which will usher in God’s judgment of us all, there will not be any further opportunity to repent.  God is waiting and giving us all every opportunity to turn back to him in repentance now, before it is too late.  The writer of the book to the Hebrews put this very succinctly,

“Just as man is destined to die once and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” Hebrews 9:27-28

It is clear that only those who love the Lord Jesus, who are waiting for his return, will be forgiven for their rebellion against the Lord.

There are many today who presume on the kindness and patience of God - accepting all he gives us but only offering a mild nod in response.  Such presumption is only foolishness.  Paul called it being contemptuous,

“Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realising that God’s kindness leads you towards repentance.” Romans 2:4

An Old Gospel

God’s message is clear.  He is waiting for us to act and to return into the arms of our loving Father.  There are some who don’t feel they are rebels against God, they are decent people, even better than most.  A Christian salesman was staying in an isolated village inn and one evening was talking to the bar maid about the gospel.  She was a pleasant girl who didn’t feel she needed God’s forgiveness.  The wise sales man asked her to do one thing, ‘Would you please pray every day and ask God to show you yourself as he sees you.’  She did just this and was amazed and what she came to see in herself.  By the time the salesman had returned he found a different bar maid.  She had come to realise how far short she fell from God’s standards and had found Christ as her Saviour.

The great writer C.S.Lewis was slow in his recognising the Lord’s ‘right to his life’.  Lewis had rejected Christianity in his early teens and lived as an atheist through his twenties.  He later opened his life to Christ in 1931, partly with the help of his close friend J.R.R. Tolkien.  At one stage in the evolution of his thinking, when he became an atheist, he depended on the “Argument from Undesign” that had been so well described by Lucretius, (99 – 55 BC), a Roman poet and philosopher. He had argued that if God had designed the world, it would not be a world so frail and faulty as we see.  There always have been scoffers!  However this way of thinking left C.S.Lewis with only nihilism and he recognised that there was clearly more to life than that!  Once while riding on a bus in Oxford, Lewis had the sense that he was “holding something at bay, or shutting something out” and he knew this something was God. He could either open the door or let it stay shut, but to open the door “meant the incalculable”. He did submit himself to God and he became, as he himself described, the most “dejected and reluctant convert” in all England. This belief in God happened in 1929, but it was not until 1931 that he surrendered himself to Christ.  He later wrote his biography, ‘Surprised by Joy’ in which he rejoices that God was so patient with him.

The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) had an awakening when eating pigs food.  He knew that God was slow to anger and he also returned home to his Father.  He then found the Father running out towards him to welcome him home and back into his family.

Even the apostle Paul recognised that he continued to fall far short of God’s standards but he understood the grace of God and wrote:

“Here is a trustworthy saying that demands full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners – of whom I am the worst.  But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, christ might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.  Now to the King eternal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory for ever and ever Amen.” 1 Timothy 1:15-17

What a reassurance this is for all of us.  No-one need be excluded from God’s kingdom and family, what we must do is accept him into the ruling seat of our lives.  As Jesus said to the lukewarm, self-righteous members of the church at Laodicea, about whom he had been critical,

“Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline.  So be earnest and repent.  Here I am at the door and knock.  If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him and he with me.” Revelation 3:19-20

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2 Peter 3:17-18. Peter’s Final Appeal

How Peter longs that those who have put their faith in Jesus should go on to become mature Christ-centred disciples.  He finishes this, his final letter before his execution, with these words,

“Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position.  But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.  To him be the glory both now and for ever.” 2 Peter 3:17-18

He doesn’t have a grouse about how unfair his death will be, instead he is taken up with the glory of what it means to be accepted as one of God’s people and he longs for everyone to understand that security only lies in living with and for the Lord Jesus.  To drift from Christ into secularism or even religion can be fatal for us in eternity.

