Today’s passage: 2 Peter 2:1-3
Helpful thoughts:
- False prophets/teachers were around when Christ came, they were around in the early days of the church, they are around today, and they will be around until the end.
- False prophets/teachers will be characterized by:
- Claiming to be Christians (“Bought by the Master”), but denying Him
- Subtle tactics (Bringing in false teaching from within)
- Being led by feelings (Less Scripture/More “What feels right to me”)
- By the way, this implies that false prophets/teachers will not believe they are false prophets/teachers!
- Greed/Exploitation
- God is not ignoring them. Their judgment is sure.
Questions to consider:
- Given the characteristics above, would you expect to find false prophets/teachers working outside of churches or inside of churches? Would they be starting new religions or would they be calling themselves Christians and pastors of churches? (Or Christian recording artists on Christian radio stations, Christian therapists at Christian counseling clinics, Christian motivational speakers at Christian conferences, Christian authors writing Christian books for sale at the Christian bookstore, etc.)?
- How would you expect a false prophet/teacher to respond if you told them they were a false prophet/teacher? What would they say and how would they feel? How would their feelings guide their response?
- In our culture today, what would greed and exploitation result in? How would a false prophet/teacher exploit people in the American economy and marketplace?
- How should a genuine Christian prepare for a life of following Jesus with the constant threat of false teaching?