2 Peter 3:17-18
“Therefore, dear friends, since you know this in advance, be on your guard, so that you are not led away by the error of lawless people and fall from your own stable position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity.”
We have finally come to the end of Peter’s second letter. I am always a little sad to end the study of one book, or in this case, the study of Peter in both of his letters. But there is also the excitement of looking forward to opening a new chapter, so to speak. In this case, I will be moving back to Paul, and his first and second letters to Timothy.
Peter wraps up his letter by addressing his readers once again as his “dear friends.” This is his fourth time doing so. He also uses the word “therefore.” We always need to look to see what the “therefore” is referring to. It is referring to how untaught and unstable people will twist the Scriptures. Peter has been writing about false teachers who bring destructive teaching to them and Peter uses a similar phrase in both chapter two and here. He says they will bring destruction on themselves.
Let’s look at the whole verse. “Therefore, dear friends, since you know this in advance, be on your guard, so that you are not led away by the error of lawless people and fall from your own stable position.” Peter had started his letter with these verses. “Therefore, brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election, because if you do these things you will never stumble. For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you” (1:10-11). He starts with an exhortation to confirm their calling so they will not stumble, and he ends with an exhortation to be on their guard so they will not stumble.
This still serves as a warning for us today. There are so many false teachers, both in and out of the church. Paul warns in 2 Timothy 4: 3-4, “For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear. They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths.” As I was just writing that out, the phrase “but according to their desires” popped out at me. That is exactly what we are seeing today. Homosexuality, polyamory, pornography and so many other things that are not sound doctrine, which are warned against in the Bible, I now see being argued for, even on Christian websites. People are not tolerating sound doctrine. They are finding teachers and people who agree with them, and then villainizing those of us who are standing firm on biblical principles. I want to encourage you along with Peter. Stand firm. Peter warned you. He told you in advance! Paul also warned us this day would come. We should not be surprised that people are calling sinful things good and good things, sinful. Jesus also warned that the gate is narrow. “Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).
So how do we avoid the false teachers? Peter writes this. “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” The form of verb used here for “grow” is called the present imperative. This is a fancy way of saying “continually growing.” It is an ongoing process. We are to continue growing in both grace, which is God’s unmerited favor, and knowledge, which is knowing more about Him. Both are necessary. I look at it this way. I need to both read my Bible and do it with an understanding of God’s grace and mercy on my life. As I study and learn more about Him, I am more in awe of who He is and the plan He has for me. Douglas Moo writes this about this verse. “If we are to find a single ‘key verse’ for all of 2 Peter, this would probably be it. Here Peter summarizes his root concern: that his readers, resisting the heresy of the false teachers, continue to grow spiritually, becoming more and more like Christ whom they confess.”
And now we have come to the end. “To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity.” Peter ends this letter differently than he did his first letter. In 1 Peter he references Sylvanus and Mark and ends with a blessing of grace and peace. This is similar to the ending of other epistles. But here in 2 Peter, he goes straight for the doxology. I was curious what doxology means, so I looked it up. It comes from the Greek word doxologia. Doxa means “praise or glory” and logos means “a speaking.” You might be familiar with the word from the doxology sung at many churches on Sundays which starts with “Praise God from whom all blessings flow.”
Another unusual feature about this letter is that the doxology is to Christ. Usually, glory is given to God. For example, in 1 Peter 5: 10-11, he writes, “The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little while. To him be dominion forever. Amen.” But here, Peter writes, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity.” John Barry writes this in The Faithlife Study Bible. “This is a fitting closing in light of Peter’s emphasis in this letter on the Day of the Lord. Glory is given to Jesus both now and on the day when he returns in glory.”
What a pleasure it has been learning and writing about both 1 and 2 Peter. I have learned what it means to live a holy and set apart life, both in the midst of suffering (1 Peter) and in the midst of false teachers (2 Peter). It is so important to be grounded in the Word so that when the storms come, whether that be through difficulties in life, or doubts sown by false teachers, we are on solid rock, not shifting sand.
Grace be with you!
Abundant Joy 