Praise God

The letter finishes with a doxology, a statement of praise to God,

“To him be the glory both now and for ever.” 2 Peter 3:18

It is no coincidence that of the nineteen doxologies to God in the New Testament, all but three are in the context of praising Jesus as God; the exceptions being when the Old Testament doxologies are quoted.  Look at the context of this doxology; Jesus, God’s Messiah or God’s Chosen King is addressed as ‘our Lord’ God,

“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.  To him be the glory both now and for ever.” 2 Peter 3:17-18

This is further reinforced by the opening of this letter,

“To those who through the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours.” 2 Peter 1:1

There is no doubt that Peter recognised that God’s Messiah was indeed God himself.  ‘God and Saviour’ at the beginning of the letter means precisely the same as ‘Lord and Saviour’ at the end.

When Jesus asked his disciples, ‘Who do men say I am?’ it was Peter who, representing the other disciples said,

“You are the Christ.” Mark 8:29

When Ananias, the High priest asked him at his trial,

“Are you the Christ?”

Jesus replied without hesitation referring to a prophecy in Daniel (Daniel 7:13) which equates the Son of Man, the Messiah, with God himself,

“ ‘I am,’ said Jesus, ‘And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the mighty one and coming on the clouds of heaven.’” Mark 14:62

‘I am’ is the meaning of the word ‘Jehovah’, it is the personal name of God.  Ananias has no doubt whatsoever about what Jesus was claiming and shouted out,

“You have heard the blasphemy!” Mark 14:64

Pilate also asked Jesus at his trial,

“‘But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.” They all asked, ‘Are you then the Son of God?’ He replied, ‘You are right in saying I am’” Luke 22:70

Again the onlookers had no doubt what Jesus was claiming.  It is therefore no surprise that a few weeks after his resurrection, when given the opportunity, three thousand people realised that they had really crucified their Messiah and became believers in the risen Jesus.

Dangers

The New Testament is full of warnings about unprincipled men who will try to pull people away from the apostolic gospel.  They clearly felt that to be forewarned is to be forearmed.  How this is needed today.  Pastors must help their congregations to remain true to the Word of God by teaching it clearly.

1.  False teachers

Since early in the nineteenth century the older denominations in Europe have been destabilised because of false teaching.  Some have erred into teaching that security lies in remaining faithful to their denomination, others have gone chasing after experiences but few have majored on what the apostles repeatedly urged, remaining close to Jesus.  As Paul’s own death approached, he urged his successor Timothy,

“I give you this charge, ‘Preach the Word . . . for the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine.  Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.  But you . . .” 2 Timothy 4:1-5

There is no excuse for complacency.  Error has seduced many experienced Christian leaders over the centuries.  Jesus himself repeatedly warned his followers.  Shortly before his execution he said to them,

“Watch out that no-one deceives you.  Many will come in my name claiming . . .” Mark 13:5

“You must be on your guard.” Mark 13:9

In the context of when he would return he warned against those who prophesy when this would be,

“Be on your guard, be alert.” Mark 13:33

The heart of Peter’s letter focuses on this problem,

“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you.  They will secretly introduce destructive heresies . . .” 2 Peter 2:1

2.  Insecure followers.

Christians who are relying on Christ are safe.  Peter wrote,

“Be on your guard so that you may not be carried away , , , and fall from your secure position.” 2 Peter 3:17

In Christ we are as secure as we can ever be because we are in God himself.

John Bunyan, the writer of Pilgrim's Progress, struggled terribly before he came to a settled faith in Christ. Here's what he wrote:

“One day as I was passing into the field . . . this sentence fell upon my soul. Thy righteousness is in heaven. And methought, withal, I saw with the eyes of my soul Jesus Christ at God's right hand; there, I say, was my righteousness; so that wherever I was, or whatever I was doing, God could not say of me, he wants [lacks] my righteousness, for that was just before [in front of] him. I also saw, moreover, that it was not my good frame of heart that made my righteousness better, nor yet my bad frame that made my righteousness worse, for my righteousness was Jesus Christ himself, "The same yesterday, today and, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).

Now did my chains fall off my legs indeed. I was loosed from my afflictions and irons; my temptations also fled away; so that from that time those dreadful scriptures of God left off to trouble me; now went I also home rejoicing for the grace and love of God.”

