2 Peter Series: Corruption from the Top Down - Part 1

                                     Corruption from the Top Down: Part 1

2 Peter 2:1-3

This has been an interesting week, my irrigation stopped working for no apparent reason, I began my investigation by looking to see why there wasn’t any water flow. I unhooked the water line, it worked well. I disassembled the valves and zones, they were working properly. I was perplexed, on the screen for the irrigation control panel, there was a little icon that showed (AC). I followed the power extension cord and found that it had been chewed to the point where it shorted out and burned the cord near the house. I felt relieved that the house didn’t catch fire or anyone get hurt. The interesting thing was that the GFI didn’t trip, nor did the breaker in the electric box. The lesson I learned was that harm can come in areas where you have safety precautions in place. I don’t know what chewed the cord, but harm can come from the outside as well as the inside, and in places where you wouldn’t expect. Peter knew that his time was short. He remembered Jesus’ warning that false teachers would arise, even from within the church (Matthew 7:15-23; 24:11-28). Let’s look at the text, But there were also false prophets in Israel, just as there will be false teachers among you.

First, Peter knew there would be “wolves among the sheep.” And he knew the best protection was to know the real, it would show up the false. In the early church, there were men who wanted fame, notoriety, and money (Acts 8:9-13; Rev. 2:9) and they were not ashamed of doing it. There were also women who enticed people away like Jezebel did in Israel (Rev. 2:20-24). The teaching of false doctrines and false prophecies go back to the garden of Eden with Satan’s lies about God. Satan was at work to destroy the early church from within and without. 

Peter knew many new converts had come from the temple cults, and the dissatisfied (Judizers) within the jewish synagogue. As Jesus said, there would be false teachers and false prophets, they are liars, and they would be known by their fruit. (Matt. 7:15-23). 

Again, Peter knew that the best protection was to know Jesus, and the teaching (writing of the gospels) of the Apostles, including the writings of Paul. “He writes the same way 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 3:16)

Application - False teachers from within and without are ravaging the church today. The pagan world is always attacking the credibility of God’s Word and the moral integrity of the church. Jesus said to not be deceived (Matt. 24:4-5).  The cults are sometimes more difficult to spot, they distort the truth of God’s word by twisting it  and adding to it to show a new revelation. They will quote scripture, but will also demonstrate their true nature by the way that they live. They will conjure, predict, and contrive stories or events that they believe will happen and will never take place. 

True teachers will draw from the prophecies to be unfolded in the future given by the Old and New Testament prophets: Jesus, and John the revelator, but again, God the Father will act and bring them about in His perfect timing. 

One of the things that I have seen in our days, is the political prophets, always predicting events, and most of them never happen because the future is in the hands of God the Father, not men. He wills and acts according to His perfect purpose. I know it is easy for the church to get caught up in these predictions and the revelry of anger and injustice, just look at social media today, even from church leadership. 

Again, Jesus told us not to be deceived by the wolves and might I add the demonic influence that is prevalent in our world today. Jesus told us to fix our eyes upon Him, His Word, and the voice and leadership of the Holy Spirit, and the discerning of the Spirit (1 John 4:1; 2 Cor. 12:10) and of these the enemy of our souls cannot duplicate. He may try, even to the end, to replicate miracles and Christ himself (antichrist). Look at Moses against the wisemen and sorcerers of Pharaoh, they tried to copy God but failed to do all. They reproduced snakes, blood, and frogs, but they couldn’t replicate everything God did in judgment. 

God spoke through Paul about the antichrist, false prophets and teachers, “And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming. The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie, and all the ways that wickedness deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.” (2 Thes. 2:8-10)

Next, Peter went into depth on the schemes of the enemy, Satan, who was using these false teachers and prophets to entice away the church from within. Let’s look at the text, ”They will cleverly teach destructive heresies and even deny the Master who bought them...their evil teaching and shameful immorality... the way of truth will be slandered… In their greed they will make up clever lies to get hold of your money.”

Peter had already confronted Simon the sorcerer, who wanted the Holy Spirit for monetary and personal gain. Paul, as well as Peter saw the hand of Satan at work in false teaching, “But I am afraid that just as the serpent deceived Eve by his treachery, your minds may be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.” (2 Cor.11:3),  Be careful not to allow anyone to captivate you through an empty, deceitful philosophy that is according to human traditions and the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. (Colossians 2:8), “...certain people not to spread false teachings, nor to occupy themselves with myths and interminable genealogies. Such things promote useless speculations rather than God’s redemptive plan that operates by faith. (1 Tim. 1:4), “But avoid profane chatter because those occupied with it will stray further and further into ungodliness, and their message will spread its infection like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are in this group. They have strayed from the truth by saying that the resurrection has already occurred, and they are undermining some people’s faith. (1 Tim.1:17-18)

Peter draws from Jesus’ teachings about knowing them by their fruit. The works of false (lying) teaching always led to division in the body, and not unity in the Holy Spirit and God’s word. Many distorted the gospel, first they had not experienced or witnessed the teachings of Jesus or saw his miracles. They could only embellish (make up) stories or cleverly created teachings that led people away from Christ and the teachings of the gospels. Many did it for personal gain, teaching lessons about Jesus for money, or declaring their natural gift of speech as proof of their being superapostles, and claiming the apostles were weak speakers, but their teachings and sophisticated speech did not lead people to repentance, nor to the working of the Holy Spirit for miracles that glorified God.

