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SECOND PETER

SECOND PETER. Be a lifetime learner of the truth of God 24 th June 2018. INTRODUCTION.

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SECOND PETER

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  1. SECOND PETER Be a lifetime learner of the truth of God 24th June 2018

  2. INTRODUCTION • Second Peter was written to people who did not know the truth of God or were not standing firm in it, so they were in danger of being deceived concerning the second coming of Jesus Christ. The bible exhorts us in several places in the New Testament not to be deceived. We are living in a day when deception is all around us – and it will only increase as we draw nearer to Jesus’ second coming. The only way to avoid being deceived is to know the truth for yourself. People who think they “know it all” fall into deception.

  3. Let the book of II Peter cause you to make a fresh commitment to being a victorious Christian and a “lifetime learner,” one who continually seeks and studies the truth of God’s Word. Do not simply listen to other people, but be convinced for yourself. Study and read on your own; do not just take second-hand information. Stay close to the Word of God. Pray that you will not be deceived, and do whatever it takes to make sure you have accurate knowledge of the Bible. As you pursue deeper and deeper knowledge of the truth, let me encourage you with the words Peter used to close this letter: “But grow in grace (undeserved favour, spiritual strength) and recognition and knowledge and understanding of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (the Messiah). To Him [be] glory (honour, majesty, and splendour) both now and to the day of eternity” (II Peter 3:18).

  4. Father, I pray that Your grace, favour, and peace would be multiplied to me in the full personal precise and correct knowledge of Jesus my Lord. Adapted from II Peter 1:2 • If you ever wanted an instruction manual for your life, know that God’s power has provided everything you need for life and for godliness. (see II Peter 1:3). You receive everything you need through knowing Him and reading His Word. Remember that every one of His promises is for you. Which of His promises do you especially need to remember and believe right now? • According to II Peter 1:3, God’s power provides everything we need to enjoy great and godly lives, but what He provides comes to us through the full, personal knowledge of Him. We cannot know God through someone else. We can know about him through others, but to know Him for ourselves we must study His Word ourselves and spend time with Him individually.

  5. You can be as close to God as you want to be. He is no respecter of persons and if one person can have a close, intimate relationship with Him, then so can everyone else. Why do some people seem so close to God and yet others do not? I believe it all depends on how much time we are willing to put into developing our personal relationship with Him.Going to church does not necessarily make us close to God. Going to church is a good and right thing to do, but we need more than an hour on Sunday morning with God if we are going to learn enough to fulfil our destiny and truly enjoy life.Second Peter 1:3 tells us that God calls us to His own glory and excellence. Wow! He wants us to have excellent lives, but He also expects us to learn how to behave excellently. Finding the strength to do so only comes as we wait on Him. They that wait upon the Lord shall change and renew their strength. (see Isaiah 40:31)

  6. Spending time in God’s Word teaches us right from wrong. The Bible gives many instructions about how to behave with people and in certain circumstances. It teaches us to be excellent and to go the extra mile and do whatever we do as best we can and unto the Lord. I once heard, “If you do not read, you will be the same in five years as you are now.” That is certainly true where the Bible is concerned. As we study God’s Word, we are transformed into His image, from glory to glory (see II Corinthians 3:18). Make a commitment of time to God and I believe you will see the life and power that is available to you through His promises. Be a lifetime learner. Refuse to have a second-hand relationship with God; get to know Him for yourself.

  7. Do you want your Christian life to be effective and bear fruit? Then follow the instructions in II Peter 1: 5 – 7: Be diligent concerning God’s promises, exercise your faith to develop virtue, grow in knowledge, increase in self-control, be steadfast, practice godliness, and show Christian love to others. How can you improve in these areas as you go about your everyday activities and relationships?

  8. Lets have a look at:-2 Peter 2 vs 10and particularly those who walk after the flesh and indulge in the lust of polluting passion and scorn and despise authority presumptuous, daring they scoff at and revile dignitaries without trembling.Second Peter 2:10 says that presumption is a treacherous trait of a person who walks after the flesh.We must always be on guard against presumption. Presumption is behaviour that is arrogant, overconfident, and unreasonably bold. Presumption causes disrespect and rebellious attitudes towards authority.

  9. Presumptuous people talk when they should be quiet. They try to dictate direction to those from whom they should receive counsel. They give orders when they should be receiving them; and they do things without asking permission.Presumption is a big problem and comes from a wrong heart. God does not want us to be presumptuous. He wants us to be humble. Eliminate presumption from your life and cultivate humility.Lets have a look at :-2 Peter 3 vs 8But do not forget this one thing, dear friends. With the Lord a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like a day.

  10. “when, God, when?”Second Peter 3:8 reminds us that God has his own sense of timing. God does not move in our timing. He is never late, but He is usually not early either. He is often the God of the midnight hour. He sometimes waits until the last second before He gives us what we need.We must learn to trust God’s timing. But before we can do that, we must come to the place where we are broken before Him. What I mean is that our self-will and our spirit of independence must be broken before God is free to work His will in our lives and circumstances. Before He intervenes on our behalf, He has to be sure that we are not going to take matter in our own hands and do something out of His perfect timing.

  11. Galatians 6:9 says, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not” (King James Version). The interesting thing about this scripture is that it always seems to encourage people. Yet really, in this verse, God does not tell us when something is going to happen because “ due season” is not specific. If we start checking references that have to do with timing in the Bible, we will find descriptions like: “at the appointed season, in due time, in due season.”

  12. Many times when I am waiting on God in a situation and I get discouraged about the time it is taking for Him to answer, someone gives me one of those kinds of scriptures and it encourages me. I still do not know any details because “due time” is really just the time that God knows is right, but the scripture does remind me to trust God.David wrote a power message in Psalm 31:14, 15: “But I trusted in, relied on, and was confident in You, O Lord; I said, You are my God. My times are in Your hands; deliver me from the hands of my foes and those who pursue me and persecute me.” Like David, we must learn to put our confidence in the Lord, trusting Him to deliver us out of our circumstances – and into the next right thing – in His perfect timing.

  13. Do you ever look at all of the evil in the world and wonder why Jesus has not yet returned to earth? The promise of His coming is certain, yet II Peter 3:9 tells us that God, in His mercy and patience toward sinners, is waiting. He does not want any person to perish, but wants everyone to come to salvation through repentance and faith in Jesus. Pray for salvation for those in your life who do not yet know Jesus as Lord and Saviour.What measures do you take to guard your valuables? Perhaps you have an alarm system in your home; you probably lock the doors of your car and keep your money in the bank. Likewise, you should guard the truth of God’s Word that you have in your heart so you are not led astray by false teaching (see II Peter 3:17). Growing in your relationship with the Lord and in His grace will help you stand firm in the truth.

  14. Life PointOnce we understand grace, we must grow and learn how to receive it in every situation, as II Peter 3:18 encourages us.We grow in grace by putting our faith in God and receiving His grace in situations that are difficult or impossible for us. Sometimes we put our faith in God, and He gives us grace for deliverance. At other times we put our faith in God, and He gives us grace to “go through.” We must leave that choice to Him and know that either way we can have victory, but only by grace through faith.If you struggle with something right now in your life, ask yourself honestly if you are putting your faith in God and that you believe His grace will meet the need. Remember, grace is unmerited favour to us sinners. It is God’s power coming into our situation to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

  15. Verse 18But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.To Him be glory for now and for ever. AMEN

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