PRECIOUS FAITH
Jerry Vines
II Peter 1:1-4
These first four verses of II Peter 1 actually make
just one sentence. Simon Peter, under the inspiration
of the Holy Spirit, has given us two books in our
Bible. In I Peter, he deals with suffering and
persecution, the danger from without. In II Peter he
deals with another matter, false teaching and false
doctrine, the danger from within. In I Peter you see
Satan as a roaring lion seeking to devour. In II Peter
you see him as a serpent seeking to deceive. The
danger which Simon Peter deals with in II Peter is
much more insidious than the danger in chapter 1.
Suffering is not the great danger that the believers
face. Suffering which comes into the life of a
believer or the persecution which the Christian faith
has experienced historically has had a way of bringing
out the very best in believers and making the church
stronger and purer.
Christianity is like a nail. The harder you strike it
the deeper it goes into the wood. When God's people
are put through times of suffering and persecution, it
merely draws them closer to the Lord and digs them
deeper in their foundation. The danger from within,
false teaching, is a different matter altogether. Jude
describes it as something which creeps in unaware. It
is an insidious thing. It is a gradual thing and it is
extremely dangerous. So, in II Peter he is going to
spend quite a bit of time dealing with the problem of
false teachers. Those who come within the faith, who
profess to know the Lord, who profess to be believers
and yet on the inside they are working to eliminate
the basic doctrines of the Christian faith. That will
be the great substance of chapter 2, but in chapter 1,
Simon Peter sets before us the ingredients of precious
faith.
In order for us to understand the faults he wants us
to understand, first of all, the truth. I am told that
those agents whose job it is to investigate
counterfeit ...
Jerry Vines
II Peter 1:1-4
These first four verses of II Peter 1 actually make
just one sentence. Simon Peter, under the inspiration
of the Holy Spirit, has given us two books in our
Bible. In I Peter, he deals with suffering and
persecution, the danger from without. In II Peter he
deals with another matter, false teaching and false
doctrine, the danger from within. In I Peter you see
Satan as a roaring lion seeking to devour. In II Peter
you see him as a serpent seeking to deceive. The
danger which Simon Peter deals with in II Peter is
much more insidious than the danger in chapter 1.
Suffering is not the great danger that the believers
face. Suffering which comes into the life of a
believer or the persecution which the Christian faith
has experienced historically has had a way of bringing
out the very best in believers and making the church
stronger and purer.
Christianity is like a nail. The harder you strike it
the deeper it goes into the wood. When God's people
are put through times of suffering and persecution, it
merely draws them closer to the Lord and digs them
deeper in their foundation. The danger from within,
false teaching, is a different matter altogether. Jude
describes it as something which creeps in unaware. It
is an insidious thing. It is a gradual thing and it is
extremely dangerous. So, in II Peter he is going to
spend quite a bit of time dealing with the problem of
false teachers. Those who come within the faith, who
profess to know the Lord, who profess to be believers
and yet on the inside they are working to eliminate
the basic doctrines of the Christian faith. That will
be the great substance of chapter 2, but in chapter 1,
Simon Peter sets before us the ingredients of precious
faith.
In order for us to understand the faults he wants us
to understand, first of all, the truth. I am told that
those agents whose job it is to investigate
counterfeit ...
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