Welcome to the Weekend Sermon. I am thankful to the Lord for allowing me to post the sermon this week. I thank you for taking the time to read the sermon this week. I hope everyone is doing well.
For several weeks now, we've been studying the book of II Peter. I've enjoyed going through this book and seeing what the Lord has to say to us. Today is the final message in the II Peter series.
I would like to begin today by looking at II Peter 3:15 which states, "Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation." In this verse, Peter is once again reminding his readers that one of the reasons that the Lord has delayed His coming is that He is not willing that any should perish. By delaying His coming, the Lord is providing an opportunity for those that do not acknowledge Him as Lord and Savior to turn around, repent and believe the Gospel. The Lord Jesus is filled with love for this world. He wants people to turn to Him, and whoever comes to Him, He will not cast them out.
In verse 15 and 16, Peter tells us something about the apostle Paul. Let's first look into what Peter says, and then we will look into the debate and controversy surrounding these verses. The end of verse 15 and 16 state, "Just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do other Scriptures, to their own destruction."
First of all, Peter acknowledges that Paul is his brother in the faith. They didn't always see eye to eye about everything, but Peter acknowledges that Paul believes in the Lord Jesus and writes about the salvation that is available to all who believe the message of the Lord Jesus. Peter equates the writings of Paul with the rest of Scripture. It seems to me that what Peter is saying is that the writings of the Apostle Paul are on the same level as the writings of the other apostles. What Paul is saying is wisdom given to Him by the Lord.
Now, Peter will tell us that some things that Paul discusses are complicated, and false teachers try to use the things that Paul teaches in order to distort the truth of God's word. I've been thinking this week about what Peter might actually be referring to here. I've thought of two different things. First of all, Paul believed that we are saved by grace. When we sin, Paul says God's grace abounds. Some false teachers distorted this teaching and tried to say that we should sin in order that grace might abound more and more. Paul would have none of that false teaching. He said God forbid.
Some people also distorted Paul's teachings about law and grace. There is no place in his writings where Paul says that we as followers of Jesus are not to obey the commandments and teachings of the Lord Jesus just because we are saved by grace and not by works. On the contrary, in Titus 2:7 Paul tells Titus to be an example by doing good works. Paul tells us to exhibit the fruit of the Spirit and put away the works of the flesh. Some of the false teachers that Peter refers to might have been trying to use Paul's teaching for their own purposes. However, they were distorting Paul's teachings.
So, what it the controversy about this passage. This passage is used by many who claim that II Peter could not have been written by the Apostle Peter. They make the case that the canon of the Bible did not begin to coalesce until many years after Peter's death. Therefore, by referring to Paul's writings as Scripture, that demonstrates that the writer was writing at a time when the canon was being put together.
As I said previously, I don't put too much stock in this idea. I think that from the internal evidence of II Peter that Peter wrote this epistle. My belief is that Peter understood that in some way he was being inspired by God to write his epistles. He believed that this same Spirit of inspiration was at work in Paul.
In verse 17, Peter once again warns his readers not to be led astray by false teachers and by those who scoff at the Second Coming of Jesus. Since Peter has provided them with a warning, they know what to look out for.
Now we come to the final verse of II Peter that says, "But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever! Amen." Growth is key in the Christian life. We are not to be stagnant. We are to move on in our relationship with the Lord.
I believe that from time to time we should make an assessment of our progress in growing in the Lord. We need to ask ourselves if we are avoiding sin more and more. Are we obeying the commandments and teachings of Jesus like we should? Are we spending time in prayer? Are we taking time to study the Word? Are we obeying the Great Commission? Are we trying to do good in the world and help others? We need to see if we are growing in our devotion to the Lord and His work. We don't want to stay the same, and we don't want to fall back.
Peter ends by giving the glory to Jesus. The glory belongs to Him for all things from this time forth and forevermore. Amen.
Prayer Request And Other Matters
This has been a very good week in writing, and I thank the Lord for the work that He has provided. I want to thank the Lord for allowing the money that I'd earned in writing to come in this week. I really needed it to get some bills paid. Thank you, Lord. I ask that you would pray that the money I need for next week will come in as well. Also, please pray that the rain called for in my area this week will not cause flooding. Thank you.
In other prayer matters, the situation with the coronavirus is troubling. Please pray that this virus will not spread anymore than it already has. Pray for those who are sick that they might recover. Pray for those suffering from the flu that they will get well quickly, and continue to pray for those in Congo who are dealing with Ebola.
I am thankful that the fires are definitely coming under control in Australia. Please pray that all will be well. Puerto Rico still needs our prayers that aid will come to help with the earthquake damage.
We need to thank the Lord that there has been some progress towards peace in Afghanistan this week. Pray that peace might come to that country. Let us continue to pray for peace in Libya, Yemen and Syria.
For our prayer focus countries this week, let us all pray for those in India and Turkmenistan. Pray that many will hear the good news of the love of Jesus.
Next week, I will be beginning a new series of messages. I will post the sermon on Saturday. I will post the verses on Monday, and I will post a poem on Wednesday. May God bless you all. Amen.
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