2 Peter 2:1

But there are also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction... For if God did not spare the angels who sinned and cast them down to hell... and did not spare the ancient world but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness... and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them to destruction... and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked... then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment. (2 Peter 2:1-10)

When false teaching denies the Lord, destruction follows—yet the same God who judges is relentlessly merciful.

The Argument That Goes Nowhere

This last week I was speaking with a gentleman in our church who had gotten into a conversation—really an argument—with someone from the Jehovah's Witness background, the Watchtower Society. Maybe a few of you have found yourself in a conversation like that, perhaps with someone from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints knocking on your door. It can easily devolve into an argument as you discuss the finer points of Orthodox Christian doctrine. And we all know argument rarely persuades anyone of anything—just turn on the news commentary shows.

As I talked with this friend in my office, he was asking questions, trying to get answers to share with this person. I said, in my experience those conversations rarely go anywhere helpful. You can go on all day about whether it's okay to celebrate Christmas or birthdays, or whether Jesus is the spirit brother of Lucifer, or whether we existed as spirit bodies before earth. But it really comes down to some very simple things: Is Jesus Lord and God? Was His death on the cross necessary, and is it sufficient?

False Teachers in Every Age

That's exactly what the Apostle Peter is dealing with here in 2 Peter chapter 2. Two thousand years ago, in the earliest days of the church, there were already arguments over these important truths. Peter looked at the landscape of his day and knew that into the future false teachers would come and deny these basic things—the lordship of Jesus, and the necessity and sufficiency of His death on the cross for us. He says: just as there were false prophets in the Old Testament, so there shall be false teachers.

He foresaw that day, and so did Paul, Jude, and John. Jesus Himself said many false prophets and false teachers would arise and potentially deceive many. These individuals don't come announcing themselves. They come in secretly. Jude says they creep in unnoticed; Jesus said they are like wolves in sheep's clothing. And though they come unnoticed, they bring in destructive heresies—the King James calls them damnable heresies—teaching outside of what Scripture reveals, teaching that brings destruction.

The Simple Test of False Teaching

At the core of these false teachings is exactly what Peter says: they deny the Lord who bought them. So our first point is this: false teachers deny the lordship of Christ and the necessity and sufficiency of His death on the cross.

You can argue about all kinds of distracting issues—Christmas, birthdays, pagan this or that—or you can get right down to the simple test. Is Jesus Christ Lord? Is He God? Was His death on the cross necessary? And is it sufficient—enough to deal with our sin and save us? If a person cannot answer yes to those three questions, they have followed false teaching, most likely without even being aware of it. Every cult denies the deity of Christ and the necessity and sufficiency of His death on the cross.

Destructive Teachings Bring Destruction

Here's the problem: these teachings lead to destruction. Four times in the first three verses Peter uses that word. Verse one calls them destructive heresies by which they bring on themselves swift destruction. Verse two says many will follow their destructive ways. And though it seems delayed, verse three says their destruction does not slumber.

There is a damnation that comes upon those who deny the lordship and deity of Jesus, who say His death on the cross was not necessary, or that it was not enough—that something more remains for you to do. You have to be baptized in this church, in this way; you have to partake of communion this way; you have to worship on this day, or do this good work, or you cannot receive God's grace. But that goes against the very concept of grace, which is unmerited, undeserved favor. None of us deserve salvation; it is completely of God's grace.

So our second point may seem simplest of all: destructive teachings bring destruction. As Peter said in chapter one, "I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know them and are established in the present truth." It's that simple reminder again and again.

God's Self-Introduction: Merciful and Gracious

At this point someone might object: what about the grace and mercy of God? Isn't God gracious and merciful? That's a valid and important question, and I'm sure you, like me, are grateful that He is.

One of my favorite passages is in Exodus 34. Moses is on Mount Sinai, and having asked to see God's glory, he is placed in the cleft of a rock as God passes by. But more important than what Moses sees is what God says. The first introduction came at the burning bush in Exodus 3, when God said, "Tell them I AM that I AM has sent you." Here in Exodus 34, God expands on that.

