2 Peter 2:10-22 We must be careful with the way we present the gospel of Jesus Christ. I don’t just mean that we should avoid the errors of false teachers, which is obviously a critical task. I also mean that we must take great care to present the entire gospel, in its full strength, and not diluted by the culture or our desires to be relevant. The proclamation of the Good News of Jesus Christ, whether in evangelism or missions... Read more
2 Peter 2:1-10a There is a dark side of many of the New Testament Epistles. But it occurs in some form in just about every New Testament letter: it is the subject of false teachers. I have avoided it in my meditations so far because it hasn’t directly been a part of my experience, and it doesn’t make for the easiest of subjects to meditate on. I feel very safe in the Reformed Episcopal Church, but the truth is... Read more
2 Peter 1:18-21 is perhaps the most important Scripture in Scripture about Scripture. In it, St. Peter tells us the value of Scripture, the origin of Scripture, and the way to guard Scripture. What we do together every morning in Give Us This Day is utterly dependent upon what we believe about the Word of God. If, as some have suggested, 2 Peter is not inspired, then we are wasting our time in staking our lives upon what it says. ... Read more
2 Peter 1:1-11 Is it just me – or does St. Peter in this passage deal with the same theme we just saw in Colossians – that God is absolutely sovereign and man is accountable before Him? Isn’t this another variation on the theme of God’s grace in our lives and the necessity of good work? If I didn’t know better, I’d think God was trying to tell us something and coordinating this whole thing! To me, the most extraordinary... Read more
1 Peter 3:1-12 In a world that has more people in it than ever before, there is also more loneliness in the world than ever before. We often live away from our families – either geographically or in degree of harmony. We don’t know our neighbors. People are looking for a genuinely loving community to belong to. Some look in clubs and some talk to counselors. Some choose to spend more time at work, and some join gangs. But what... Read more
1 Peter 5:8-14 “What went wrong?” This is a question that the Church in every age has asked herself. We should not think that we’re alone in rightly asking this question. It was certainly a question many churchmen asked themselves before, during, and after the Reformation period. In 1833, the Church of England was in sad shape. Remnants of the feudal system and Erastian church – one in which the State has a large say over Church affairs – were... Read more
1 Peter 5:1-7 When my oldest daughter Renee was 2, I began to write Renee Stories, one of which was Renee’s Upsee-dee-dee (her word for “Upside”) Down Day. In this story, her bed and all the books she had not put away from the night before were all on the ceiling, and a light fixture was on the floor. She was glad when she heard Mom come in, because she knew that meant breakfast. Except Mom was wearing a... Read more
1 Peter 4:12-19 The truth is that we as Christians suffer. As our Lord first suffered, we must suffer. This isn’t a very popular teaching. You won’t hear many other preachers preaching about it these days. But it’s one of the most profound and potent truths that God wants to teach us through His Son. I want to preface all that I will say by making a qualification. Much of what the New Testament has to say about suffering is... Read more
1 Peter 3:13-22 What’s the answer to the problem of suffering? Sanctify the Lord in your heart. Like St. James and St. Paul and Jesus Himself – pretty much the whole New Testament – St. Peter assumes that there will be suffering in this world for the Christian. Theologically, there is the so-called problem of suffering, as in “How can there be suffering in this world if there is a good and loving Almighty God?” I’m interested in the problem... Read more
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Friday Sunday Next Before Advent – 2 Peter 3:1-10
2 Peter 3:1-10 Beloved, there are two things you need to know from this passage. First, the God that created the heavens and the earth is the one who preserves them and can also destroy them. Second, that God is not slack concerning His promises. Therefore, let us have confidence in our God because He is an almighty God and is faithful to His good promises. St. Peter’s words in 2 Peter 3:1-10 deal with the coming of the Lord. ... Read more