Reading: Today, Peter continues to expand on yesterday’s ideas on false teachers – the one where he says, “Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping” (2 Peter 2:3). We have a couple of important questions we need to answer from the “get go”. First, who is this judge that will condemn these false teachers? Second, how will these false teachers be judged? 

Peter quickly answers our first question — that God is the great judge who determines those who are in need of judgement. Peter even gives us different instances in scripture where we can see and learn of God’s judgement. Before flipping our Bibles to these passages, we can already see that where sin occurs, judgement follows. Angels sinned and were sent to hell (Jude 1:6). People of the ancient world were ungodly, and God sent a flood over the entire earth (Genesis 6). Sinfulness is the determining factor for God stepping in to provide direction and justice where justice is due. 

From the surface, this is easy to see — that God is the judge and sinfulness is the crime taken to the courtroom. However, Peter wants us to go a little deeper in our study into his letter. Let’s take this thought to the baseball diamond. 

Make this comparison: the judge of a baseball game is the umpire. They determine ball from strike, safe or out, and are a crucial part of our game. As many of us know, all umpires are different. Some have bigger strike zones, and some have smaller strike zones. Some are talkative at the plate, and others are very reserved. Each of them is unique and has a unique influence on the game. Even if you don’t know their name apart from “Blue”, their character can be much different among them.

Part of knowing a judge is knowing more than their name, but knowing their character as well. Knowing God’s character (who he is and has proven himself to be) will help us answer the question about how he will judge false teachers and sinners. Knowing God’s character helps us better understand who he is, and it also helps us recognize how he judges sin.

Jude 1:6 says, “And the angels, who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home — these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgement on the great Day.” The angels sinned and deserved judgement. God gave them specific purpose and identity and they went against his will for them. If God doesn’t spare angels, do you think he will spare men for their sin?

In Genesis 6:5-7, we read that God saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become and wiped all of people (apart from Noah) from the face of the earth with a flood. It doesn’t matter who you are, an angel or a man - God is consistently just. He deals swiftly with sin and has no tolerance for sin going unpunished. He does not excuse or dismiss any sin in our lives, whether we think it is big or small. 

Then, since we know God’s character, we can know the punishment from scripture as well. Peter uses the false teachers in his teaching to point us toward what will happen to sinners. Paul wrote in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death.” Death is the sentence for sin given by a just, perfect judge. It is God that gives life. He created the world and everything in the world, and he can rightfully take it away.

Thank God, we have a way out of sin and death. Jesus became sin – our sin – and nailed it to the cross when we believe in him. But even if you are teaching false doctrine, or cursing God, or not loving people the way you should, or have lived a life not believing in God, we all have the opportunity to repent and turn from sin. If you think you are too far away from God, you aren’t. There is still time for reconciliation. Your sins were paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ. What is more painful than a physical death is the spiritual death that follows – and a relationship with Jesus is the only way to life!

Reflection:  Read in Genesis 6:8-9; 22. Why was Noah spared from the flood? What separated him? How does our relationship with Christ model God’s grace shown to Noah in Genesis? 

Prayer Prompt: Lord — you are worthy! Thank you for your loving kindness and that you are so trustworthy. You are trustworthy with my life! I pray that you would help me recognize the goodness of your justice. Help me to see your consistent character in scripture. Let this empower the Spirit in me to deny sin in my life and pursue after my relationship with you. Lord, thank you for your Word. Thank you that you desire us to be blameless and offer us forgiveness in your son, Jesus.