This time we will conclude chapter two of Peter’s second letter with a look at the last five of our clues for recognizing false teaching and the certain doom of false teachers. We begin withClue #18 and dry wells.
2Peter 2:17 These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever.
Clue #18 – They are wells without water. There is nothing worse for a dry and thirsty person than a well that has gone dry. They provide no purpose or function whatsoever. That is what these false teachers are, what they have to offer will not quench the spiritual thirst because there is no truth in what they teach. They sink their wells to the deepest depths but produce nothing for that thirsty soul. Contrast them with Abraham and Isaac who were well diggers who left a trail of wells and blessings wherever they went. When their enemies contested the ownership of those wells they just moved on and dug new ones (Gen 21:22-34; 26:19-33).
We need to let Jesus be our example when He told the woman at the well that He had a well that served up the water of life (John 4:14). It’s the true teachers of the Word that lead people to Jesus, the well of living water, and not to the empty wells of man’s dry words that never satisfy the soul. John Phillips quoted an old hymn that is spot on:
I tried the broken cisterns, Lord,
But ah! The waters failed;
E’en as I stooped to drink, they fled,
And mocked me as I wailed
These false teachers claim to have found the living water but their “waters fail.”
Clue #19 – They are clouds carried by a tempest. Peter says these false teachers are like clouds that have no rain in them that are driven by the storm. They have nothing to offer that will provide spiritual truth and they have no idea where they are going. Putting it in today’s terms: their messages are of no value, they are worthless and those who deliver them are driven by Satan. They think they are under their own control but the voice they hear is his. They are, in fact, tornados wreaking destruction on everything they touch. Peter used the term lailaps, which is literally translated “hurricane” or “whirlwind.” The clouds that ride a hurricane are always destructive. Like the tornados that sweep across America’s heartland, they leave a path of destruction in their wake.
2Peter 2:18 For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.
Clue #20 – They are great swelling words of vanity. These false teachers are not capable of bringing messages of truth. Their words are vanity; mataiotes – they are empty. They are very charismatic and can easily impress their listeners with their worldly wisdom and vocabulary but what they say is empty of spiritual value. In his commentary Paul Cedar used the perfect term for today: they are but bags of wind. John Phillips says: In reality, what they have to say is high-sounding nonsense. What they preach is filled with themselves and their own ideas and is devoid of the truth. While they may be logically framed and presented they ultimately discount the message of the Bible, the message of truth. Phillips asked that we consider Job’s friends. Each one of them thought they were correct in the message they delivered to Job. When God spoke out He asked who was it that was providing all this counsel without knowledge (Job 38:2). Because they reject the Bible nothing they say contains the truth.
Clue #21 – They allure those who have already escaped from the life of sin through the lusts of the flesh. This is Peter’s greatest concern because it affects the very elect of Christ. If we go back to 1:8 we see his warnings about becoming “barren” and “unfruitful.” His answer is to remain faithful to Christ and the Word of God. Here he says that these false teachers “allure” — deleazo; beguile or entice — with the lusts of the flesh rather than teaching the truth of the Spirit. Their words appeal to worldly wisdom and people’s lower nature. A perfect example is the advice Ahithophel gave to Absalom (2 Sam 16). Ahithophel had a hidden agenda, he wanted to get even with David for what he had done to his granddaughter Bathsheba, and Absalom listened and acted. Today’s false teachers also have a hidden agenda and their targets are the spiritually immature and ignorant. Sadly, however, many believers fall prey to their empty words in America every Sunday. We need to remember that we will be accountable for what we allow to enter our soul via the brain. We must continually “judge the spirits.”
2Peter 2:19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.
Clue #21 – They promise liberty but are themselves slaves of corruption. The problem of sin in the pulpit is that it always promises what it can’t deliver. The promises of liberty and freedom in the world’s system are nothing but words of slavery to man’s lower nature. The reason they preach these messages is because they have themselves become slaves to the empty words they use. We have a choice where our soul is to live, either dominated by the flesh or the Holy Spirit. We can either be bond slaves to Jesus or slaves to our flesh and sin. There is no other option, with Jesus there is no “fence sitting.” We are either fully committed to Him or we are turning away to our own fleshly desires.
In first 17 verses of this second chapter Peter addressed what is the certain doom of these false teachers, brought about by allowing themselves to become the servants of corruption. In the last three verses he warns those who listen to these teachers and are led away that their end will be worse than their beginning.
2Peter 2:20-22 For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 21 For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. 22 But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.
First and foremost, as believers in Christ — as the bride of Christ — we have the ultimate responsibility and accountability for our spiritual welfare. If we allow ourselves to be led astray we will pay a tremendous price. It is to us that Peter is addressing these closing verses: those who have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. These are those that he described as “clean” in verse 18. It is only through the knowledge of Jesus Christ that we can escape the bondage of the flesh and the system of the world.
There is a great split in theology concerning verse 20. Some say that one can lose their salvation because of our “freedom of choice” and there are those who say that we cannot lose our salvation. From my perspective I agree with Paul when he wrote his letter to the Hebrew Christians. Their end is not about losing salvation but falling short of a victorious life in Christ here on earth and their rewards at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Peter does not address the issue here but he states the end result in either case; the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. If, after once coming to the knowledge of Christ as Saviour and Lord, one becomes entangled it the pollution of the world — succumbs to the false teachers and their messages — they are worse off in their present condition than they were before coming to faith in Christ.
It is false teaching and false doctrine that we can claim to be committed to the Lord and live in a world of carnality. These false teachers are on their way to eternal destruction and those who follow them are responsible for their own actions. Their teaching may promise freedom but it leads to the slavery of sin.
Up to now Peter has strongly confronted false teaching and denounced it in no uncertain terms. But now he turns to a message of love and encouragement and points his readers to God who, unlike the false teachers, can always be trusted. He will soon be returning and it is up to the bride of Christ to be certain that she is ready.
We will take up Chapter three next time as Peter encourages us to grow up in Christ.