Will you be of the many?
Will you be of the Many?
2 Peter 2:1-10a
“I’m in a bathtub. I can’t get up. I feel like I’m about to die. Mercury poisoning.The water in the tub has grown cold. Maybe that’s why I feel so cold. I’ve been marinating in my own soup stock for the past two hours. I’m floating in and out of consciousness. Whenever I can concentrate I begin to pray. “Jesus, please, save me. Please, heal me. I repent, I put my whole heart into prayer right now, and I cast out any doubt or fear. I know you can heal me. Please heal me!”
My mom’s keys are rattling in the doorknob now, and I hear the door thud shut in the distance… I barely recognize her figure as she tries with all of her wiry might to pull me out of the tub. I spend the next two days in the hospital. My mom wants to know why I didn’t let her know, why I didn’t want to go to the hospital, why I didn’t do something.
“Mom, Jesus is my doctor. I’m blessed, and I know that he would have healed me.” This is me trying to live out what I think is true Christianity.
This is Sean DeMars from an article, “A ‘Gospel’ that Almost Killed Me.” Sean heard of Jesus in jail and came back to his neighborhood to find Roger who would introduce him to a ‘gospel’ that almost killed him. He became a devoted disciple to the prosperity gospel. He was sick but refused to see a doctor because he believed all he needed was faith and he could claim healing and financial windfall by magically saying, “in the name of Jesus.” Sean would go on later in the article of himself,
Here’s the bottom line: I was a heretic. But Christ had saved me from my sin, and he saved me from my heresy too. When it comes to embracing the prosperity gospel, I doubt that you would have found anyone more dedicated or ruthless than me. I was the chosen one. But I was ensnared in a false gospel.
Sean was one of the many who followed false teaching, will you be one of the many?
Peter is sitting in a Roman prison awaiting his execution and his heart is breaking for the many. He pens his last letter stirring up the saints by way of reminder to believe that Christ is coming to rescue his people. He has already given two reasons why you should believe in Christ’s return. 2 Peter 1:16–18,
For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain.
First, Peter testifies to his own experience. They saw Jesus lifted up in power as a preview of the power they will see at his return. Second, Peter reminds the church of the promises of the prophets in the Word of God, 2 Peter 1:19–21,
And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
The Word of God should be more fully trusted then even Peter’s experience. The Word prophesied the Messiah would suffer, die and be raised from the dead. The Word prophesies that the Messiah will return to rescue the righteous and judge the wicked. Jesus is coming back, but before he does, Peter writes, 2 Peter 2:1–3a,
But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words.
I have been gripped with those three words, “many will follow.” Peter says of himself and his fellow apostles, “We did not follow cleverly devised myths.” And here he says, ‘many will follow.” Will you be of the many? Will your children be of the many? Will your parents be of the many? Will your neighbors or coworkers be of the many?
The Apostle John says there is no greater joy to know that his children are walking in the truth. The opposite is true as well. There is no greater sorrow to know that your children are walking away from the truth. So many of you have hearts of sorrow when you think of your children, your parents, your friends who once may even have been part of this body who now have become part of “The Many” who walk away from the truth and follow lies.
The Warning of the Many
Peter wants to prepare the saints for the return of Christ. He wants them to hold on to sound doctrine like a mother gripping a child’s hand in a crowd. Sound doctrine is too precious to let go. Beloved, we, as elders, want to warn you so you may hold on to the truth. Let me give you 5 warnings Peter gives to the church First warning,
There will be false teachers in the church - 2 Peter 2:1, “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you.” Notice those last two words, “among you.” Peter is not focusing on the wolves in the world, he is focusing on the wolves dressed in sheep’s clothing. As elders, we strive to protect the pulpit from heresy. We work hard to vet our Sunday School teachers in our 5 adult classes and in our children classes. A regular concern of mine is not the teaching you will receive in this church (as we can control and monitor who and what people are teaching), but the teaching when you turn on your TV, open your laptop or scroll on YouTube. Not every ‘Christian teacher’ should be trusted. We must be wise in who we listen to and how much we listen to them.
