Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20120101.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
2 Peter: Effective Christian Growth For Combating Spiritual Apostasy
Part VI: Learning To Discern The Characteristics Of False Teachers
(2 Peter 2:10-22)
  1. Introduction
    1. We believers who live in a world of apostasy and false teachers do well to be able to discern them by their characteristics that we might escape their wiles and errant teaching that draw men away from the truth.
    2. 2 Peter 2:10-22 provides an extensive description of the characteristics of apostates, and we view this description for use in testing teachers around us for our spiritual protection and edification (as follows):
  2. Learning To Discern The Characteristics Of False Teachers, 2 Peter 2:10-22.
    1. False teachers indulge in the lusts of the sin nature, 2 Peter 2:10a NIV with Romans 7:15-23.
    2. False teachers unusually boldly and arrogantly despise proper exalted authorities, 2 Peter 2:10b-11 NIV:
      1. Peter claimed the false teachers were not afraid to slander "celestial beings, " 2 Peter 2:10b NIV.
      2. This characteristic contrasts with the actions of even the holy heavenly angels who are much stronger and more powerful than humans, for they do not dare bring slanderous accusations against such beings in the presence of Almighty God, 2 Peter 2:11.
      3. Hence, we must watch out for teachers who boldly, proudly slander any authority figure, be it angelic, divine or even human in kind.
    3. False teachers are animalistic, slandering in matters they do not understand, following their own natural desires only to be caught and destroyed like wild animals, 2 Peter 2:12; Bible Know. Com., N. T. , p. 872.
    4. False teachers express their indulgence in sinful lusts in coarse ways, practicing vices like carousing in broad daylight (2 Peter 2:13) that are highly indecent in even to the general society.
    5. False teachers are notably immoral: Peter wrote they literally have "eyes full of an adulteress" (Ibid.), that they think only of adultery when they look at women, 2 Peter 2:14a NIV. (cf. Matthew 5:27-28)
    6. False teachers seduce unstable people to become their victims or disciples, 2 Peter 2:14b NIV.
    7. False teachers excel in expressing greed for money, 2 Peter 2:14c-16 NIV:
      1. Peter wrote they are "experts" (NIV), or that they are "trained" (ESV) in greed, 2 Peter 2:14c.
      2. As such, these false teachers have left the right path of receiving money for ministering aright to follow the way of Balaam who took money to teach wickedness in ministry, 2 Peter 2:15. Balaam "actually urged the Moabites to trick Israelite men into illicit relationships with Moabite women, thereby introducing immorality into the camp (Num. 31:16; cf. Num. 25:1-3; Rev. 2:14)." (Ibid., p. 873)
      3. For his sin he was rebuked by a donkey to restrain his madness, 2 Peter 2:16; Num. 22:21-33.
    8. False teachers hypocritically do not spiritually possess what they first imply they can offer, 2 Peter 2:17:
      1. False teachers are like springs without water and mists driven by a storm, both descriptions picturing items that onlookers might initially think offered water to drink (springs) and rain (mists), Ibid.
      2. However, like waterless springs and rainless clouds, they hypocritically fail to supply the spiritual blessings they initially pretend or promise to be able to offer their hearers, Ibid.
    9. False teachers mouth empty boastful words, appealing to the sin nature of people just escaping from those who live in apostate error in order to seduce them for their own lusts and greedy gain, 2 Peter 2:18.
    10. False teachers promise religious liberty while they themselves are enslaved in depravity, 2 Peter 2:19.
    11. False teachers and their followers who have initially known of Christ and His salvation only to spurn it are in a state of such apostasy that it would better for them if they had never been born, 2 Peter 2:20-21. Since a Hebrew like Peter viewed dogs and pigs as the most lowly of creatures (Ibid., p. 874), Peter's reference to a dog's returning to its vomit and a washed sow to her wallowing in the mud to illustrate such false teachers reveals these false teachers are in a ghastly state of enormous, wicked apostasy!
Lesson: We discern false teachers by their characteristics of (1) indulging in sin nature lusts, (2) bold, proud slandering of proper authorities, (3) animalistic insensitivity to facts, (4) coarseness of evil actions, (5) immorality, (6) seduction of the unstable, (7) greed, (8) hypocritical failure to supply what is spiritually promised, (9) seduction by appeal to the sin nature, (10) promises of religious liberty while being enslaved to depravity and (11) returning to worse apostasy after flirting with Christ's salvation.