2 Peter 1:1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Savior Jesus Christ

Why Is There A 2^nd Peter?

Peter wrote 1^st Peter, but God compelled him to write a 2^nd Peter. Why?

To understand this, go back to the third time Jesus appeared to His disciples, as they fished on the Sea of Tiberias (John 21). Peter and the other ten Apostles are out fishing (Judas Iscariot has hung himself, see Matthew 27:1-10) when Jesus calls to them from the shore, inquiring as to whether or not they had caught any fish. They tell Jesus “No”, and He tells them to “cast the net on the RIGHT side of the boat” (John 21:6). Doing so, they gather so many fish that the net nearly breaks. The Bible says:

John 21:11 Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not broken.

I have often wondered why there were “one hundred and fifty-three” fish in the net. Why did God make this observation? When Jesus initially met Simon Peter, his brother Andrew and James and John Zebedee, they were fishing at the Lake of Gennesaret (Luke 5:5-8), and just like at the Sea of Tiberius had been fishing all night and caught nothing. Jesus told them then to “let down your nets” and, on doing so, caught so many fish that their nets nearly broke. Jesus told these men,

Luke 5:10 (NKJV) Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men…

Jesus said “Follow Me, and I will make YOU fishers of men”. 153 fish represent the diverse types of people that the Gospel will net. Jesus came for ALL people. Those who have been saved toss the Gospel net for all!

After the Apostles draw the 153 fish from the Sea of Tiberius at Christ’s Word this symbolized the effectiveness of the Lord Jesus. When we do as He says, we will always produce spiritual fruit. Following this miraculous catch, Jesus three times asks Peter:

John 21:15 (NKJV) … “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?”

Are you SAVED Simon? Am I your life? Three times Jesus asks this – and three times “Simon, The son of Jonah” replies, “Yes Lord, You know that I love you”. Simon is affirming his salvation in his love for Jesus. Loving Jesus, our Lord tells Simon:

John 21:15 “Feed My lambs.”
John 21:16 “Tend My sheep.”
John 21:17 “Feed My sheep.”

If you’re saved by the Gospel net, YOU BELONG TO JESUS! 2 Peter examines the NATURE and the NURTURE of the Christian.

The Christian is Christ’s possession.

You belong to no man but the Son of Man. You were purchased by the Blood of Him Who saved you. “Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate” (Hebrews 13:12, NKJV). Jesus died on a “t” shaped gallows to purchase you from Satan. Jesus “ loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood” (Revelation 1:5, NKJV). The Scripture says that “your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, NKJV). It is the Blood of Christ that saved you. It is the Blood of Christ that redeemed you from sin and Satan.

Someone let down the Gospel net at Christ’s Word – and you were caught! You are part of the 153. You no longer belong to the world.

In 1^st Peter the Apostle addresses “Satan as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). This is the enemy from WITHOUT, the lost world that continually attacks the Church, watches the Church, seeks to destroy the Church. The roaring lion watches from the outside, seeking to destroy the weak and the stragglers that are pitiful in their faith. Just as the roaring lion attacks and kills the slow, the sheep that drift from the watchful eye of the shepherd, that wander away from the flock, Satan will kill the faith and the life of those who wander from Christ’s Church. He attacks by the world and the fallen flesh. He attacks from without.

In 2^nd Peter the Apostle addresses “Satan as a serpent in the Garden of Eden, the enemy from WITHIN” (Genesis 3:1; 1 Corinthians 10:9; 2 Corinthians 11:3; Revelation 12:9). The greatest danger to the Church is not Satan the Lion from without, but Satan the Serpent from within.

Illustrate: Satan from without can be defeated much in the same way that the three little pigs defeated the big bad wolf. When the little pigs built their houses of straw and sticks, they were easily destroyed. But when they built their homes out of ROCK, the big bad wolf had no effect. He could huff and puff, but could not come in. Isn’t this what Jesus said in:

Matthew 7:25 (NKJV) … and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

The net let down at Christ’s Word will bring in 153 varieties of people. The Church focused on the Word of Christ cannot fall, for it is built upon the Rock that is Christ (1 Corinthians 10:4). The big bad wolf or the Roaring Lion cannot get through the door where God’s people are.

Christians, To Defeat The Lion & The Serpent,
We Rely On The Savior And The Spirit

2 Peter 1:1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ…..

Let’s start with these ten words. C.H. Spurgeon noted that one of the signs of spiritual maturity is to realize how weak you are, but how great Christ is. He said:

“Get to Christ somehow, anyhow, for if you get to Him you shall live. It is not the greatness nor the perfection of your faith, it is His greatness and His perfection which is to be depended on.”

