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.
BVP