It Is a Dynamo

Here we are on the podcast…the second letter from Peter.  And for three little chapters, it is a dynamo.  In this letter, Peter not only goes after false teachers, but empowers and encourages us as he goes.

I always come away from reading this first chapter with a sense of awe.  Peter and the other apostles were actual eyewitnesses to Christ’s miracles and teachings.  I know we read about them in the Gospel accounts, but we can be lulled into keeping our aesthetic distance as if we’re reading a story or watching a play.  But Peter’s passion jumps off the page and all the experiences we read about in the Gospels take on a new dimension of power and truth.  

According to chapter 1, verse 14, Peter was about to be martyred.  Or in his words, about to lay aside his bodily tent.  He didn’t seem too stressed about that.  But there is an urgency in his teachings, as if he had so much to pass on while being painfully aware that time to do that was running short.  Tradition tells us that Peter was crucified but refused to assume the upright position of his Savior.  His wish was granted by being crucified upside down.

In preparing this intro, I found an interesting point made by John MacArthur.  He said that Peter never really identifies any particular false teachers but offers more of a characterization of their ‘destructive heresies.’ They deny Christ, they twist Scripture, bring truth into question, and mock Christ’s coming again.  

Knowledge

Peter also spends some time in this letter teaching believers how to stand strong and defend their faith.  Interestingly, the word ‘knowledge’ or some form of it appears 16 times in these three short chapters.  This leads us to believe that knowledge of the Scriptures is our primary offense against false teachers.  At the end of the first chapter, he states clearly that no prophecy ever had its origin in man.  

Let me know if you too are struck by Peter’s firm resolve when he insists they were eyewitnesses to His majesty.  Tell me about it at Lifting Her Voice, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.