As Peter begins this letter, let’s note how he begins it:

2 Peter 1:1 Simon Peter

When Peter opened his first letter, he wrote:

1 Peter 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ

But now in this second letter he starts with “Simon Peter” – but this is not actually correct. In the Greek manuscripts it is actually “SIMEON Peter”.

Word Study: We’re used to calling him “Simon”, the Greek form of his name Símōn which we transliterate into “Simon”. But Simon was not born a Greek, but a Jew, a Hebrew. His Hebrew name is (in the Greek Text) Symeṓn, the Hebrew Shimʻôwn. This was his fleshly name, the name his father gave him. In John 1:42 Jesus addressed the Apostle, saying…

John 1:42 … when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon (Greek Símōn) the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.

Word Study: Jesus gave Simeon a second name, Kēphas which is transliterated “Cephas”, the Aramaic form of Petros or “Peter”. Peter or Cephas is the spiritual name Jesus gave Simeon/Simon. As Peter begins this 2^nd letter, he begins with “SIMEON PETER” – his birth name and his born again name. When Jesus looked at Simeon and called him, he called him from where he was to where the Christ is.

Every Christian has a birth name, a fleshly past that you came from. You were named a human name like “SIMEON” by your parents. You were born of the flesh, and have a past history where you did not know Christ. But every Christian not only has a “SIMEON”, but when Jesus calls us, He calls us from “SIMEON” to “PETROS” or “PETER”. Jesus changes us from what we were to what we will be.

Jesus meets SIMEON, and says “Follow Me”. SIMEON becomes PETER, just as SAUL became PAUL. Christians are changed creatures.

The Scripture says in Romans 11:30 (AP) … in times past you did NOT BELIEVE GOD …

Not believing God, the Scripture says in Ephesians 2:2-3 (ESV) … you once walked, following the {ways} of this world, following the prince of the power of the air {that’s the devil}, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

Every Christian was once a lost creature, made by God, but at war with God. We wanted to be our own god. But when we met Jesus we, like Peter, said “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful person” (Luke 5:8). We realized – through the power of God’s Holy Spirit – that we were not where we needed to be.

Every Christian is a “new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come”. (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV). We are a work in progress, the people of God. We are called to follow Christ. The Scripture says in Romans 6:4 (ESV) … “just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life”.

It is God Who makes the godly …. godly.
It is God Who makes the Christian.
It is God Who says “Follow Me” – then leads us.

Ephesians 2:8-10 For by Grace are ye saved through FAITH, AND THAT NOT OF YOURSELVES – it is the gift of God, NOT OF WORKS, lest anyone should boast ….. FOR WE ARE HIS WORKMANSHIP, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God has ORDERED we walk in them!

Christians grow by intentionally partnering with God, seeking out His Word, feeding upon it, and following Christ. We realize we are not perfect – the Christian walk is not a cake walk, but a surrendered walk. The Apostle Paul said:

Romans 7:22-25 (ESV) For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

We are delivered from sin by the Blood of Christ – but we war with sin in these fallen bodies. Yet we battle that sin. How? In our own strength? No! But as both Peter and Paul learned, The Gospel that saves us is the Gospel that keeps us. We follow Jesus to be saved. We keep on following Jesus, surrendered, to have an overcoming faith. Powerful faith is not accidental, but incremental. Overcoming faith is not stumbled upon, but sought out by prayer and following. We as Christians serve our Savior.

The Christian Is First And Foremost
A SERVANT Of God

In 1^st Peter the Apostle started with “Peter, an Apostle of Jesus Christ”. But in 2^nd Peter we read:

2 Peter 1:1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ…..

As Simon Peter addresses the Christian, he does not first list himself as “an apostle”. The Apostles were hand picked by Jesus, and given special powers to do what Jesus wanted them to do.

Matthew 10:1-2 (ESV) … And {Jesus} called to Him His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction. 2 The names of the twelve apostles are these …

Word Study: These twelve “apostles”, the Greek apóstolos, were delegates or ambassadors of the Kingdom of Christ. These ambassadors were sent out to represent Jesus. They had authority from Jesus to not only cast out unclean spirits (fallen angels), but they had the power to heal EVERY disease or affliction in Jesus’ name. They were second only in authority to Jesus Christ Himself. Apostles helped establish the early Church, to organize its business, and to keep the Church spreading the Gospel.

As Peter applies the term “Apostle” to himself, it is a term of POWER. You would think Peter would call himself an APOSTLE first. But He didn’t. Though an “APOSTLE”, empowered of Christ to do magnificent things, He is first a “SERVANT”. Again, this is not the best translation of the word.

