2 Peter 1:1 Podcast
Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours.
(2 Peter 1:1)
On the Day of Pentecost in 33 A.D., the Apostle Peter preached to Jews who had come to Jerusalem. That day, as a result of thousands coming to faith in Jesus, many returned to their homes to start a church in their city.
Around 63 or 64 A.D., Peter visited Paul, who was then a political prisoner in Rome. Shortly before the great fire which destroyed the city on July 19, 64 A.D., Peter wrote his first letter to these churches
in Asia Minor, warning them of the coming persecution they would suffer under the Emperor Nero.
A year later, Peter himself became a political prisoner in Rome. During his imprisonment, the apostle penned his second letter to these Christians. This time the apostle did not refer to suffering they would face from outside the Christian community. Instead Peter addressed problems which were arising from within their own churches.
In 2 Peter we discover three divisions:
1) remain faithful and grow spiritually
2) be aware of false teachers
3) be aware of the second coming of Christ and those who would deny that future event.
In 1 Peter, the former Galilean fisherman used the name Jesus gave him, Peter, meaning rock, to introduce himself. Sitting in prison, he wrote his second epistle. This time the apostle is looking back on his life remembering who he was before he met Jesus, back when he was called Simon, which means weak.
In 2 Peter, Peter describes himself as a "bond--servant" of Jesus. This word has the idea of one whose will is swallowed up in the will of another.
Peter describes the recipients of his second letter as "those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours."
These were second generation Christians who had never seen Jesus, yet they had placed their faith in Jesus as God incarnate, the Savior of the world.
Peter continues, ". . . those ... who have received a faith of the same kind as ours." Peter adds that they received this faith "by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ."
These Christians did not come to know Jesus because of their good works, they had the same faith as Peter and his companions, and that faith came by the righteousness of God.
While on the cross, Jesus experienced the wrath of God for the sins of the whole world. The result of His sacrifice was that He satisfied the righteous demands of God. And, all who place their faith in Him as Lord and Savior are made righteous in the sight of God.
#2 Peter #Discipleship #byoungministry #A.C.T. Intl
