November 22 – 2 Peter 3:14–18
Main Focus: Not simply avoiding deception but continually growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus.
In light of the Lord’s return, Christians are to be diligent to be found without spot or blemish (doctrinally and morally pure), thereby receiving the full reward of eternal life. This is in stark contrast to the spiritual condition of the wicked (2:10b–22, esp. v. 22). The delay of Christ’s return should be reckoned as his patience leading people to salvation (Rom. 2:4). The apostle Paul also wrote to these same readers at some point prior to the composition of 2 Peter, and apparently the false teachers of ch. 2 used a twisted version of Paul’s gospel of freedom to entice some of them into sin.
In all his letters, Peter shows awareness of some kind of collection of Paul’s letters, with the number unspecified here. Some things . . . hard to understand does not say that everything in Paul’s letters is hard to understand, nor does it say that anything is “impossible to understand,” but it does imply that correctly interpreting some hard passages of Scripture requires much effort and God-given wisdom. The ignorant and unstable twist Paul’s teachings as they do the other Scriptures, implying that Paul’s writings were also considered Scripture in NT times, on the same level of divine authority as the OT Scripture. “Scriptures” occurs 51 times in the NT, and every time it refers to the canonical OT Scripture, and not to any other writings, except that twice (here and 1 Tim. 5:18) some NT writings are also included. This indicates that NT books written or authorized by Christ’s apostles were recognized, at a very early date, to be God’s Word.
The readers now know, if they did not know previously, that the false teachers are distorting Paul’s teaching. Paul advocates neither sin nor lawlessness, so they should take care not to be carried away by the false teaching, even if it appeals to Paul as the authority. They should not lose their own stability by following a false interpretation of Paul; rather, they should cultivate stability through Christian growth, especially growing in Christ’s grace and knowledge.
Discussion questions
– Peter urges believers to make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with God. How do we distinguish between trying to earn God’s favor through moral effort versus living a life of “diligence” that flows from grace?
– What does it look like practically to be “at peace” with God while actively waiting for the end of the age, rather than paralyzed by anxiety or complacent in sin?
– Peter frames the delay of Christ’s return not as slowness, but as patience meant for salvation. How should this view of God’s patience shape how we view our neighbors, co-workers, or cultural “scoffers” who oppose the faith?
– Peter notes that Paul’s letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort. How do we protect ourselves from misinterpreting or twisting Scripture to fit our own cultural or personal desires?
– What does it mean to be on guard so that you are not “carried away by the error of lawless men”? What are common modern “distortions” of the gospel?
– The epistle ends with a dual command: grow in grace and grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Why is it dangerous to grow in biblical knowledge without a proportional growth in grace (or vice versa)?
– How does one actively cultivate an “increasing” awareness of Jesus’ grace in day-to-day life rather than letting one’s spiritual life plateau?