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“False Teachers And God's Judgment”
• 8.26.18 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service
Intro.
- We closed our time in the Word last week,
understanding the spiritual climate that the church has always existed in. As
soon as the true prophets wrote, the false prophets rose up to oppose.
- Peter is telling them that it was true before
their day and it was true in their day as well. False teachers would creep in
and secretly introduce their destructive heresies.
- In hopes of fulfilling their covetous nature,
they use plastic words to make merchandise of the people of God. Sadly, there
are many that will follow their ways. What will God do about it?
- In the time remaining, Peter sets our lenses
wide over the course of history to reveal the scope of his powerful response.
Verse 4.
Text
• II Peter
2:4,5 : "For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them
down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for
judgment; and did not spare the ancient
world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness,
bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly;" : If you ever needed clarity regarding God's feelings about false
teachers, look no further. They belong in the same category as rebellious
angels that were cast into hell!
- Peter begins where rebellion against God
began. With the angels that sinned. The majority feel that this refers to the angels
in Genesis 6 that bred hybrids with
women.
- I want to suggest that this refers to a time
in pre-history. Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 both convey elements of
Satan's mindset that was discovered in eternity past.
- His pride in his own beauty corrupted him and
he sought to overthrow God's government. Revelation
12 lays out some details which many consider descriptive of this
ill-conceived rebellion.
• Revelation
12:7-9 : "And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with
the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a
place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out,
that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world;
he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." :
- Jesus, in a classic bit of one upmanship,
notes in Luke 10:18 that He saw
Satan fall to earth like lightning! The rest of Satan's cohorts were
transferred to hell, or as Peter says, "Tartarus."
- The Greeks considered this the deepest part
of Gehenna or as Isaiah 14:15 says,
"the lowest depths of the pit."
- Those powerful angels will be held there
until the final judgment. They could not withstand God's hand of judgment and
neither could the entire rebellious antedilluvian world!
- Certain scholars have remarked that the
population of earth at the time of Noah had already ballooned to 3 billion!
That entire civilization, save Noah's family, fell to the judgment of God!
- Did you see how Peter remembers him? He calls
Noah a "Preacher of righteousness!" Genesis doesn't record a single
sermon. In fact, he doesn't speak until after the flood!
- God impresses upon Peter to write about his
preaching, his announcement of God's judgment. Noah acted as the Lord's herald
of righteousness, as he built the ark!
- That world could not claim ignorance to the
righteous requirements of God. And talk about having a small congregation! Only
he and his family made it out alive! Verse 6.
• II Peter
2:6-8 : "and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes,
condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward
would live ungodly; and delivered righteous Lot, who
was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling
among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing
their lawless deeds)—" : God judged sin within the
spirit realm. He judged sin on the world stage and now we see Him pinpointing
His judgment on a localized level.
- The twin cities of Sodom and Gommorah were
instantly incinerated by the Lord when their sin came up before Him. He
condemned them to destruction, literally catastrophe, and it happened!
- God did this to make them an enduring example
to the ungodly. Archeologists are finding evidence of it now at Tell El Hammam,
the likely site of the city of Sodom.
- There is a living reminder on Earth that is
currently being uncovered right now in 2018, that God's judgment is real,
physical and interactive with rebellious human beings!
- To those that live ungodly, a word which
refers to living your life as if God doesn't exist, take notice and understand
that His judgment is no joke! Neither is His power to deliver!
- In the midst of that ungodly and wretched
city, there was one man that God singled out, that Peter here calls
"righteous." In case you believe a mistake has been made, note the
repetition.
- God records through Peter the decree of Lot's
righteousness no less than three times in these verses! No mistake has been
made. God considered Lot a righteous man!
- When you re-read Genesis 19 alone, you might be tempted to think otherwise and that
is a great lesson for you and I. That passage presents Lot in his absolute
worst moments.
- We tend to make a final analysis about people
without knowledge of their current circumstance or their progressive change. That
type of judgment is wrong and forbidden by the Lord!