They will secretly bring in destructive heresies - False teachers are not coming with hazard lights flashing warning of danger. They are secretly bringing in heresy. They are subtle. They are slippery. They are satanic. Some will mean well while others will have evil intent. Regardless, their teaching is like carbon monoxide, you don’t want you to smell until it’s too late. You must have your own detectors to warn you when those heresies slip in. Relationships in the body of Christ should help sound the alarm when we drift into heresy. Beloved, if you are concerned with what someone is listening to or saying, you must speak up. We cannot allow our brothers and sisters to walk toward the end of a cliff without trying to stop them. Notice what Peter says, these are “destructive heresies.”
Two things, no one likes to create conflict in a relationship and no one likes to be corrected. It pushes against our Southern sensibilities but for the sake of each other’s souls, if we sense danger, sound the alarm. And work hard to regularly invite people into your life to challenge and warn you. Protect yourself by asking others if you have blind spots in your thinking or lifestyle. You may be unwittingly exposing yourself to danger.
Many will follow their sensuality - False teachers often appeal to fleshly desires. Many false teachers today not only minimize sexual sin but promote it. They may say things like, “Love who you want to love.” “Follow your heart.” “If God has given you those desires, act upon them.” The world loves pleasure. And those worldly philosophies often creep into the church. 1 John 2:15-17 gives us a strong warning,
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
And Paul warns us in 2 Timothy 4:3–4,
For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.
And the Lord Jesus shares the parable of the rich man who builds bigger barns to store his grain, Luke 12:19–21,
And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
Those warnings of false beliefs are so common in the Scripture, we must not presume we could not fall prey to them. Many will follow their sensuality. Will you be of the many?
The way of truth will be blasphemed - When one follows false teaching, the truth is diluted and people misrepresent God. The world we want to save misunderstands who God is because his followers live in contrast to his ways. God is mocked and shown contempt when false teaching is followed.
Their greed will exploit you with false words - False teachers do not care about you, but they want to exploit you. They want to use you by taking advantage and playing on your desires. They do not care about you. They care about themselves. They want to live in luxury and comfort while you head towards destruction.
Peter is so concerned with the church following false teaching, he gives his last days to warn them of its manipulative and destructive aims. Are you one of the many? Will you be one of the many? Will you help others not be one of the many?
It seems like every day we see more and more people giving into sensuality. We see more and more churches affirm homosexuality, more and more churches loosen the commands of God’s holiness and righteousness. The steps towards false teaching are usually small ones but small steps in the right direction will take one far from God. Are there any kernels of false teaching rolling around in your soul ready to pop?
‘I am suffering, because I don’t have enough faith’ ‘Maybe I am not able to conceive because of my sin.’ ‘Maybe God has given me a spouse because I haven’t prayed hard enough’. ‘I have worked really hard at life this week so I don’t have to deny myself.’ ‘I can’t take a day of rest because people really need me.’ ‘God wouldn’t want to hear from me until I clean up my life.’ ‘Is it really wrong not to have sex if we plan on getting married anyway?’ ‘Did God really say..’
False teachers will sow seeds in your heart. Will you let them take root? Ask yourself tough questions. Be honest with yourself. Bring things to the light. If you aren’t sure if you are thinking rightly, ask one of the elders. Do not give the Devil a foothold. And help others. After falling to a false gospel, Sean DeMars pleads with his fellow Christians,
Preach against it, and preach a gospel that shines so bright and burns so hot that any other gospel that tries to approach it burns up upon entry. Don’t treat this like an asymptomatic sniffle in an otherwise healthy body; treat it like the cancer that it is. Preach, teach, counsel, shepherd, and pray a clear and true gospel, and leave no room for anything less glorious or true. If you meet someone who is lost in this false gospel, please, please, please love them and tell them the truth. Sit them down, buy them lunch, and open up your Bibles. Speak life. Be brave. Odds are, no one has ever loved them enough to tell them the truth about themselves. The truth is that they cannot be saved by a false gospel, and the prosperity gospel is certainly that. Jesus saved me from the prosperity gospel, and he can save more. He will save more.
