Springs Without Water

In one paragraph

This message was part of an ongoing series through 2 Peter, picking up at the second half of verse 10 in chapter 2. Pastor Ray worked through Peter's portrait of false teachers, what drives them, what they promise, and what awaits them, while keeping the congregation's focus on the call to holiness that runs through the letter from its opening verses. Pastor Ray opened with a quick review of the...

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1. 2 Peter 1:3-4 his divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness
2. 2 Peter 1:5-7 make every effort to add to your faith goodness, knowledge, self control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly love, and agape love
3. 2 Peter 1:19 the prophetic message is completely reliable, like a light shining in a dark place
4. 2 Peter 1:20-21 no prophecy of scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation but prophets spoke from God as carried along by the Holy Spirit
5. 2 Peter 2:1-3 false prophets among the people and false teachers among you who secretly introduce destructive heresies
6. 2 Peter 2:4-9 God did not spare angels who sinned, nor the ancient world in the flood, nor Sodom and Gomorrah, but rescued Noah and Lot
7. 2 Peter 2:10-22 bold and arrogant false teachers heap abuse on celestial beings, are like unreasoning animals, springs without water, promising freedom while themselves slaves of depravity
8. 2 Peter 3:1-2 this is my second letter written as a reminder to stimulate wholesome thinking
9. Numbers 22-24 the story of Balaam who loved the wages of wickedness and taught Balak to ensnare the Israelites
10. Numbers 31 Balaam died with the kings of Midian by the sword
11. Jeremiah 29:11 God telling Jeremiah he knows the plans he has, while warning of false prophets saying deliverance would come sooner
12. Revelation 2:14 Balaam taught Balak how to ensnare the Israelites through sexual immorality
13. Matthew 7:22 not everyone who says Lord Lord will enter the kingdom, many will claim to have prophesied and driven out demons in his name but Jesus will say I never knew you
14. Romans 13:12-13 Paul calling believers to put aside deeds of darkness, behave decently, not in carousing and drunkenness or sexual immorality
15. Psalm 119:105 your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path, referenced when discussing scripture as a light shining in a dark place

Talk about it

1. Peter opens by saying God's divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life, and then calls believers to make every effort to add goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, and love to their faith. What does it look like in practice to submit your will to God's will in one of those areas where you find it hardest?
2. The sermon drew a line between bending your life to what Scripture says and bending Scripture to agree with your life. Can you think of a time when you were tempted to do the second, and what helped you recognize it?
3. The false teachers in this passage are described as springs without water: promising something that looks like nourishment from a distance but has nothing living in it. What warning signs might help someone recognize that kind of teaching before they have gone too far down that road?
4. The story about the musician who knew certain music would take him back to a bad place raised the question of Christian liberty versus personal conviction. How do you navigate that tension in your own life, and how do you handle it when someone else draws the line differently than you do?
5. The sermon ended by saying this chapter of heavy judgment is meant to stimulate wholesome thinking and holiness in believers, not to crush them. How does knowing that God's judgment falls most heavily on those who lead others astray change the way you think about your own responsibility to the people around you?