The Book of 2nd Peter
The Second Letter of Peter was written sometime between 64AD and 67AD and church history suggests that this letter was written not too long before Peter's Martyrdom at the hands of Emperor Nero. Elements within the letter lead many scholars to conclude that Peter wrote during a time of persecution in Rome while Peter himself was in a Roman prison awaiting his execution.
There have been historic points of contention questioning Peter's authorship of 2 Peter due to Literary Scholars stating that the Book of Jude and 2 Peter have some literary similarities in regards to the matters that are discussed.
But this is not a problem for Apostolic Authorship since peter may have included elements of Jude's letter within his own for explanation or context to points that Peter was seeking to make. What we must bare in mind is that many of the Apostles were close and it would seem to reason that many theological items were discussed and dissected in public as well as in private.
Also we must remember that many of the New Testament Epistles' authors were all alive at the same time and at some points were even together on missionary journeys and so forth.
Thus the similarities do not minimize or question authorship but rather, in my mind, further determines the theological alignments of the thoughts and beliefs of the early church leadership. And lastly, these are the last recorded words of Peter before his death in, what is suggested as, the year of 68AD.
2nd Peter Chapter 1
1. Greeting
a. "Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: 2 May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord."
i. The uniqueness of Peter's opening statement is very strategic and intentional; note the grammatical structure of the sentence.
ii. "To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ"
iii. Equal Standing. I find this phrase very unique because of the humility presented in this opening text because Peter, as an Apostle, which is a figurehead of the Church is inclusive of the Church body itself by the notation of the equality of faith.
iv. There is a thought process that plagues the Church that says that a leader has greater faith than everyone else but in light of this text, that simply isn't true. Our faith collectively is on equal standing because we all trust the same source and His Name is Jesus!
v. Furthermore, verse 2 tells us that His Grace and Peace us multiplied to us as we grow in our knowledge of God and of Jesus. Peace increases when our view of God increases.
2. Confirm Your Calling and Election
a. "3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire."
i. There are some powerful nuggets of truth in these few verses! Firstly, it is His divine power that has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness.
ii. Simply put, it is His power and not our own might that can generate the source that facilitates the needs of life and godliness. He is our source and upon Him we must place our dependency!
iii. At the beginning of verse 4, Peter uses the phrase, "by which". This is making reference to something; that something is His divine power! "by which" or by His divine power He has granted to us his precious and very great promises. Friends, it is His Power that makes his precious and very great promises a possibility in our lives!
iv. But what is the endgame or destination that the Lord is heading towards? So that by His precious and very great promises, we can become partakers of his divine nature and escape the corruption that comes by the impact of our sinful nature in the flesh!
v. We have been called unto Himself and it is His Divine Power that makes all of that possible!
b. "5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."
i. For this very reason… what reason? Because His divine power has been made available to us and His promises to be released, we should make every effort to supplement our faith with virtue and knowledge that has an echoing effect!
ii. Note the compounding impact… "virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love."
iii. These qualities are the purest expressions of the fruit of the Spirit and lead to further transformation into the image of Christ! Peter beautifully describes the outcome of this tremendous manifestation of Christ's power in Us!
iv. "8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."
c. "9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 12 Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have."
i. Peter shifts his focus from the fruitfulness of the faith to providing us an outline of what happens when we lack these qualities. "9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins."
ii. Friends, it is our diligence to adhere to the things of God that confirm our calling and or election as saints of God and ultimately, when we practice diligence in these matters, we will never fall.
iii. Peter is truly striving to drive a powerful point home in verse 12, "Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have."
iv. Church, sometimes we need to be reminded continually which is why I preach every week! Faith comes by hearing the Word of God over and over and over again!
d. "13 I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, 14 since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me.15 And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things."
i. Like a father, Peter states that it is his goal to stir the church up by way of reminder and intends the hold this line until he transitions into eternity.
ii. He then states, "15 And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things."
iii. Again like a father, Peter is striving to ensure the Church is ready and able to stand on its own two feet when he goes by way of death. It seems that he is as anxious over the matter as much as he is at peace with it.
3. Christ's Glory and the Prophetic Word
a. "16 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. 17 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," 18 we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain."
i. To address the credibility and truth of the message of the Apostles, Peter speaks to reassure that what he has taught them is the truth. He drives home the point that he was an eye witness to the Lord.
ii. And furthermore, Peter states that he heard the voice from heaven speak over Christ Himself which is corroborated by the record of text found in all four gospel records:
1. The Gospel of Saint Matthew 3:17
2. The Gospel of Saint Mark 1:11
3. The Gospel of Saint Luke 3:22
4. The Gospel of Saint John 12:28
iii. I also find it pertinent to make note that the Apostle Peter also saw the transfiguration of Christ as well on the Mount of Transfiguration with James and John as found in the Gospel of Saint Matthew chapter 17
b. "19 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, 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation."
i. Verses 19-21 point us to one strong fact of the Scripture: the Truth about Jesus Christ is anchored in the Prophetic Word of Scripture. Jesus did not just claim to be the Messiah, He is the prophetic manifestation of the Prophets of Old in regards to the life and times of Jesus the Messiah.
ii. In verse 19, it notates the words, "more fully confirmed". Some have understood that Peter's experience of the Transfiguration provides confirmation of the Old Testament prophesies, make the already-sure prophecy of the Old Testament to be even more sure as confirmed by the experience of the transfiguration.
iii. Others have understood "more fully confirmed" as an affirmation that the prophetic writings of the Old Testament are even more sure than peter's spectacular personal experience at the transfiguration, thereby underscoring the complete reliability of Scripture. IN either case, believers are admonished to pay attention to the certainty of the prophetic word.
iv. Furthermore, pure prophesy will always manifest as it was foretold and not by the twisting of men's minds to make a narrative fit the mold of a prophetic word. It either fits and is true or it is not.
c. "21 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."
i. First off, true and pure prophetic words are never produced by the will of man but by the will of God.
ii. Secondly, a true prophet speaks from God and not from himself or herself.
iii. Thirdly, Prophesy comes by way of the Holy Spirit; any other source is demonic in nature.
iv. Prophets are not psychics nor mediums; prophets not only hear but speak from God by way of His Spirit.