The LORD passed before Moses and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, abounding in goodness and truth." (Exodus 34:6)

The first thing God chooses to describe Himself as is merciful. Of all the innumerable attributes He could have named, He goes first to mercy. Now, any student of Scripture knows the Bible describes God as holy. But if God defaulted first to His holiness, none of us would be here—He is so holy and we are so far from it. What do we sinners need? We need His mercy. Mercy is not getting what you deserve. And if you study the first three chapters of Genesis, you find that all of us deserve just punishment from a holy God.

Slow to Anger, Abounding in Love

God says He is merciful, then gracious—getting what you don't deserve, receiving good gifts you have not earned. And not just merciful and gracious, but patient—long-suffering, slow to anger. I'm trying to learn and apply these as a dad: mercy, grace, and patience. Can anybody relate? And He is abounding in goodness—a lot of chesed, steadfast love—full of good love and truth.

That's a great introduction. And notice it's in the Old Testament, the second book of the Bible. A lot of people think God in the Old Testament was cranky and not all that nice, and that over time He got nicer—as if He went through puberty over a couple thousand years. But no: God in the Old Testament is merciful, gracious, patient, abounding in good love and truth. Verse seven goes on, "keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin." This is a good God.

God Is Relentlessly Committed to Justice

But what about His grace when He judges? Look again at 2 Peter 2:4 and following. Peter doesn't miss the mercy and grace of God, but he wants to remind us that God is relentlessly committed to truth, holiness, justice, and His glory. He illustrates this with three pictures from Genesis.

First, God did not spare the angels who sinned but cast them down to hell, delivering them into chains of darkness reserved for judgment. The most common view is that Peter recalls Genesis 6, where the sons of God—we believe angels—came down and committed sexual immorality with the daughters of men. It sounds off the wall, but it's there. God looked upon these angels and reserved them in chains of darkness until the day of judgment. God dealt swiftly with that sin.

Second, He did not spare the ancient world but saved Noah. In Genesis 6, while Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord, the rest of the world was filled with chaos, sin, and rebellion, so God brought the great flood. Yet in the midst of judgment we see mercy: God saves Noah, his wife, their three sons, and their wives—eight people—along with the animals. And no, there weren't rock people, and God was not on some green agenda about global warming. Russell Crowe makes a bad Noah, I'm sorry.

One Righteous Man Delivered from Sodom

Third, He turned Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemning them to destruction as an example to the ungodly—yet even there we see mercy. At the end of Genesis 18, God reveals to Abraham what He is about to do, and Abraham intercedes: Will You spare the cities for fifty righteous? Yes. For forty-five? Forty? Thirty? It becomes almost an auction, until Abraham asks, what if there are only ten? And God says He will spare the entire region for ten righteous people.

But God went down and did not find even ten. What did He find? Verse seven: "He delivered righteous Lot." One guy. He delivered Lot, and ultimately Lot's two daughters as well. So even in the stories of God's judgment we are reminded of His mercy. But God is relentlessly committed to truth, holiness, justice, and His glory.

Mercy Does Not Void Justice

These pictures give us our fourth point: God's mercy does not void His justice. Yes, God is merciful and gracious, but His mercy and grace do not nullify His justice. The very next words in Exodus 34 say He is "by no means clearing the guilty." A God who is just will not acquit the guilty.

That was Abraham's own question in Genesis 18: "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" If God is going to judge everyone, He must be just. Perhaps you've had a conversation with a family member or neighbor about spiritual things. The gospel includes both the good news of salvation and the bad news of sin and judgment. When you mention judgment, people say, "I believe in a God of love who would never send anybody to hell." The response is: Yes, I believe in a God of love, mercy, and grace too—but that doesn't mean He won't deliver justice.

Mercy and Grace Only in Jesus

When we talk about mercy and grace, we are talking about things that come from God only through Jesus Christ. Paul writes to Timothy, "Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord" (1 Timothy 1:2). He says it again in 2 Timothy 1:2 and to Titus 1:4, "from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior." John repeats it in 2 John 1:3. Mercy, grace, and the peace that flows from them are found only in Jesus Christ our Lord. That means outside of Him you will not find them.

Jesus is gracious and merciful, but He is also relentlessly committed to truth, holiness, justice, and His glory. The final picture of Jesus in the Bible is the book of Revelation—"the revelation of Jesus Christ"—where when He comes, all the tribes of the earth will mourn. In Revelation 1:18 He says, "I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death."

