Title: Introduction to II Peter

Text: II Peter

Scripture Intro:

[Slide 1] Turn in your bible to II Peter chapter 1.

I debated long about whether to actually get into the text this morning or whether to simply introduce the book and read it together and be done.

I put that decision off until noon on Thursday, which was about as long as I wanted to wait in order to give myself enough time to exegete the text if I chose to include some portion of it today.

However, given that it is mother’s day and that the first two verses of II Peter are not as simple to interpret as they may appear. I have chosen to only dip our toes into II Peter today.

I do plan for us to read the whole of the whole book as we have adopted the habit of doing for shorter books. So, I will need three readers in a few minutes here. Be thinking about whether that should be you.

I’ll not repeat any items from the introduction to I Peter today. If you are looking for information about who Peter is or date of the letter or even original audience information, you can refer back to the introduction of I Peter.

But there are some necessary historical contextual items that we need to address with regard to II Peter.

The first is the question of authorship.

[Slide 2] Authorship:

Just like in First Peter, the author identifies himself immediately. “Simeon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ”

As with I Peter, we do not have a question of authorship but rather a question of canonicity.

If the author is representing himself as Peter even though he isn’t Peter, this cannot be a book written under the inspiration of God.

As widely accepted as I Peter was, 2nd Peter was one of the last books included in the canon of scripture. Indeed, it is fair to say that of all the books of the New Testament canon, II Peter has the least support for its inclusion. Of course, the flipside of that coin is, that of all the books not included in the New Testament canon, II Peter has more support than any.

[Slide 3] So, what was the big hang up with II Peter?

It all comes down to three big issues.

1.) No church father before Origen (AD 200s) quotes II Peter.

2.) Stylistically, II Peter is very different than I Peter.

3.) The II Peter and Jude conundrum

You may be thinking… well, so. Who cares! Peter said he wrote it.

Yes… but the early church in the late 2nd and 3rd century was saturated with pseudepigraphal (sue- deh- pig-ref-al) works where writers claimed to be someone they were not in order to influence doctrine. Gnosticism and Epicureanism were some of the greater offenders of this. There is actually quite a collection of gnostic gospels out there all claiming to have been written by this apostle or that apostle, to influence Christians toward their new belief.

Peter was a popular pen name adopted by some of these authors. And so, a work that differed so sharply from I Peter, who everyone thought was truly from Peter, would have drawn a great deal of uncertainty from early church fathers. This explains their hesitancy to quote the work for fear of quoting a false epistle.

Although the statement “no church father before Origen quoted II Peter” may be true, that doesn’t mean that no other church father addressed the book. Eusebius, though recognizing the letter’s uncertainty, affirmed the letter as legitimate in his list of canonical books.

Furthermore, several early church fathers have quotations that come remarkably close to some things in II Peter.

And after Origen we see church fathers such as Jerome, Athanasius, Gregory of Nazianus, and Augustine all affirming the legitimacy of II Peter.

[Slide 4] As the church fathers considered canonicity of each book they had different categories. Recognized, being those received by many witnesses as truly inspired works of God. Disputed books being those that seem to be truly inspired but there is much disagreement. Rejected books which were not inspired but extremely helpful books. And Heretical books that were doctrinally erroneous and often forgeries.

II Peter was always in the Disputed category. It never went fully into the Rejected and certainly never went into the Heretical categories.

Other books included in the “disputed” category were Hebrews, II John, III John, Jude, Revelation and James. As you can see, each of these 7 books with II Peter included, were later included in the canon of scripture. II Peter last of all.

So even though EARLY church fathers may not of quoted II Peter, by the time the canon was scrutinized and received – II Peter was received with them.

But what of the stylistic differences between I and II Peter? There are 50 some odd Greek words used in II Peter that are not used in the rest of the New Testament. Peter predicts his own death with surety. He speaks of the writings of Paul being scripture. All these supposedly point to a late date, a different writer or both.

But similar arguments were raised against Paul being the author of the Pastoral epistles. In that case we wondered why the style would be the same when the purpose of the letter was so different than his other letters. Similarly, while I and II Peter are written to remind his audience of the truths they have confessed, the actions that Peter desires for his audience to live out in reference to that truth are very different. In his first letter Peter wants his audience to recall their true faith so that they would endure suffering blamelessly. But the occasion of II Peter is quite different.

Therefore, we can reasonably conclude that Peter’s style would fluctuate, even widely, if such a purpose demanded it.

Another item that is raised with regard to the legitimacy of II Peter is its relationship to the book of Jude.

There are unmistakable similarities between the book of Jude and the book of II Peter. So much so, that if you were to seek out a commentary on the book of II Peter or Jude independent of one another – you’d be hard pressed to find very many.

How do we explain these similarities?

There are three options to us. 1 – Peter borrowed from Jude 2 – Jude borrowed from Peter or 3 – they both borrowed from a third source.

So how do these options raise concern of II Peter being authentic?

It is the same kinds of concerns that are raised by those who take issue with the similarities between the gospels. All of these arguments are not convincing.

In any case – none of these three issues were strong enough to overturn the doctrinal fidelity and spiritual fruit from this book. That is why the church fathers received it into the NT canon and attributed it to the apostle Peter.

So, we know Peter wrote this book sometime before AD 65. He is writing to dispersed Christians in what is now Northern Turkey. He writes primarily to wake them up with a fresh reminder of the truth that they have believed.

