Light Shining in a Dark Place

In one paragraph

The pastor walked through 2 Peter 1-2, pressing on what it means that scripture does not come from any person's own private interpretation, and then turning to Peter's sharp warning about false teachers who quietly introduce destructive heresies into the church. The sermon opened by revisiting the end of 2 Peter 1, where Peter anchors his readers to two things: his own eyewitness experience of...

Read together

1. James 4:8 sung at the opening: 'draw near to God and he will draw near to you'
2. Psalm 36 read during worship: 'how precious is your unfailing love, oh God. All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings'
3. 2 Peter 1:5-8 add to your faith goodness, knowledge, self control, perseverance, godliness, mutual affection, love, to be effective and productive in knowledge of the Lord
4. 2 Peter 1:9 whoever does not have these qualities is nearsighted and blind, forgetting they have been cleansed from past sins
5. 2 Peter 1:12-13 Peter will always remind readers of these things even though they know them, while he lives in the tent of this body
6. 2 Peter 1:14 Peter knows he will soon put aside his body as the Lord Jesus Christ made clear to him
7. 2 Peter 1:15 Peter will make every effort so that after his departure readers will always remember these things
8. 2 Peter 1:16 we did not follow cleverly devised stories but were eyewitnesses of his majesty regarding the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ in power
9. 2 Peter 1:17 the voice from the majestic glory said 'this is my Son whom I love, with him I am well pleased'
10. 2 Peter 1:18 Peter, James and John heard the voice from heaven on the sacred mountain, the transfiguration
11. 2 Peter 1:19 we have the prophetic message as completely reliable, like a light shining in a dark place
12. 2 Peter 1:20 no prophecy of scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation of things
13. 2 Peter 1:21 prophecy never had its origin in human will; men spoke from God as carried along by the Holy Spirit
14. 2 Peter 2:1 there were false prophets then and there will be false teachers among you, secretly introducing destructive heresies, denying the sovereign Lord
15. 2 Peter 2:2 many will follow their depraved conduct and bring the way of truth into disrepute
16. 2 Peter 2:3 in their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories; their condemnation has long been hanging over them
17. 2 Peter 2:4 God did not spare the angels when they sinned but sent them to hell in chains of darkness to be held for judgment
18. 2 Peter 2:5 God did not spare the ancient world but brought the flood on the ungodly while protecting Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others
19. 2 Peter 2:6 God condemned Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes as an example of what will happen to the ungodly
20. 2 Peter 2:7-8 God rescued Lot, a righteous man distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless, tormented in his righteous soul by what he saw and heard
21. 2 Peter 2:9 the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment
22. 2 Peter 2:10 this is especially true of those who follow corrupt desire of the flesh and despise authority
23. James 3:1 let not many of you be teachers because you will incur a harsher judgment
24. 2 Corinthians 12:9 God said to Paul 'my grace is sufficient for you for my power is made perfect in your weakness'; Paul will boast in his weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on him

Talk about it

1. The pastor said we can be saved and still be ineffective and unproductive in our knowledge of the Lord. Do you agree with that? What does it look like in practice?
2. Peter says he kept reminding his readers of things they already knew because 'we're leaky.' What truths from scripture do you find yourself needing to be reminded of most often, and why do you think that is?
3. The pastor presented three possible ways to read 'no prophecy of scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation': the prophet didn't invent it, individuals shouldn't apply it privately however they feel, and no single person but the church decides its meaning. Which of those do you think is most misunderstood in our culture today, and why?
4. The pastor said the encoded-message analogy was meant to show that the scripture was designed by God, transmitted through the prophets, and given to us to follow even when the path looks hard or scary. Where have you found it tempting to take the easier route rather than follow what the word actually says?
5. The pastor named what he called our society's favorite heresy: it doesn't matter what you believe so long as you believe it. How do you personally navigate holding that truth firmly while still being caring and compassionate toward people who believe differently?