February 17, 2008
Sun Oak Baptist Church

Introduction

        Please see last week’s sermon for Part 1

        Student kills 5 people, wounds 8, and then kills himself; car plows into a crowd of over 50 people and kills 8; and then, moments later as we are still processing such incredible news, the drive-by media takes us to this headline: creator of “Howard the Duck” dies at the age of 60 – whoever “Howard the Duck” is….

        If we stop long enough to think about this world, to begin to try and understand it; explain it; or make sense of it – we could get discouraged – in fact, it could get overwhelming.

        But we don’t have to wonder: God has given us the Bible – His Word. It’s a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. We don’t have to be in the dark. And this is exactly where we are when it comes to false teachers in the church – we don’t have to be in the dark.

        In verses 17-22 Peter makes 3 final and carefully aimed points about false teachers.

I. The empty doctrine of false teachers. See 2:17-18.

        Please see last week’s sermon notes.

II. The empty promises of false teachers. 2:19

        A. Go back 2,000 years…understand the significance and context of         the words “slave” and “bondage.”

                1. These are terms that were common in a culture that                 embraced and practiced slavery.

                2. Peter uses the word “doulov” – one who has sold or given                 themselves to a master; one who voluntarily and willingly gives                 up their freedom.

        B. While false teachers promise their followers liberty they         “themselves are slaves of corruption.”

                1. We can boil down every promise that false teachers make                 into a promise related to offering people liberty, or freedom of                 some kind. In Peter’s day one of the messages preached by                 false teachers was freedom in Christ by adhering to the law.

                Note the tension then between law and grace and the false                 gospel message of “doing.”

                2. False teachers are slaves of corruption – sin.

                3. In contrast, there is true liberty, true freedom for those who                 have placed their trust in Jesus Christ. We have freedom in our                 relationship with Him. See Gal. 5:1; Rom. 6:16; John 8:36; etc.

III. The inevitable end of false teachers. 2:20-22

Conclusion