Protecting people from false gospels is a community project.
The Reminders for the Few
Peter wants the church to remain steadfast. The key heresy in Peter’s day is whether Christ will return. We see it in 2 Peter 3:1–4,
This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.”
Where is the promise of his coming? Their argument is that everything seems the same since creation therefore do not worry about future judgment, but enjoy life.
Peter wants to give two reminders: The unrighteous will suffer on the Day of Judgement while the righteous will be rescued.
The Unrighteous will Suffer on the Day of Judgement
If you live for pleasure and greed, if you live for yourself and your own desires, if you live against God’s law, you will suffer. The Bible has two camps: the righteous and the unrighteous. If you are here and not a Christian, let me just ask you to seriously consider Peter’s argument. He is speaking to Christians to give them hope to persevere with Jesus as they are facing false teachers and persecution because the false teachers and those who do not believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior will be punished.
Peter is in a jail cell. He is probably cold, tired, and weak. He is about to be executed for preaching the contents of this letter. Meaning…he really believes it. Friends, we Christians, really believe these words. And we want you to really believe them as well. Notice even in the first three verses we have already read about what will happen to these false teachers:
Because they deny Jesus who died for them, they are “bringing upon themselves swift destruction...Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”
They are in danger. They will experience God’s wrath for their sin and false teaching. We know this because this has been the pattern from the beginning of creation. Peter gives three pictures for us, follow the ‘ifs,’ 2 Peter 2:4–8,
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked (for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard);
First if, “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned.” Angels who were in heaven, who understood God’s glory and power, these majestic, glorious beings, their sin was not overlooked. What was their sin? They did not follow God’s boundaries but chose to live in autonomy from his rules. We read in Genesis 6:1–2,
When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose.
It is the common Jewish understanding that the sons of God were angels who violated God’s boundaries and lusted after the women of the earth and took them as their wives. Therefore, God cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness, to be kept until the judgment. They double judgment: they were sent to Hell and chained there now and will experience further judgment at the end of the world.
The second if, in verse 5 “if he did not spare the ancient world…when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly. It says in Genesis 6:5,
The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
God saw the evil of men’s actions and the evil intent of their heart, and sent the flood to punish them.
The third if, in verse 6, “If by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly.” Sodom and Gomorrah were cities of sexual promiscuity and perversion. Ezekiel 16:49–50,
Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy. They were haughty and did an abomination before me. So I removed them, when I saw it.
They lived for comfort and pleasure and disregarded God’s law so the Lord turned their cities into ash with fire from the sky.
Peter gives three examples, and he could have given many more, but he gives three to remind Christians what will happen to the ungodly. He gives them to you, who may not be Chrsitians, of what will happen to those who reject God. They will face God’s judgment. If you are not a Christian, do you believe you deserve to be judged for your sin? Do you think God should merely overlook it? Maybe you believe some of the same things people believed in Peter’s Day, “Everything seems to be the same so I am just going to live the way I want because judgment isn’t coming?” Many people believe there is not a judgment coming, but do you want to stake your eternity on it?
Notice the end of this paragraph, “The Lord knows how to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.” Do you live according to the passions of your flesh? Do you despise or reject the authority of your Creator? Take a moment. Ask yourself, “Who is the ultimate authority in my life? Is it me or God?”
Beloved, this should be a reminder to you to remain steadfast. The unrighteous may seem like they are prospering now, but their time will come. God did not spare the angels, he did not spare the ancient world, he did spare Sodom and Gomorrah. Noah lived for years watching the rampant wickedness around him. Lot lived for years seeing how the people despised God’s authority and were consumed by their own passions. We can imagine Noah may have been discouraged building the arc and Lot discouraged with his daughters living with their pagan husbands.