Word Study: The word “SERVANT” is the Greek “doûlos”, which is derived from the Greek δέω which means “to tie, bind, ensnare, capture”. A Doûlos was a slave, as opposed to a Paîs which was a hired servant. The hired servant could quit his employer, and seek a better salary elsewhere. The Doûlos or slave could not quit his job at will. In the ancient world a person could sell themselves into slavery, giving themselves to a master in order to receive sustenance, shelter, and protection. Under the Jewish law in Deuteronomy 15:12-18 God told His people that “If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. 13 And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed. 14 You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of your threshing floor, and out of your winepress. As the Lord your God has blessed you, you shall give to him.” But if this man decided he did not want to leave the master, then “if he says to {the master}, ‘I will not go out from you,’ because he loves you and your household, since he is well-off with you, 17 then you shall take an awl, and put it through his ear into the door, and he shall be your slave forever.”

This is the state of the Doûlos of Christ. When the Christian comes to Christ, Jesus says “Come, follow Me”. We do not rent ourselves out to Jesus. We become His possession. Jesus said:

John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

John 15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.

The Christian has placed his or her ear on the doorpost of the Cross. We love Him because Jesus His all for us.

We are sons and daughters of God because of what the Son of God did for us. We are adopted into the family of God because God’s only begotten Son entered into the human race. Saving faith is not just a mental exercise where one says, “I believe”. To believe in Jesus is to put everything aside, and to follow Him. To trust or commit your life to Jesus.

Saving Faith Is A PRECIOUS Gift From God

2 Peter 1:1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:

Word Study: The word translated “OBTAINED” is the Greek lanchánō, which means “to receive by divine allotment”. Every person who has ever been saved have been called to salvation by Christ. Jesus called you. Jesus died for you. Jesus rose again, and called to you. Just as Peter, James, John, and every Apostle was called to salvation by Christ, the saved are called to salvation. We “Receive by divine allotment a LIKE PRECIOUS faith”, the same faith that saved Peter. Our salvation is “through THE righteousness of God and our Savior Jesus Christ”. Jesus Christ is God and our Savior. He has provided precious faith to us.

Word Study: “like precious” is the Greek isótimos, which means “equally precious, of equal value or honor”. As Peter speaks of faith, we are tempted to say “Well, that’s easy for YOU to say, Peter. You walked with Jesus. You sat at His feet. You touched Him. Jesus called you as an Apostle, the highest power and gift in the early Church. But look at me. Compared to YOU, I have little from God!” Peter says, “No! Your faith as a gift from God is of equal value and of equal honor”.

Peter loved to use the word PRECIOUS. Our Savior, Jesus Christ, is PRECIOUS. He is PRECIOUS because He alone is chosen of God to redeem mankind:

1 Peter 2:4, 6 To {Jesus} coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious … 6 Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.

If you believe on Jesus, you will not be “confounded” or “ashamed”. To believe on Jesus is to give your life to Him, to rest in Him and His words. Jesus is PRECIOUS because He gives us confidence before God – for He is the Chief Corner Stone of the Kingdom of God. When you believe on Jesus then to you He is PRECIOUS (1 Peter 2:7). Because Jesus is PRECIOUS, His Blood which was shed for us is PRECIOUS:

1 Peter 1:18-19 You were not redeemed with corruptible things, things like silver or gold, from your empty way of life received by tradition from your forefathers. You were redeemed with the PRECIOUS blood of Christ, like a lamb without spot or blemish.

The Blood of Christ is PRECIOUS, because it is the only ticket into the Kingdom of God. The Blood of Christ not only guarantees us a place in Heaven, but secures for every Christian a PRECIOUS faith that cannot be defeated. Purchased of God, the Holy Spirit indwells every Christian. And every trial that comes our way are but tests that prove the genuiness of our faith.

1 Peter 1:6-9 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: 7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: 8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: 9 Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.

Heaven is yours, dear Christian, because of Christ. But much greater than Heaven – because Christ is Precious, because His Blood is Precious, because your salvation is Precious, God gives us PRECIOUS PROMISES:

2 Peter 1:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

The Christian is destined to be a “partaker of the divine nature”. The world says “Follow YOUR heart”. Jesus says, “Follow Me”. The world says “Be true to YOURSELF”. Jesus says, “I am the Truth. Follow Me”. The world says, “Believe in YOURSELF”. Jesus says, “Believe in ME. Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” The world says, “You deserve to be happy. Do what makes you happy.” Jesus says, “What does it profit you if you gain the whole world and lose your own soul? Deny yourself, and follow Me.”

If you follow the world, you will only find sadness and insecurity, sin and death. If you follow Jesus, you will find life, eternal life in Him. Will you not follow Him, one day at a time, one step at a time?