“But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.” – 2 Peter 2:1

We are warned, over and over, that false teachers are inevitable. They’re going to be a part of Christian life until Jesus returns so Christians must be prepared at all times! Know the truth. Study the Word for yourself. Check what you hear or read online against God’s unchanging word.

Someone who makes a simple mistake isn’t a false teacher, especially if they receive correction with a humble spirit. Be cautious in labeling a person a heretic when they simply lack understanding or disagree with you. Nonetheless, those who teach falsely about God the Father, Jesus the Son, or the Holy Spirit teach destructive heresy because they keep those who would worship God from worshiping Him as He truly is. Those who teach falsely about the gracious salvation that’s only available through faith in Jesus Christ and to which no person or church can add teach destructive heresy that keeps people from living joyfully in the grace God would bestow upon them.

Peter particularly condemns those who teach a false and lesser version of Jesus, reducing the Master Who died for them to something less which would be incapable of actually atoning for their sin. Jesus is eternally the Son, not a created being. Jesus is one with God the Father, not merely a teacher, prophet, example, or revolutionary. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin. He lived without sin, died a sinner’s death on a cross, was buried, and physically rose from the dead. Jesus is fully a person as well as fully God. He had to be both to accomplish what He accomplished by His death and resurrection.

Today, false teachers are more widespread than ever and can easily build huge online platforms. God will punish them eternally, but they may still cause a great deal of harm in the near term. Know the truth. Study the Word for yourself. Check everything you hear against God’s unchanging word. #FollowJesus

“By which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” – 2 Peter 1:4

The verse before this begins describing the blessings of salvation given through faith in Jesus Christ. Peter continues here, praising the precious and very great promises of Jesus. There’s one highlighted in this verse that’s simply stunning to contemplate… When you trust in Jesus, you become a partaker of the divine nature! Not an observer, a partaker…

When you trust in Christ as your Lord, you actually participate in His divine nature…. You come into deep spiritual union with Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God and second person of the Godhead. You are joined to God! This union goes deeper than even the wonderful news that you’re adopted into God’s family. You are filled with and partake of God. You are sealed by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit of God enters into you. Your body is a temple of God because He lives in you. You enter a glorious, indescribable union with Christ Himself at a deep spiritual level.

Jesus says that you are in Him and He is in you. You become closer to Jesus than to any other person. He is ever-present in and with you. You’re never alone or separated from Him. Jesus is working inside you and transforming you. Your immortal soul is always in His presence. Even these words fail to adequately describe what it means to partake of the divine nature. Perhaps the best description is Paul’s, that in Christ you are “new creation”. You aren’t just a minor upgrade of yourself, you’re new and of a different nature than you were before. Old creation was fallen in sin and separated from God. New creation is restored, reconciled, and united with God. That’s you if Christ is your Savior!

Sin no longer rules over you because you’ve been made fundamentally new and different, partaking in the divine. Death no longer rules over you for the same reason. Words fail to describe this, so let them fail! Take time today trying to picture this, praising Jesus for this, and trying to live up to this new reality for you. #FollowJesus

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is
when brothers dwell in unity!”
– Psalm 133:1

We radically underestimate how important unity is to God! The Father and the Son both speak often of the importance of unity in the family, particularly God’s family. Unity is praised in this psalm. This is how God thinks about unity! It’s compared to the precious anointing oil that was poured over the high priest to mark him as holy and devoted to the Lord. Unity sanctifies us, makes us holy and ready for Kingdom service. Unity is also compared to the overflowing blessing of life in the desert represented by water streaming down Israel’s highest mountain.

Unity amongst God’s people is life-giving. It creates holiness and fuels spiritual growth. Unity is a blessing that keeps on blessing in abundance. It nourishes God’s family and bring Him much glory. Disunity, arguing, fighting, gossiping, slandering, grasping for status, battling for power, seizing control, and demanding absolute, rigid agreement on every minor point does the opposite of these things. It damages or destroys us spiritually. It tears God’s family apart. It stunts everyone’s spiritual growth. It makes God look like a fraud to unbelievers. It destroys our witness to the watching world.

Unity amongst Christians was so important that Jesus emphasized it in His prayer on the night He was betrayed. He knew how stubborn, arrogant, and selfish we are. He knew we’d try to tear each other apart in His name. He prayed that we would resist the temptation, but oh how the church has struggled for 20 centuries! In the eyes of Jesus, unity in the church is far more important than we consider it to be. We must stop looking at the importance of unity from our perspective and start looking at it from His perspective. Fight FOR unity, not against it. Battle to honor other believers. Praise and encourage those who unify. Labor to encourage and love others. Build bridges to other believers. Understand what is central and non-negotiable in the faith and where good Christians can live, work, and worship together in love despite differences. #FollowJesus

“For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.” – 1 Peter 3:17

Suffering may well be part of your life, now or in the future. Though we wish it weren’t, Scripture is clear that nobody is immune from going through hard times in this fallen world. Jesus Christ, God’s own Son, suffered horribly. Why imagine God will give you an exemption from suffering???

The question becomes, are you suffering for the right reason??? Are you being persecuted unjustly or are you just reaping what you’ve sown? If people don’t like you and mistreat you because you’re rude, cruel, selfish, abrasive, greedy, mean, easily offended, or persistently irritable and unkind, that’s on you. There are Christians today who are very confused on this point! They’re obnoxious, people don’t like them, and they feel more self-righteous because they’re suffering as Christians. Not so! They aren’t suffering for Jesus, they’re suffering because they’re jerks who aren’t like Jesus!

Don’t let that ever become true of you. If your life is plagued by the logical consequences and punishments that follow from illegal, immoral, unethical, and un-Christlike behavior, that isn’t holy suffering. That isn’t martyrdom or religious persecution. That’s just you experiencing unnecessary, self-inflicted suffering.

It’s far better to live a life that strives to imitate Jesus. Every day, every week, every month. Then when you experience opposition, persecution, or suffering, you know that you suffer in the righteous company of Christ. Your suffering in that circumstance bears witness to Christ Who suffered on the cross for you and suffers with you. Your Christlike suffering brings glory to God and will bring you praise in Heaven. Acting too much like Jesus is the right reason to suffer, if you must suffer. #FollowJesus

“to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you” – 1 Peter 1:4

If you’ve been born again through faith in Jesus Christ, the resurrected Son of God, then this inheritance is yours! Yours! You may or may not inherit much here on earth, but in Christ, there is a perfect, glorious, eternal inheritance waiting for you in God’s presence. It’s not only waiting, it’s being kept particularly for you. Unlike an earthly inheritance that can be squandered, lost, stolen, corrupted, wasted, disputed, or fought over this inheritance will be perfect forever and ever.

Your inheritance in Christ is imperishable. It won’t ever end, lose its value, break down, be taken away, or get lost. Your future possession of this inheritance is guaranteed by the presence of the Holy Spirit in your life. Your inheritance is also undefiled. There’s no sin or corruption in it. It is holy just as God’s presence is holy. It doesn’t just look good, it IS good! Your inheritance is unfading. It won’t lose value over time. It won’t become less desirable once you get a closer look. Indeed, it will be more glorious than you can possibly imagine and it’s already prepared for you!

Regardless of your earthly situation or circumstances, always remember that you’re a wealthy landowner in heaven and the renewed earth! Your place is assured in Christ and it will be waiting for you until you arrive. Live and serve with faithfulness and obedience to Christ all the days of your life, knowing that your reward is certain and secure. Rejoice in what you already have and will someday see and enjoy forever. #FollowJesus