Do you have experience frustration or deep discouragement when you look at the world around us? Do you ever get discouraged how sensuality is promoted on almost every commercial and how promiscuity is celebrated on every new movie? You are not alone. Peter, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, wants to remind you to hold on for the rescue is coming.
The Righteous will be Rescued
The righteous cannot save themselves, they need to be rescued. Noah could not save himself, but God had to tell him to build the arc. Lot could not save himself, but God had to tell him to leave the city with this family. And Lot lingered in Sodom and Gomorrah so the LORD, being merciful to him, had the angels seize and take him and his daughters out of the city. If God spared Noah, if God spared Lot, God will spare you. Verse 9, “Then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials.” The word used here for the Lord is not Yahweh, but kyrios, the word used in the New Testament for Jesus. “Then Jesus knows how to rescue the godly from trials.” Beloved, how could we ever doubt Jesus’ ability to rescue? We know Jesus will rescue the godly from trials because he has rescued us when we were ungodly and headed towards hell. Romans 3:10a, “None is righteous, no not one;” Jesus is the only truly righteous person to walk on the earth. Jesus came from heaven, not to exercise his own will like the angels, but to follow the will of his Father. Jesus came to live under God’s authority. He lived a righteous life. And yet died for the unrighteous. 1 Peter 3:18,
For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,
Jesus was put to death, but was raised from the dead. Jesus was rescued from the grave because of his perfect obedience to the Father. So we, who were once headed to hell, can be redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Jesus knows how to rescue.
If you know you are unrighteous, turn to the Righteous One. He is ready and willing to forgive. Repent of your sins and trust in him. And you will be rescued.
Beloved, we are all going to face trials. We will battle against the wolves of the world and the wolves dressed as sheep in the church. But we have no need to fear. Jesus has rescued us from sin and death and knows how to rescue us from every trial. Remember we are declared righteous because of his finished work. Jesus paid for every one of our sins. He paid for every one of our mistakes. One day we will breathe our last and we will be laid in the grave, but will not stay there. We will be rescued from death and made alive by the Spirit. For Jesus is not dead, he is alive. So when we face the trials of our enemies in this world, the false teachers in the church or the flaming arrows that wage war against our soul, we have no need to fear, because Jesus Christ, the Righteous, is our Advocate before the father. We have been delivered from the domain of darkness, we have been rescued from the evil one, we are safely in the strong hand of our God and no one can snatch us out. Beloved, rejoice that Jesus Christ knows how to rescue his people from trials.
Peter has given us this assurance. We are safe and secure, but we have a job to do. We have to care for the many who are following false teachers, who are living in false hope. We have a mission. We have been rescued and now are on a rescue mission. We must fight to keep our brothers and sisters on the narrow way and we must rescue the many who are following false teaching and are waiting for judgment. The Lord rescued us, may he use us to help rescue others for Jesus knows how to rescue his people from trial, whether it be cancer, persecution or the grave. He has rescued us and will keep us rescued until that Day when our faith becomes sight and we lift our voice with all the saints and sing that Christ is King and Our Savior, Jesus is Alive, and has rescued us from All our trials.
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All you broken hearted, all you worn and weak
Come find living water, everlasting streams
To the wandering spirit, lost and searching
Wanting something more
Find the Risen King who overcomes the world
Let there be dancing in the darkness
And let our song break through the night
Lift your voice and sing that Christ is King
For Jesus is Alive
No more condemnation, no more doubt and fear
For our sin and shame, they have no power here
In His resurrection, perfect love has set the captives free
Praise the Risen King who stands in victory
Let there be dancing in the darkness
And let our song break through the night
Lift your voice and sing that Christ is King
For Jesus is Alive