- God didn't just see his moments of weakness.
He saw a man that was also oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked!
- The word "oppressed" paints the
picture of a man who is worn down to the point of exhaustion from labor.
Sodom's untiring, unwavering, unbridled lust wore Lot out!
- Peter explains that living among them
provided a non-stop, visual and auditory onslaught which repeatedly tortured
his soul!
- When a Greek sailor used this word, it
referred to fighting against a head wind. We might use a phrase today like
"an uphill climb" or a "losing battle."
- Many of you who work or live among the
ungodly know this man's vexation. Having to deal with that on a daily basis
would probably lead to moments that you were not proud of either!
- God's destruction of Sodom, as well as His
deliverance of Lot, took some work! That's Peter's point with these stories.
Verse 9.
• II Peter
2:9-10a : "—then
the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the
unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who walk
according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority." : God's track record preserves two truths. First, He will always
know how to rescue His people out of their trials.
- He has the wisdom to distinguish between the
righteous and the ungodly. He has the power to affect deliverance and to
imprison for punishment!
- He created a way for Noah and His family to
escape the flood. When Lot was too tired to move, He sent angels to drag him
out of the soon to be demolished city.
- God is never at a loss when it comes to ways
to rescue you and I. He is never limited by our thinking or our preference. He
has the power to preserve and to reserve!
- He will either be your deliverer or your prison
guard! That's what the word "reserve" meant. It was a guard that
oversaw a prisoner's stay. The unjust see God as their warden.
- He especially has His eye upon those that
carry on their life, living by the dictates of their carnal nature. Their
nature swims in desires related to uncleanness.
- This is an interesting word. It refers to
dying a material, or staining something. When used of a soul, there is an
equivalence to the Old Testament concept of being ceremonially unclean.
- For those that remember our studies in Leviticus, you'll recall that people
could become ceremonially unclean in a number of ways and would remain so until
they offered a sacrifice.
- In the same way here, this person has allowed
something to defile them mentally. This person has stained their souls by
indulging desires that God condemns.
- This could refer to blatant, explicit sins or
simple unforgiveness and bitterness. They allow this sin to rule their lives,
despising the authority of God. Listen to the definition for
"despise."
˚ "To
exercise the mind, i.e. entertain or have a sentiment or opinion; by
implication, to be (mentally) disposed (more or less earnestly in a certain
direction)" BLB on phroneo
- In order to despise authority, Lordship, the
proper order of things as arranged by the Lord, this person has to have an
allegiance to their own mental disposition.
- These are the teachers that have no problem
believing in evolution, gender reassignment, homosexual union, and the like.
They believe that have authority to redefine sovereign perameters!
- Consequently, they are soiled in their soul
and they won't seek out the proper way to receive the cure for their spiritual
malady. How does this attitude express itself? Peter answers in verse 10b.
• II Peter
2:10b-13a : "They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak
evil of dignitaries, whereas angels, who are greater in power and might, do not bring
a reviling accusation against them before the Lord. But these, like natural brute
beasts made to be caught and destroyed, speak evil of the things they do not
understand, and will utterly perish in their own corruption, and will receive the wages of
unrighteousness, as those who count it pleasure to carouse in the daytime." : False teachers are presumptuous. The picture is of a daring
man, audacious and brazen in the face of certain condemnation.
- This person has a blatant lack of respect for
the Lord and for His ways. They are the arrogant, thoughtful only of what
pleases themselves. The next phrase is interesting.
- They have no fear of mocking glorious ones!
The NLT translates this, "daring
even to scoff at supernatural beings without so much as trembling."
- The false prophets believe themselves to be
so powerful that they can act in a way that even the actually powerful angels
themselves would not dare to embrace!
- Angels know better than to level a slanderous
charge against these principalities. Angels are content to say, "The Lord
rebuke you" to Satan! False teachers talk right at Satan and demons!
