Peter wrote this letter
just before he died. We can say that these are his last words. Tradition says Peter died
in Rome before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.
Four things God wants:
1) He wants His people to live correctly (2 Peter 1:1-11)
Being a Christian is more than just making a decision; it is living with the knowledge of God. This knowledge gives us hope of eternal life and makes us partakers of the divine nature. Only when we do the things God wants can we be sure that we are following His path. There is no place for the undecided. To the bedrock of faith in Christ we are to add virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love.
2) He wants His people to live according to the written word (2 Peter 1:12-21)
Jesus came to this world not to open the door of heaven, but to be known. This knowledge was imparted to his twelve apostles so that they in turn could teach us. Peter says that he wants us to remember these things. We cannot remember anything about the life of Jesus that is not written. The 'prophecies' state what we need to know relating to the life of Jesus. Immediately Peter goes on to speak of the Scriptures and the confidence you have in them to communicate with certainty about God.
3) He wants us to be aware of the judgment that awaits those who cause others to deviate from the truth. (2 Peter 2:1-3:7)
Peter is very upset about the situation of the 'false teachers' who cause others to deviate from the truth. Peter wants to make clear that God will punish these people. (Often when we have in mind the judgment of God, we tend not to think of our own walk.) But Peter’s description of those who will be judged is chilling. He describes them as 'brute beasts, as creatures of instinct to be captured and killed, reviling what they do not understand, slaves of corruption who are reserved for fire until the day of judgment.'
We can be tempted to ask, "Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation "(2 Peter 3:4). Why didn’t God keep his promises?
4) He wants all his people to be saved (2 Peter 3:8-13)
Why does God seems so slow to keep his promise about the judgment of the wicked? Peter answers: God’s desire to destroy the wicked is tempered by His love for His people. The destruction of the wicked is sure (2 Peter 3:7), but God also wants all his people to be saved (2 Peter 3:8-13). The Day of the Lord is not for primarily judgment, but for salvation. God’s patience in delaying the day of judgment is so that all of us (compared to all of them in chapter 2) can repent and become part of his people. Then Peter explains that God will make a new heaven and a new earth where we will see justice.
Final Warnings (2 Peter 3:14-18)
Peter closes with warnings about the need for Christians not to twist the Scripture to their own destruction as some do (2 Peter 3:16). The cause of this twisting is the instability and ignorance of those not schooled in the Word.
Four things God wants:
1) He wants His people to live correctly (2 Peter 1:1-11)
Being a Christian is more than just making a decision; it is living with the knowledge of God. This knowledge gives us hope of eternal life and makes us partakers of the divine nature. Only when we do the things God wants can we be sure that we are following His path. There is no place for the undecided. To the bedrock of faith in Christ we are to add virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love.
2) He wants His people to live according to the written word (2 Peter 1:12-21)
Jesus came to this world not to open the door of heaven, but to be known. This knowledge was imparted to his twelve apostles so that they in turn could teach us. Peter says that he wants us to remember these things. We cannot remember anything about the life of Jesus that is not written. The 'prophecies' state what we need to know relating to the life of Jesus. Immediately Peter goes on to speak of the Scriptures and the confidence you have in them to communicate with certainty about God.
3) He wants us to be aware of the judgment that awaits those who cause others to deviate from the truth. (2 Peter 2:1-3:7)
Peter is very upset about the situation of the 'false teachers' who cause others to deviate from the truth. Peter wants to make clear that God will punish these people. (Often when we have in mind the judgment of God, we tend not to think of our own walk.) But Peter’s description of those who will be judged is chilling. He describes them as 'brute beasts, as creatures of instinct to be captured and killed, reviling what they do not understand, slaves of corruption who are reserved for fire until the day of judgment.'
We can be tempted to ask, "Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation "(2 Peter 3:4). Why didn’t God keep his promises?
4) He wants all his people to be saved (2 Peter 3:8-13)
Why does God seems so slow to keep his promise about the judgment of the wicked? Peter answers: God’s desire to destroy the wicked is tempered by His love for His people. The destruction of the wicked is sure (2 Peter 3:7), but God also wants all his people to be saved (2 Peter 3:8-13). The Day of the Lord is not for primarily judgment, but for salvation. God’s patience in delaying the day of judgment is so that all of us (compared to all of them in chapter 2) can repent and become part of his people. Then Peter explains that God will make a new heaven and a new earth where we will see justice.
Final Warnings (2 Peter 3:14-18)
Peter closes with warnings about the need for Christians not to twist the Scripture to their own destruction as some do (2 Peter 3:16). The cause of this twisting is the instability and ignorance of those not schooled in the Word.
We
have an obligation to thoroughly study and know our faith. There is no place for a light
Christianity, or Christianity with little study.
It is not enough just to cruise through the Christian life presuming on God’s
goodness to bring us to completion in the Christian life.
If we cannot explain our
faith,
we don´t know our faith.
If we don´t know our faith,
we cannot share it.
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