When we are dying and going through all that emotional and physical turmoil it is wonderful to be reminded of the most comforting teaching in all the world, "Remember, Christ is your righteousness. Christ is your righteousness. Your righteousness is in heaven. It's the same yesterday today and forever. It doesn't get better when your faith is strong. It doesn't get worse when your faith is weak. It is perfect. It is Christ. Look away from yourself. Rest in him. Lean on him."

We also can rejoice with the saints of the past in the salvation the Lord Jesus Christ has won for us.  We are meant to have this confidence.  The author of Hebrews urges us,

“Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart with full assurance of faith” Hebrews 10:22

The reason we can be confident is because Jesus Christ is our High Priest who has already paid the price for our sin.  He didn’t die in vain! We cannot cleanse ourselves but we have been cleansed.  The writer continues,

“. . . with full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.” Hebrews 10:22

Christ has become the sacrifice for our sins once-for-all time, and he has been raised from the dead as our representative priest. By faith in Him, we are as righteous before the throne of God as He is righteous. For we are justified, made right with God, in His righteousness! If we are in Christ, we are committed to living with and for him, and we can rest secure on the promises of God.  We can no more lose this justification than He can fall from heaven. Thus our justification cannot be added to or made more secure because it is complete in Christ!

With this in view, the author says,

“. . . by one offering He has perfected for all time those who come to God by him.” Hebrews 10:14

After a carol service in St. Helens Church, Bishopsgate, the rector, William Taylor, was sitting at a table talking with a young Hindu man who asked him,

“Why do you Christians have such a confidence about being accepted by God?

The rector drew on a piece of paper a ladder spiralling upwards.  He then explained,

“Human religion relies on me trying to work my way up the ladder, whether by religious rituals, my behaviour or the badge of religion I carry.  These are portrayed in the eight fold path of Buddhism.  Karma is essentially my effort.  In contrast, in Christ God came down to us and died to pay the price for our sin.  Because we are now in Christ, heaven is now our home.”

There was a pause in the conversation as the young man looked at the diagram.  He then said,

“What you are saying is that what we spend our lives striving for, you Christians have got already.”

A Buddhist, when he first understood the gospel said something similar,

“What we long for you have already been given.”

The story is told that on his deathbed someone asked Ghandi,

“Babki, you have spent your whole life searching for God. Have you found him yet?”

To which the revered man of peace said,

“No, not yet.”

What humility on the part of Ghandi, but how sad that statement is? Particularly sad since the Triune God of the Universe has willingly, readily revealed Himself to humankind. But that revelation can only be found, can only be apprehended, understood as God has revealed Himself in Jesus Christ. Jesus is the one who came from the Father, to reveal Him perfectly to us so that we can enter into a relationship with God.

The reason we can stand before God in full assurance is because of what Christ has done for us. We can therefore now experience our -

“ . . . hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and … bodies washed with pure water” Hebrews 10:22

3.  Weak followers

Salvation is only found in a personal relationship with Jesus.  To fall away from him, even if we remain in religious organisations, is to risk losing our salvation.  Peter warned,

“Be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position.”

Paul gave a similar warning to people who hoped that by being religious would be accepted by God.  He uses the same word, ‘fall’, as Peter does.  This word is sometimes translated ‘apostasy’.

“You who are trying to be justified by law, have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen from grace.” Galatians 5:4

To drift from the Word of God is to drift from Christ.  That is what the apostles keep warning us.  Growing in knowledge is key to growing in grace.  At the end as well as at the beginning of this letter Pete urges Christians to ensure they are growing in grace,

“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 3:18

“Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” 2 Peter 1:2

All Christians are urged to work hard at developing their spiritual lives by gaining, amongst other things ‘knowledge’.

“For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness and to goodness knowledge . . .” 2 Peter 1:5

“If you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 1:8

We, as bodies of Christians in local churches are responsible for encouraging others in the church to keep growing spiritually.  There must never be a passivity in our walk with the Lord Jesus.  God promises that when we seek him, we’ll find him, if we seek him with all our hearts (see Jeremiah 29:13).