The Keys of Death and Hell

What does it mean that Jesus holds the keys to hell and death? The summary comes about twenty chapters later. At the end of Revelation 20, Jesus is seated on a white throne, and death and hell are opened—because He holds the keys. Hell is the prison where the unjust and ungodly are held, awaiting the day of judgment. And the very last verse of chapter 20 says death and hell were cast into a lake of fire, the second death. I'm not entirely sure what a lake of fire is, but it sounds bad—really bad. The final picture of meek and mild Jesus is Jesus the Judge, bringing just judgment.

Look at 2 Peter 2:9: "The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations"—as He did Noah and Lot—"and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment." Jesus knows how to save, and He also knows how to judge. The day of judgment is what the prophetic and apocalyptic passages—Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Obadiah, Revelation—call "the great and terrible day of the Lord," any time God intervenes in the realm of humanity for judgment.

Who Are the Unjust?

Who are the ungodly? Verse 10: "especially those who walk according to the flesh, in the lust of uncleanness, and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries." They walk according to their earthly, carnal desires. Paul describes this in Galatians 5:19—"the works of the flesh are evident: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like"—everything you see across the channels—"those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God."

They also despise authority—rejecting the rule of God and the lordship of Jesus Christ: "We will not have this man to rule over us." Furthermore, they are presumptuous. That Greek word appears only once in the New Testament, a hapax legomenon. Its literal meaning is "daring men"—arrogantly standing against a power you cannot defeat. It's like standing in front of a train, proud and determined and foolish. Muhammad Ali, at his peak, was once asked by a stewardess to fasten his seatbelt. He said, "Superman don't need no seatbelt." She replied, "Superman don't need no plane—so buckle up." That's presumptuousness.

They are self-willed—brazen and arrogant. And finally they are "not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries"—literally the Greek words for blasphemy and glory. They are unafraid to slander God.

It Is Foolish to Test His Grace

This brings us to our fifth point, and it's an "oh, well, duh" kind of point: it is foolish to test the limits of the mercy and grace of Jesus.

Let me be clear—it is great to rejoice in His mercy and grace. His mercies are new every morning; great is His faithfulness. Hebrews says we can come boldly before His throne of grace to obtain mercy and grace in our time of need. He is merciful; that is His default. You will never come to His throne and hear, "Sorry, Kevin was here five minutes ago and took it all—come back later." That won't happen.

But there are limits to His mercy and grace, and I don't want to find out where they are. There are those who arrogantly, presumptuously stand against the coming day of judgment, speaking blasphemously against the glory of Jesus Christ. And judgment will one day come. Some will say, "I don't see that happening—it's been 2000 years."

Why So Long?

Look at the trailer of coming attractions in 2 Peter 3:3-9. "Scoffers will come in the last days... saying, 'Where is the promise of His coming?'... For this they willfully forget"—they forget there was a flood with water—"that the heavens and the earth which are now... are reserved for fire until the day of judgment... The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance."

Why didn't Jesus come back in 1981? Why didn't all that we read in The Late Great Planet Earth happen on schedule? Why is He taking so long? Because there are a whole lot of people who still need Jesus. And thank God He is slow to anger.

It is foolish to test the limits of His mercy and grace, because though He is merciful and gracious, that does not void the fact that He is just and will one day bring justice. This world is in desperate need of His grace and mercy. But those who refuse to receive Christ as Lord and Savior, who do not recognize the necessity and sufficiency of His death, burial, and resurrection, have followed a false teaching that leads to damnation. He holds the keys of hell and death. One day those doors will open, and death and hell will be cast into the lake of fire—the second death. There is no mercy and no grace in the lake of fire. So may God help us know His grace and mercy and extend it to others.

Closing Prayer

Father, these are simple truths from Your word, but truths we need to be reminded of. I pray we would not soon forget these things. Jesus, I thank You for Your grace and for the salvation we have purely because of Your goodness, mercy, and grace, having nothing to do with our works. We thank You that You are faithful to forgive us and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness as we confess our sins to You. God, we need Your cleansing touch.

If today you realize you need the forgiving grace of God and you'd like to receive it—the Scriptures say if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness. Pray with me where you are: Dear Jesus, I need Your grace. I pray that You would come into my life and forgive me of my sin, and help me to follow You by faith for all of my life. In Jesus' name, Amen.