- Peter tells us that they don't have the sense
of a donkey! "They are like natural brute beasts."
- They are wild animals, tied only to their
physical dictates. The goal, like that of an animal, is to fulfill their ever
increasing physical needs. This is why they are brutish, unreasonable,
illogical.
- Literally, they are without the potential for
logic! Such a person that embraces this false way of life is bred to be
captured and destroyed. Peter is not saying that God made them this way.
- Rather, by adopting this way of life, they
have made themselves a natural prey to the Lord!
- These blaspheme what they don't understand
and are destined to be ruined in their own moral filth! It has never ended
another way!
- The may die in luxury, but the false teacher
has been set on a slippery slope for eternal ruin. They will get their wages
but their due is not heavenly glory, but everlasting doom!
- They will be treated as all who live for
hedonism will be. They should be ashamed and do it under the cover of darkness,
but their love for it in the daytime speaks of their utter corruption.
- They don't even have the sense to be ashamed
of it! They cannot wait to indulge themselves and will sacrifice any semblance
of reputation for the sake of their lust. Verse 13.
• II Peter
2:13b-14 : "They are spots and blemishes, carousing in their own deceptions
while they feast with you, having eyes full of adultery and that cannot cease from sin,
enticing unstable souls. They have a heart trained in covetous practices, and
are accursed children." : False teachers are
disgraceful stains on the body of Christ. They are reveling in their own deceptions
while they maintain the appearance of fellowship.
- False teachers are often at the fellowship
feasts of the early church, but they aren't there for pure reasons. They don't
want to be built up or be conformed to the image of Christ.
- They are looking for the opportunity to satisfy
their desires. Their eyes are full of adultery. The idea is that they are
hunting for potential partners in adultery. They can't restrain themselves!
- They frequent these feasts in order to reset
the bait! We examined the word "enticed" when we studied the book of
James. They keep coming back to check if anyone is nibbling!
- Are they looking for the established ones?
Will they go to the people with the best reputations and the most experience
with the Lord? Nope. Their bait is particular to unstable souls.
- These are the people who are
"unfixed" in their positions. They are vascillating between their own
opinions and clear biblical revelation. They have heard the truth, but are not
rooted in it.
- From an adulterous point of view, they are
looking for the weakest marriages, perhaps even among those whose partners are
not saved. The false teacher can spot this a mile away!
- Their hearts have been exercising their craft
in fraud. They have spent years studying people's responses, collecting
information on what works, perfecting their cons.
- False teachers are not just good by their own
vices. They are practiced and Peter rightly calls them cursed children, meaning
that they are living under the curse of God! Verse 15.
•
II Peter 2:15,16 : "They have forsaken the right way
and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the
wages of unrighteousness; but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey speaking with
a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet." : To those that believe the notion that a false teacher is merely
mistaken or misinformed, please listen to our brother Peter.
-
They have not erred in their way. They have forsaken it! They have left it
behind. They have purposely neglected the right or straight path, repeatedly
wandering away from the ways of the Lord!
-
This is the kind of spiritual adultery that Baalam embodied, whose heart was
tied to his great love for the wages of unrighteousness, though he possessed
some gifting from God!
-
When you go back to read Numbers 22-24
on it's own, you might be inclined to look at Baalam as a man that was
genuinely conflicted.
-
"God says I can't go, but if I do go, I will only say what He wants."
As you read this inspired commentary on Balaam, you understand that his
hesitance was not a desire for greater clarity.
-
He used his supposed relationship with the Lord to negotiate a better payday
with King Balak. God literally stopped him in his sin, having to shock him with
a man's voice emanating from a donkey!
-
The perfectly sane donkey stopped the permanently insane prophet! Verse 17.
•
II Peter 2:17-19 : "These are wells without water, clouds
carried by a tempest, for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. For when they speak great swelling
words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through
lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error. While they promise them liberty,
they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by
him also he is brought into bondage." : Think
about Peter's audience. If you were walking to a well to collect your family's
daily water, complete with a heavy pitcher on your head, what would an empty
well be to you?