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2 Peter 3:1-2. Think Clearly Because It Matters

The final chapter that Peter wrote, shortly before he was executed under Nero, sometime between 65 and 68AD, is a remarkable summary about how Christians should think.  It was written to Christians who were being tempted to compromise with the world, much as many churches are today.  It was his second letter, the first was probably written just a few months before.  Peter explains why he has written this second letter:

“Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you.  I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.” 2 Peter 3:1

I was recently asked why Christchurch, Baldock started when there were other churches in the area.  The simple answer was that we longed to see a church where people were encouraged to think through what God has taught us in Holy Scripture and apply this to our lives.  Churches can have a variety of priorities.  Some are most concerned to continue the traditions and liturgy of their denomination.  Others want to prioritise helping people to feel good and prioritise praise, music and affirming talks.  Others want to prioritise meeting the social needs of their society.  These are not wrong but the prime purpose of a church is to teach God’s word well and encourage people to live closely with the Lord Jesus in all they do.  Worship is how we live throughout the week. Churches must prioritise ‘wholesome thinking’ above everything else because it affects all we do.

What does ‘wholesome thinking’  mean in practice?

Peter goes on to explain.

“I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Saviour through your apostles.” 2 Peter 3:2

‘Wholesome thinking’ for Peter was derived from understanding what both the prophets in the Old Testament and the apostles in the New Testament taught.  The apostles simply passed on what Jesus had taught them.  Our churches today are full of people dying of ‘biblical malnutrition’.  How few study the Bible and pray every day.  Even fewer can explain to others what the Bible teaches.  Yet here the apostle urges all Christians to ‘recall the words . . .’.

God’s chosen people in the Old Testament were repeatedly told that it was by obeying what God taught them that all would be well.  Moses said,

“These are the commands, decrees and laws the LORD your God directed me to teach you to observe . . .” Deuteronomy 6:1

“Hear, O Israel and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you.” Deuteronomy 6:4

“These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.  Impress them on your children.  Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” Deuteronomy 6:6-7

Leaders were especially told to know the word of God.  Future kings had this as a priority,

“When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites.  It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the LORD his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees.” Deuteronomy 17:18-19

Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible with 176 verses, all of which refer in some way to the Word of God.  It is a powerful psalm, teaching, for example:

“How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.”Psalm 119:9

“Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.” Psalm 119:18

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Psalm 119:105

The last verse of the Psalm is very significant.  Knowing the Bible is not enough.  God wants us all to live by what he teaches and not stray from a close walk with him.  The Psalm finishes with,

“I have strayed like a lost sheep.  Seek your servant, for I have not forgotten your commands” Psalm 119:176

Understanding God’s word has always been the way people can be trained in ‘wholesome thinking’.  This is exactly what Peter was reminding his readers about.  These words spoken by God’s prophets and apostles are ‘the very words of God’ (Romans 3:2).

A word of warning is needed here.  The purpose of Scripture is to teach us about how to live in relationship with God.  It is not the authoratitive source of information on every subject.

Galileo built himself a telescope and saw that the moon had mountains and crates much like earth.  It was not made of a lighter ‘fifth substance’ that Aristotle had taught as the explanation for why the moon, sun and starts did not fall to earth.  This was the origin of the word ‘quintessence’.  The Roman church allied itself to Aristotelian teaching because it fitted well with their understanding of the Bible.  The number ‘seven’ is the divine number in Scripture so they thought that there should be just seven planets circulating round the earth, which must be at the centre of God’s creation as it is ‘the apple of his eye’.  Galileo realised from the scientific evidence that the sun had to be the centre of the solar system and that there were four planets circulating Jupiter, and this brought him into direct conflict with the church.  The Inquisition reckoned him to be a heretic arguing that the Bible repeatedly says ‘the earth cannot be moved’, so how dare Galileo say that the earth moves around the sun.  It was Galileo’s friend Cardinal Baronius who realised the truth:

“The intention of the Holy Ghost is to teach us how one goes to heaven, not how heaven goes.”