But what pushed Peter to write to his audience again? And in such a short time after he wrote his first letter? What more would they need to know?

[Slide 5] Occasion:

What is clear in II Peter is that he doesn’t speak of true faith enduring suffering blamelessly. He is not talking about insults or persecution coming from outside their covenant community. In many ways, the message of II Peter is far more dire and abundantly urgent.

Peter deals with need for spiritual endurance for two very specific reasons. 1 – the future surety of false teachers leading people astray and 2 – the sure albeit delayed return of Christ. Therefore, his tone is noticeably more forceful and aggressive. Physical dangers from without the body required him to speak encouragingly and to command love and submission. Spiritual dangers from within the body requires him to speak harshly and decisively.

You can see how such a pivot in purpose could lead to different style and tone right?

Peter is addressing the war against their faith that is and will be waged in their very hearts. Peter addresses the certainty of what they believe, warns them of the coming apostates, and tells them to be prepared for the coming of their King – for he certainly is coming back.

[Slide 6] Key Themes:

So, what are some key themes within II Peter?

1.) God’s grace results in godliness.

2.) God’s absolute dedication and care for His people to rescue them from this evil age and transport them to His eternal and righteous Kingdom

3.) Human responsibility in displaying good works, holiness, and growing to be more like Christ as both an evidence for their true faith and in preparation for His coming.

4.) The certainty of judgment and God’s ability to rescue His own through it and the certainty of His judgment upon those who are not truly His. He knows His sheep and He knows the goats.

[Slide 7] Phrases to keep an eye out for:

Allusions to Israel’s history. Several examples arise to prove that God has a history of faithfully judging the world separating the righteous from the wicked and he does so without warning to those who are not prepared.

Note the bookends of the letter – He desires his audience to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ.

Note how much he talks about reminding them.

[Slide 8] Theological Challenges and Controversial Topics

As with every book we study there are some teachings and difficulties that we are going to run into. They will provide a challenge to some or all of us as we come to them.

1.) There is an ongoing tension throughout the letter of the sureness of God to keep His people but also human responsibility to obey.

2.) What is the fate of those who fail to obey? Are they blinded or nearsighted? Did they forget about their sins being washed or are they destroyed? Did Christ purchase them or are they lost?

3.) [Slide 9] Can we lose our salvation?

4.) Does the “spirit of prophesy” still exist today?

5.) Who are the angels that sinned long ago, imprisoned in chains now?

6.) Lot is righteous? Like really… he is?

7.) [Slide 10] What is happening in the spiritual realm that we don’t know about? Angels refusing to rebuke “glorious ones” what is that about?

8.) Is it truly better to have not known the way of righteousness than to know it and reject it in favor of your sin? Should we not teach people the truth then? Is this losing salvation?

9.) Does Peter confirm a literal 6 day creation and worldwide flood?

10.) [Slide 11] Two of the most misunderstood concepts about God and the second coming.

a. A day is 1000 years and 1000 years is a day

b. He comes like a thief.

11.) Does Peter predict the end of the universe as we know it?

12.) If Peter can’t understand Paul – what hope do we have?

[Slide 12] Outline of II Peter

I.) Greetings (1:1-2)

II.) How to be sure of your calling and election (1:3-11)

a. God’s work (1:3-4)

b. The Believer’s responsibility (1:5-7)

c. The result of assurance or amnesia (1:8-11)

III.) The testimony of Christ has never wavered. (1:12-21)

a. Peter has told them many times and they already know it. He will continue to remind them. (1:12-15)

b. The disciples were not duped, they saw it with their own eyes and heard it with their own ears (1:16-18)

c. The apostles received the Spirit of prophesy to convey these things accurately (1:19-21)

IV.) God’s truth has always been challenged (2:1-22)

a. The presence of false teachers and teachings has never been eliminated and are woefully destructive. (2:1-3)

b. The flame of God’s judgement both purifies the righteous and destroys the wicked. (2:4—9)

c. The sins and judgment of the apostate (2:10-22)

i. Their Sins (2:10-16)

1. Arrogance toward spiritual powers and authorities. (2:10-12)

2. Debauchery in their conduct (2:13-16)

3. Preaching empty words leading people astray (2:17-18)

ii. Their judgment (2:19-22)

1. They are slaves to their own sin (2:19)

2. They have rejected freedom in Christ and are now worse than they started (2:20-21)

3. They prove who they really are by what they return to. (2:22)

V.) The Lord’s Return is sure (3:1-18)

a. Peter’s desire to wake them up with truth (3:1-2)

b. The apocalyptic flood proves that God will judge the world (3:3-7)

c. God’s timetable is His own (3:8-9)

d. His coming will not be anticipated by the unprepared. (3:10-18)

i. It will be like a thief and will devastate (3:10)

ii. Because of this they must prepare their hearts with holiness and anticipation (3:11-13)

iii. In their anticipation and spotlessness they must remain patient since God’s delay is salvation for their brothers and sisters (3:14-16)

iv. Be on guard and grow (3:17-18)

[Slide 13(end)] Read II Peter

Well, having introduced II Peter to you, and getting a good jump on understanding the circumstance for its writing – let’s read together the words of Peter, breathed out by God through him as he wrote to remind and forewarn his audience of the coming spiritual dangers.

Let me pray and as I do you can come up to the mic here to read a chapter. Don’t be shy – we’ll need 3 readers today.