-
The same goes for a heavy dark cloud on a windy day. In an agrarian society or
an arid climate like that found in the near East, rain would be a highly
esteemed and welcome visitor.
-
False prophets have a look about them which belies a satisfying experience.
When you reach them, you will be disappointed, because what they promise, they
will always fail to deliver!
- God reserves the lowest place in hell
for them. Why? Their promises, which are overswollen words of vanity, and their
lewd ways are attracting the ones that once escaped a life of error!
-
They are unable to even help themselves! The remain prisoners who pretend to be
liberated from their wickedness! But their self deception doesn't end with
their own ruin!
-
They are promising liberty to those that are already in liberty! Ultimately,
they are agents of Satan who are looking to deceive God's people back into
slavery!
•
II Peter 2:18 (NLT) :
"With an appeal to twisted sexual
desires, they lure back into sin those who have barely escaped from a lifestyle
of deception." : Their message is close enough to Christianity, that
genuine Christians abandon truth for it!
-
The false teachers preach a gospel that doesn't require you to change anything.
You can still drink, never come to church, live with your significant other
outside of marriage and be ok!
-
"Don't worry about sin. Forget about repentance! God will accept you just
the way you are!" Some part of this is true and that's the danger of it!
-
Only those that are worried about their sin will seek out a Savior. Only those
that believe upon Him, proving it by repenting of their sin, will be saved!
-
God will have accepted you the way that you were, but a true Christian will not
be one that remains that way because God never leaves us the way He finds us!
-
What a tragic truth for those that sell this pseudo, sub Christian trash. But
what a terrible fate awaits the one that buys it! Verse 20.
•
II Peter 2:20-22 : "For if, after they have escaped the
pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse
for them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way
of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment
delivered to them. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: 'A dog returns to his own vomit,' and, 'a sow, having washed, to her
wallowing in the mire.'" : Verse 20 is the twin verse to Hebrews
6:4-6. Where will a Christian person go if they become interwoven with
their old life again after having escaped through a knowledge of Jesus?
-
This isn't a cursory, intellectual knowledge. This is deep, experiential
knowledge. These people are about as saved as one can get! Now, notice the
phrase carefully.
-
To become entangled and overcome. I have seen, in my own life and in the life
of others, seasons of weakness, but then a dominant return from forays into sin.
-
They have gotten tangled up, but it didn't last! They repented. They turned. They
untangled themselves by the grace afforded them! What Peter is referring to is
quite different.
-
This person finds themselves willingly interweaving themselves into their old
life patterns. They aren't fighting to get up. They are giving in to what
formerly trapped them, calling it "salvation!"
-
It is far worse to have been delivered and to return than to never have been
delivered at all! To have known the goodness of the Lord and to know that you
have thrown it away, is devastation!
-
Peter turns to Proverbs 26:11 and
sees the corrolation. They have proven their nature by their appetite! A dog
returns it's own vomit. You can't train that out of an animal.
-
How about a pig? You can clean that animal up on the outside all that you want!
It can sparkle and win a ribbon at the fair. Guess where it will be when the
eyes aren't on it?
-
Right back in the mire, not just playing around it, but sinking itself as deep
as it can go into it!
Conclusion
- Peter is
dealing with reality. False teacher are everywhere and God sees it! He is not
unaware. You and I can be sure that God will judge them.
- You can be
just as sure that if you remain in His truth to the end, God will save you. But
you must beware of believing something that isn't true as well.
- Anyone who
has believed that they can re-write Christian ethics, standards or laws, to
whatever degree that is true, has brought deception into their hearts.
- I close by
asking you now: Is your appetite for Christ growing or is your appetite for
this world growing? Your feeding pattern will provide the answer for you!
- I say to you
what Peter says to us all: "It's better to have never known Christ, than
it is to have known Him and return to our old life!" May we never know
that reality.
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