The Bible is not a textbook of science, it was written by people with the scientific understanding of their day, but it is the authority of God to tell us what life is about, why God has placed us on earth and how he wants us to live during our relatively short time here.  It teaches that God wants us to get to know him and to live with and for him.

How to be encouraged spiritually

It is clearly Peter’s intention to encourage the Christians and he recognised that this must be done by understanding Scripture, God’s word to us.  It is by listening to what god says that we will be prevented from turning away from God.  The writer of the letter to the Hebrews understood this need:

“See to it brothers, that none of you has a sinful unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.  But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.” Hebrews 3:12-13

The writer clearly does not think that a weekly sermon is enough.  We need to encourage each other every day.  We all have a tendency to drift away from God and regular encouragement from the Word of God is vital.  We are only secure in our salvation if we remain living with and for Christ.  Away from Christ there is no salvation.  The writer continues,

“We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.” Hebrews 3:14

How are we encouraged daily through the word?  All Christians should get into the habit of systematically reading a portion of the Scriptures every day and, if possible, sharing what they have learned with someone else   The regular use of recorded talks is invaluable in helping us understand Scripture.

The apostles priorities

This is why it is so important to keep reminding people of God’s Word to us.  There are many social and religious pressures that churches face, but we must never forget that the priority of the church is to teach the Word of God and encourage people to live by what God says.  The early church faced such pressures.  There were many widows who needed to be supported and this was taking up much of the apostles time.  In order to free them for what mattered most they appointed seven deacons to take over this work.  What is striking is that at least two of these new deacons, Stephen and Philip later became ardent teachers of the Word of God.  The apostles met together and concluded,

“It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. . . We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.” Acts 6:2-4

When Paul realised that his execution was approaching, he wrote his final letter to Timothy who was to continue the work Paul had been given.  He reminded Timothy of the centrality of Scripture with these words,

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of god may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16

The Scriptures train us in what it means to be righteous and equips us to fulfil the work we have been chosen to complete.  Paul then gives timothy a solemn charge, which is relevant to all Christians leaders,

“In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage with careful instruction.  For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine . . . they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn to myths.” 2 Timothy 4:1-4

God’s Judgement

This is not a popular subject and so is seldom emphasised in churches.  How many times have you heard a minister taking a funeral assuring the family a someone who has died that, ‘They have gone to a better place’ or ‘They have gone to be with the Saviour of the world’?  In contrast the Bible teaches:

“Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” Hebrews 9:27-28

The outcome of that judgment depends on our relationship with the Lord Jesus whilst we are living this life.  Only those who love him, ‘who are waiting for him’ will be saved.  The apostle John kept repeating this point in his gospel,

“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.” John 3:36

One striking example about how the church can twist what the Bible teaches can be seen from the use of Psalm 95, which is popularly known in Anglican and Roman Catholic circles as the ‘Venite’ from the Latin of the opening word ‘Come’.  The first seven verses of the psalm are a call to worship the living God.

“Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD . . . For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all Gods. . .  Come let us bow down in worship . . . for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care.” Psalm 95:1-7a

That is usually where the singing stops.  The reason is that the psalm then goes on to warn those who have professed to follow the LORD that their hardened hearts will result in judgment!

“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah (means testing) in the desert, where your fathers tested me and tried me though they had seen what I did.  For forty years I was angry with that generation; I said, ‘They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they have not known my ways.’ So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’” Psalm 95:7b-11

Christians follow what the Bible teaches and so we must never be complacent, we must never drift from Christ, as our very salvation depends on him.

It is remarkable that in the Anglican ‘Alternative Service Book’, the Venite has been written in the service of morning prayer, but these last verses have been replaced by much softer words, addressed to other people, saying that they will face a judgment, instead of the actual warning which is for us, God’s people.

Peter longed for all Gods people to think clearly,

“Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you.  I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.  I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Saviour through your apostles.” 2 Peter 3:1-2

How we Christians need to be reminded afresh about what God teaches us in His Word.

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