Application - It will take spiritual discernment and knowing Jesus and the truth of God’s Word in order to listen to people who are claiming to speak for God to see their fruit and understand if they are true or false, or preying on the ignorant and weak.

 I was sent a video of a preacher, ranting and raving about Covid, masks, and vaccines, exclaiming that his church went from 100 to over a thousand during the pandemic, and all this while he was sitting in a seat aboard a private jet. There was no gospel message, no mention of salvation through Christ Jesus, or love for that matter in his words. 

We live in the last days, when darkness will increase, false teachers will blossom overnight like dandelions. Here are the fruits mentioned by Peter and Paul to discern who is false: captivated by empty, deceitful philosophy that is according to human traditions,  spurred on by elemental spirits of the world, promoting useless speculations rather than God’s redemptive plan that operates by faith, use profane chatter because it will lead astray themselves and others further and further into ungodliness, teach cleverly destructive heresies and even deny the Lord Jesus Christ, teaching evil and shameful immorality, slander the truth, and in their greed they will make up clever lies to get a hold of your money.  These are a small portion of the evil fruit they bear. Then there are the cults (who claim to be christian) who rewrite and add to the scriptures, publish their own versions of the Bible, and then lead people who follow them to both spiritual death and physical death. But God, he sees their wickedness, and Peter said that they will get what they deserve.

Last, Peter addresses the just and righteousness of the Almighty God. Let’s look at the text, “In this way, they will bring sudden destruction on themselves... But God condemned them long ago, and their destruction will not be delayed” Peter knew how God judged lying, pride, and greed. Ananius and his wife fell dead at Peter’s feet because they chose to lie to God. Peter knew that God's perfect timing would discipline and punish all sins, especially the sin of false teaching, and teaching for fame, pride, and greed. God condemns some immediately, others over a period of time in order for his purpose to be fulfilled. More on this next week.

Application - If you have fallen into the error of teaching false things about God, or have been ignorant and fallen to the teachings of lies, captivated by empty human deceitful philosophies that found their origin in the minds of men or demons, or you joined with the angry, profane false preachers/teachers who speak and speculate on predicting of events that God has not spoken, or have fallen into league with evil people who teach destructive heresies on race, gender, or shameful immorality that always divides. 

There is hope if you will repent, confess your sins to Jesus, and receive forgiveness from God. Like Simon the Sorcerer, whom Peter reprimanded and then saw Simon turn away from his sin and errors and receive forgiveness from God. But like the people in Jerusalem and Judea during Jeremiah’s day, they told Jeremiah and God they wouldn’t turn away from their sins. God said, “Look! I am preparing a disaster for you and devising a plan against you. So turn from your evil ways, each one of you, and reform your ways and your actions. But they will reply, ‘It’s no use. We will continue with our own plans; we will all follow the stubbornness of our evil hearts.’” Jer. 18:12

God is willing that all should come to repentance and forgiveness, and believe upon His Son Jesus the Christ for salvation.

I’m including the ABC’s of Salvation By J.D. Farag, in hopes that anyone who desires to know the truth, the truth will set them free from the bondage of sin and shame.

A - Admit that you are a sinner. This is where that godly sorrow leads to genuine repentance for sinning against a righteous God and there is a change of heart, we change our mind and God changes our hearts and regenerates us from the inside out. Romans 3:10 - As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one." Romans 3:23 - For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (We are all born sinners which is why we must be born spiritually in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven). Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. The bad news is that the wages of sin is death, in other words our sin means that we have been given a death sentence, we have the death penalty hanging over our heads, that's the bad news. But here's the good news: The good news is that the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Ephesians 2:8-9 - For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith —and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.

 B - Believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and that God raised Jesus from the dead. This is trusting with all of your heart that Jesus Christ is who he said he was. Romans 10:9-10 - That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 

C - Call upon the name of the Lord. Every single person who ever lived since Adam will bend their knee and confess with their mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, the Lord of lords and the King of kings. Romans 14:11 - For it is written: "As I live, says the Lord, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God." Don't wait until later — do this now. Romans 10:13 - For "whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." "O God, I am a sinner. I'm sorry for my sin. I want to turn from my sin. I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son; I believe that He died on the cross for my sin and that He was buried and You raised Him to life. I have decided to place my faith in Jesus Christ as my Savior, trusting only in His shed blood as sufficient to save my soul and to take me to heaven. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for saving me. Amen."

Please share this with someone this week, the Lord knows that we and they need it.

If you would like other lessons, please go to http://pmdinhisservice.blogspot.com 

Until next week, In His Service Mike Davis