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Last night we continued our study through 2 Peter. Here are the notes:

 1:1-11  Peter opens by talking about how much Christians have been given by God (v.1-4), and then encourages them to actively pursue growth in the attributes of a Christian (v.5-7), which will lead both to a meaningful life now (v.8-9) and, most importantly, a guaranteed entrance with honor into the kingdom of Christ, in the next life.

1:12
“For this reason” – that is, because of this need for diligence and the danger of falling he has hinted at (v.10), Peter says He will remind them of the things they need to know to help them on this journey.

1:13-15   
He wants them to “always have a reminder” because there’s dangers of:

1. False teaching that claims to represent the true way (see 2:1-3)
2. Circumstances that seem to contradict what Christians expect (see 3:1-4)

Peter views his written document as the thing Christians will need to have recourse to, as a reminder of what he and the Apostles actually taught. And notice–he thinks that same way about both the Old Testament (3:2) and Paul’s letters (3:15-16)

Challenge: The written documents of the Bible are our sure guide to truth. They are God’s way of making sure we actually enjoy the benefits of 1:1-4 by attaining to the life envisioned in 1:5-8, and enjoying the eternity promised in 1:9-11.

1:16-18   
“For” – the connection: it is important to have a reminder of the things Peter’s writing about, since the Apostles really do know what they’re talking about—they really are the authoritative messengers of Christ. Peter advances two reasons for this: 

1. They were eyewitnesses of Christ (v.16-18), as opposed to “myth” followers (or inventors)
2. The word they preach about Christ is the confirmation of the OT, which was from God (v.19-21)

First, he says, the apostles were eyewitnesses of Christ (v.16-18), as opposed to “myth” followers (or inventors). Notice, specifically, the word “coming”–the issue seems to be stated in 3:3-4. False teachers were questioning if Jesus was really going to come back. So the question Peter’s getting at is: were the Apostles right to preach that Christ was coming back and would judge everyone? (see Mt 24:31-32; Acts 10:42, 17:30-31). His answer? Yes, because they saw it firsthand, and they reported his “power and coming” as they saw it. In other words, Peter says that the vision of the transfiguration which they saw, and the voice of God which they heard (quoting Psalm 2) out of heaven, was God’s way of showing them Christ’s coming glory (and status as Ruler/Judge) before it happened. 

1:19-21   
Second, he says that the message the apostles preached about Christ is the confirmation of the OT, which was from God (v.19-21) 

“prophetic word”  is the Old Testament prophecies. It is our light until Christ comes back. It wasn’t simply a man’s interpretation of the visions he saw (1:20), and it wasn’t just made up by a man either (1:21), instead, the prophets were “carried” along by the Spirit in what they wrote.

 Notice:
1. God shows people things, visually (v.16)
2. God speaks to them about what He’s shown them, to interpret (v.17)
3. God works with and in those people so they write what He wants written. (v.20-21)

Also:  
1. The bible is not based on myths, but eyewitness evidence in history
2. The bible is not just human experience and interpretation, but God’s interpretation

Challenge:

Christ will come back. How we live matters. We have been given evidence of this, and writings to keep us from forgetting it. God Himself has given us the information we need, so we don’t have to walk in darkness.

Thoughts for a non-believer:

 This passage totally upends what most people think of when they think about Christianity. 

1. Current thought, which discounts the Bible, is based on two assumptions: Either 1) there is no God, or 2) There may be a God, but God could not or would not give us reliable information about Himself, ourselves, and our world. But these assumptions need to be discussed.
2. Peter says the Bible, and the Christian message it contains, is a historical account based on evidence. We invite historical investigation.
3. So, Christian “faith” is never about “just believing when there’s no evidence,” but it is about finding out what God says, and trusting Him, using the evidence He has given us to trust Him.
4. Jesus and his followers preached that everyone needed to repent before he comes back, because our lives will be judged by His standards. (Acts 17:30-31)
5. If Jesus is who He said He was, and if these records are accurate, we all need to reckon with this.

