A rather pompous church leader was trying to impress upon a class of boys the importance of living the Christian life. "Why do people call me a Christian?" the man asked. After a moment's pause, one youngster said, "Maybe it's because they don't know you?" Well, Peter certainly knew Paul, and he was anything but … Continue reading A Wonderful Rebuke!
Because of disobedience, the children of Israel had to do laps around Mt. Sinai for 40 years. But we are called by God to grow up in obedience through grace. And in order to do that, Peter wrote, we need diligence. It was one of his favorite words, one that expresses urgency and purpose. He … Continue reading Grace-Powered Diligence
18th century British writer Samuel Johnson said, 'Depend upon it, sir, when a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.' Peter makes a similar observation connected to a question in the last chapter of his second letter. Since these things will take place, the dissolving of the world … Continue reading How Should We Live in Light of the End of Time?
I am so glad Jesus did not return before 1972; that was the year the goodness of the Lord led me to repentance. Some of you could say the same about 1990, or 2000, or maybe someone here or listening online would say that about 2024! Peter says in his second letter with regard to … Continue reading The Lord’s Gracious Delay
Are you scoffer? Or are you settled in your faith? Scoffers will come in, Peter wrote in his second letter, and we need to be ready for that. Why do they scoff at what they don’t understand? Peter tells us, and so does Jude. They scoff because they are “following their own desires,” Peter wrote. … Continue reading Scoffer…or settled?
In Peter’s second letter, he spends a whole chapter on the subject of the dangers of false teachers in the church. And he is mostly referring to false teachers who may claim to know Jesus but they in fact had false conversions. It is true that there are men and women in the church who … Continue reading False Teachers Are Sometimes False Converts
J. Mark Fox 