2 Peter
Established
Peter begins this letter by laying out the process of knowing Christ. In the first verse he reminds us it all began when we put our faith in Christ. The evidence of our faith in Christ is the increasing grace and peace we have as we grow in our knowledge of the Lord. Verse 2
In verse 3 Peter explains that God’s divine power is bringing about this transformation in our lives and as we grow we realize that God has provided all we need to establish us as Christians so we can escape the corruption of the world which is the subject of Chapters 2&3.
It is important that we heed Peter’s words. In order to be firmly established we must be growing. But, not all of the growth is visible. We are a lot like the trees spoken of in Psalm 1 and Jeremiah 17:5-8. As the tree grows taller its roots must grow deeper. It is the roots that find water and nutrients. The same is true for the Christian. Our roots must find the “living water” Jesus spoke of in John 4:1-26, 7:37-44. It is the root system that establishes the tree and keeps it standing when the storms come. It is clear from this section in John 7 that the prevailing teaching and the outright opposition is meant to uproot. We must not let that happen. When our roots run deep and drink in the living water we are connected to the divine power that is establishing us no matter what storms come against us.
As we, “Taste and see that the Lord is good,” Psalm 34:8 KJ, and trust the Lord, taking Him at His Word, by study and putting His Word into practice, we will grow stronger. What that growth looks like is found in Chapter 1 verses 5-8. Following these verses is a warning in verse 9 for the casual Christian with shallow roots. Peter knows there are storms coming that are going to try and uproot the believers in Christ. As an apostle strongly established in the Lord, he wants to do everything in his power to keep us focused on the goal of our faith. Verses 9&10
He knows the storms will come. He knows the schemes of Satan. The deception of the false teachers, the pleasures of the world that are meant to derail us from our walk, and the outright mocking of the Word of God and the promise of His return. Peter is the weatherman predicting the coming storms and so he wrote this letter in order to warn Christians, then and today, that we will face the same storms. Verse 15
Although Satan mocks and denies, the Lord is coming again as we read in Chapter 3. When He comes will He find us standing and established? Before the Lord returns maybe we need to take a hard look at ourselves and ask, who are we most like? Those described in Chapter 1 or those in Chapter 2?
May Grace and Peace be multiplied to you!
Pastor Dave