Last night we began our trip through 2 Peter. Here are the notes from the study:

First, we looked at the whole letter to get the context for the first eleven verses, working our way in to the passage we were going to study:

Notice the common terms at the beginning and end of the letter:
1:1-2     “grace and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God”
3:18      sign off : grown in Grace and the knowledge of our Lord. (an experiential, relational connection.) These passages give us the overall point of the letter: Peter wants us to be constantly growing in our knowledge of God, which will make us always growing in our possession of the things God has freely given us.

1:3-4     He wants grace multiplied to us in this knowledge, because it is through this knowledge that His divine power has given to us everything we need!  This includes the “promises” of final escape and eternal life. These promises are at the center of the issue Peter addresses here. Which is why he brings up “promises again in 3:13 – We’re waiting for the promises of a new earth: see also 3:4+9.

Now notice 1:10-11 – “you’ll never stumble” and 3:17 – “beware lest you fall.”
Peter wants us to not fall, but instead experience both the fullest life now, and the fullest reward when the promises are fully realized. 

So the issue Peter’s addressing in this letter is: We have been given what we need to live out this Christian life, and we have promises to motivate us to keep forward, to live out the kind of life that will be richly rewarded at the return of Christ, but there are pitfalls that could make us miss out:

• Ch 2 pitfall: false teaching that makes us think it doesn’t matter how we live
• Ch 3 pitfall: false belief that Jesus won’t come back (and judge lives)

In 1:1-11 we might boil Peter’s answer for how to avoid these pitfalls down to one word: “diligence.” You’ll find it in both 1:5 (at the beginning of the list of things he wants us to pursue) and 1:7 (at the end of the list). (see also 3:10-14)

Walking through the passage:

v.1-4    God’s Grace: What we have been given, and how we’ve been given it:

what we have:

1. A faith on par with the apostles. (v.1)
2. The possibility of a constant, growing experience of the benefits of knowing God (v.2)
3. Everything we need for life and godliness (v.3)
4. Great and precious promises (v.4)
5. The experience of being a “partaker of the divine nature” (v.4)
6. Escape from the decay of the world (v.4)

how we got it:

v.1    Because of Christ’s righteousness
v.3    because of His divine power.
v.3    by his own glory and virtue. Because He is who He is.                             

The connection (from what He is, to us) is seen in 1:2 — we get these things through knowing him. That is, an experiential, relational connection.

v.5-7    Our necessary response: to give all diligence (focused, sustained effort) to pursue these qualities:           

• “faith” = faith in Christ/in the gospel about Christ, through which He gives us the knowledge by which we have all these things (v.3)…/ “Faithfulness” or commitment to Christ.
• “virtue” = moral excellence
• “knowledge” = wisdom needed for a virtuous life. Practical, rather than theoretical knowledge
• “self-control” = restraint in the area of bodily passions
• “perseverance”
• “godliness” = appropriate respect towards the deity and those associated with him
• “brotherly kindness” = family affection, extended to all believers
• “love” = the sum of the list, incorporates all the others…

v.8-9    what we avoid by living this way:  ineffectiveness and unfruitfulness, and (v.10-11) falling.

Summing it up: 
In knowing Jesus, we’ve been given everything we need for life now, and promises for the future. Peter exhorts us to experience the fullest life Christ has to offer, and to ensure that we really will inherit the promises we’ve been given, by pursuing the godliness made possible by our connection to Christ.

challenges: 

1. Pursue this personal, relational connection. Cultivate!
2. Know what God is for you, and has done for you in Christ.
3. Practice defining your situation in life by these things. See everything that comes your way in the context of your relationship to, your union with, Christ.
4. Respond to what is already true by pressing forward to pursue these things, so that you would  experience constant growth by using God’s power to move forward in your spiritual life.
5. Embrace the process, be willing to move at God’s pace, and don’t grow weary.