The Judgment of False Teachers
2 Peter 2: 4 – 9
Introduction
We continue our talks about false teachers. Their sudden destruction was prophesied and we have seen some I would say modern day examples. If they alone will be judged by the Lord, they are in my reckoning still small in number. The problem is the result of their unscriptural ministry which have deceived lots of innocent people who quickly believed them and followed them, will also be judged. Peter in this letter have shown three concrete example. Remember that God is a just God and He cannot let go sin unpunished. Let’s take a look at them.
I. The angels who sinned (2 Pet. 2:4).
A. Angels are described as holy (Mk. 8:38)
B. Our text speaks of the fall of angels, that is “angels that sinned”
C. What sin have they committed?
1. When Satan rebelled against God, they sided with him. (Isa. 14, Ezek. 28, Rev. 12:7).
2. I believe it was sin of pride and disobedience.
D. As punishment, they were confined in Tartarus. A special section in hell where it is absolutely dark and where angels who sinned are temporarily confined waiting for their final judgment which the lake of fire.
E. The most important is God judges’ sin. If He did not spare the angels who is higher than man, then certainly He will judge man who does not obey and reject Him.
Illustration: The biblical description of hell.
1. Hades – refers to dwelling place of the wicked dead.
2. Tartarus – temporary place of torture or torment for fallen angels
3. Lake of fire – used five times in Revelation. Revelation 20:15; 21:8 (second death), the final place of punishment
4. Bottomless pit or the abyss. —used nine times; refers to lower regions as the abode of demons, out of which they can be let loose at times.
II. The Old World (2 Pet. 2:5)
A. The old world here is the antediluvian (pre-flood) civilization. (Gen. 6:5 – 7, 11-12)
1. The wickedness of man was great in the earth.
2. Every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually
3. It was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
4. It is filled with violence
5. It grieved the Lord at His heart that he decided to destroy both men and beasts.
B. God spared Noah
1. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord (Gen. 6:8)
2. Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. (Gen. 6:9)
3. Noah was a preacher of righteousness (2 Pet. 2:5). To preach mean to proclaim or announce.
4. Noah preached not only by word of mouth but also by his actions.
5. Noah proclaimed God’s message for 120 years to the antediluvian people.
6. God saved Noah and his family, eight persons in all.
7. It has been said that every spike that Noah drove into the ark was as sermon to that ungodly generation, declaring that judgment was about to fall.
III. Sodom and Gomorrah (2 Pet. 2:6)
A. The LORD rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from heaven;
1. Their sin is very grievous.
2. The men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly. (Gen. 13:13)
3. Peter said they were “ungodly,” and Jude said they were given to “fornication and going after strange flesh” (Jude 7).
4. The men of Sodom practiced filthy behavior and unlawful deeds (2 Peter 2:7-8). In what sense were their filthy deeds “unlawful”? They were contrary to nature (see Rom 1:24-27). The flagrant sin of Sodom and the other cities was unnatural sex, sodomy, or homosexual behavior, a sin that is clearly condemned in Scriptures (Lev. 18:22; Rom. 1:24-27; 1 Cor. 6:9).
B. God delivered Lot. (2 Pet. 2:7)
1. Peter says he was “just” (righteous).
2. Peter again repeated the word “righteous” when he penned “righteous man” and “righteous soul”.
3. Lot was a righteous man living in a wrong place.
4. He was in constant state of vexation, he was disturbed continually by what he sees and hears among the people whom he lived.
5. It is puzzling that though he is called here just and righteous, we do not find his name in Hebrews 11.
C. True believers saved (2 Pet. 2:9)
1. The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations.
a. Noah and Lot is the example here.
b. This should encourage true believers, to trust, obey, and be faithful to the Lord.
2. The same God who delivers the godly also reserves the ungodly for judgment.
1. Why is God’s judgment delayed? Because God “is long-suffering … not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).
2. Our present age is not only like “the days of Noah,” but it is also like “the days of Lot.” Many believers have abandoned the place of separation and are compromising with the world. The professing church has but a weak testimony to the world and sinners do not really believe that judgment is coming. Society is full of immorality, especially the kind of sin for which Sodom was famous. It appears as though God is slumbering, unconcerned about the way rebellious sinners have polluted His world. But one day the fire will fall; then it will be too late. (The Bible Exposition Commentary)
IV. Conclusion:
Surely false teachers will be judged. Don’t be one of them. Attend a Bible believing Bible practicing church, read your Bible. Most of all repent from your sins and receive Christ as your personal Saviour.
