False Teachers Will Be a Problem
Text: II Peter 2:1-9
There Will Always Be False Teachers - II Peter 2:1-3
A prophet was a person, inspired by God, who speaks for God. There were numerous prophets in the Old Testament and several mentioned in the New Testament. These people deserve our respect and we must respect what they told us (I Peter 1:19-21). However, not every person claiming to be a prophet really was speaking God’s words. “Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are prophesying to you. They are leading you into futility; They speak a vision of their own imagination, Not from the mouth of the LORD’” (Jeremiah 23:16). Generally a false prophet was recognized by the fact that their doctrine did not match the truth of God’s Word that was already revealed. (Deuteronomy 13:1-4).
A teacher is a person who instructs others in God’s Word. If there were false prophets in the Old Testament, it should not be surprising that there will be false teachers in the New Testament era. Some will rise from among those leading the church (Acts 20:28-31). Some will appear to be godly but are not (II Timothy 3:5). Sadly, false teachers are often people we like. They seem to be good people. They might appear to be studious and have a strong knowledge of the Bible but in reality, they really don’t know what they are talking about (I Timothy 1:6-7; II Timothy 3:7). It means that we can’t always detect false teachers by their appearance or like-ability (II Corinthians 11:12-15).
We should be clear that someone getting a few points about the Bible wrong doesn’t mean he is a false teacher. We are all growing and learning, which implies that we will be adjusting our teachings to more closely match the Bible as we mature. For example, Peter strayed from the truth, but we would not call him a false teacher (Galatians 2:11-14). Apollos did not know about Jesus, but we don’t call him a false teacher (Acts 18:24-28). These men did not remain in their error and they were not trying to lead people astray.
One mark of a false teacher is that they operate in secret (Jude 4). This implies that they know that their teachings aren’t generally accepted but instead of engaging in public discussion of their ideas, they attempt to gain followers without other people noticing. The word in Greek for “secretly introduce” means to “lead in from the side.” It means to “bring in secretly, stealthily, or to maliciously introduce.”
Another mark of a false teacher is that their teachings lead people away from Christ. Their teachings divide God’s people instead of uniting them in God’s Way. Though supposedly Christians, some will even go so far as to deny Christ. Paul prophesied that Christians would depart from the faith, following after false teachings (I Timothy 4:1-4). Not only would God allow this to happen, but Jesus said it is impossible for this not to happen (Luke 17:1-2). Now doesn’t mean God approves of the actions of a false teacher. God will swiftly punish those who lead His people astray (Jude 11).
However, false teachers will come. In fact, Jesus bluntly says, in Matthew 18:7, that such offenses must come. And despite their destruction, they will still inflict damage on God’s people.
False teachers are looking to gather a following. Sensuality is appealing and popular. We are not talking exclusively about sexual sins. False teachers use things that appeal to the senses, such as smooth words, luxuries, and fulfilling worldly desires. Even worldly people will take note of the corrupted attraction and speak badly of Christianity because of these people’s behavior. Think about how many television evangelists among the denominations are made fun of because of their luxuriant lives or being caught in blatant sins.
False teachers are also looking to make money. Titus was warned about false teachers from among the Jewish brethren who teach falsely for the sake of gain (Titus 1:10-11). Peter said that the false teachers will exploit the brethren. The word in II Peter 2:4 literally means that they treat the brethren as merchandise from with to make a profit. And Paul warned of people who use the gospel as a way of making money (I Timothy 6:3-5). This is especially noticeable in other countries. It seems everyone wants to call themselves a preacher so that they can request money from brethren in wealthier nations.
Because money is driving them, their stance on various issues in the Bible will change depending on who is supporting them (Micah 3:5).
Peter assures us that they will not get away with their misdeeds.
False Teachers Will Be Destroyed - II Peter 2:4-9
What do we do about false teachers? First, understand that their destruction is in God’s hand, not ours. Jude points out that even angels understand that judgment is in God’s hands (Jude 8-10). What we must focus on is teaching the truth because the truth always wins in the end (Jeremiah 23:28-29). Yet, we still must keep our exposure to false teachings to a minimum (Romans 16:17-18).
God is not reluctant to destroy false teachers.
- He has cast the angels who have sinned into Tartarus (the lowest abyss of Hades) to await judgment.
- He destroyed the entire world with water because of men’s sins.
- He reduced Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes and made them a byword of what is truly evil.
And yet, God is not going to allow the righteous to be destroyed as collateral damage in His war against evil. Noah and his family were rescued from the flood after Noah spent over a century trying to teach the wicked (Genesis 6:3). Lot and his daughters were rescued from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah because Lot was grieved by the behavior of his neighbors (Psalms 119:158) and tried to prevent them from sinning (Genesis 19:2). Therefore, we can conclude that God will protect the godly, regardless of how few they are in number, from the temptation offered by these false teachers. At the same time, God will continue to punish the unrighteous until the day of judgment. Especially people who appeal to fleshly desires and rebelliousness.
For discussion:
- In both the case of Noah and Lot, Peter mentions additional details that are not found in the original accounts. Why?
- Why did Peter put extra emphasis on how Lot found the behavior of his neighbors to be torture to his soul? (See Ezekiel 9:4)
- Tartarus (in II Peter 2:4) is only used in this verse. It is from Greek mythology to refer to the lowest, most inaccessible section of Hades (the realm of the dead). Why would Peter borrow this term?
- The supporters of homosexuality want to say that God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah because they were not hospitable (based on Ezekiel 16:48-50). How would you answer this claim based on II Peter 2:7?
