EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 12/16/2025
5:00 PM
My
Worship
Time Focus: PT-3 “Their
Practices”
Bible
Reading &
Meditation Reference: 2 Peter 2:13b-14
Message
of the verses: : “as they that count it pleasure
to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes,
sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you;
14 Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin;
beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices;
cursed children” (KJV)
“They
count it a pleasure to revel in the daytime, They are stains and
blemishes, reveling in their deceptions, as they carouse with you, having eyes
full of adultery that never cease from sin, enticing unstable souls, having a
heart trained in greed, accursed children.” (NASB)
I want to continue looking at this
section as I quote from John MacArthur’s commentary on this section and then
add my comments along with some of the verse references in order to make more
sense of what we are looking at. Until I
get my Online Bible program working better I will mostly use the KJV of the
Bible.
“In verse 14, Peter shifts the focus
from the false teacher’ public behavior to their private thoughts and
actions. Having eyes full of adultery
indicates that these spiritual frauds no longer possessed any moral
self-control; they could not even look at a woman without viewing her as a
potential object of their adultery or fornication (cf. Matt. 5:28).” “28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a
woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.” “Put simply, their lust was overpowering
and insatiable—an appalling form of lasciviousness that was brimming with sinful
desire.
“Yet, even as menacing predators,
the false teachers still gained a following within the church. As agents of Satan, they were enticing
unstable souls—preying upon the spiritually weak. (cf. James 1:6).” “6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering.
For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.” Convincing them to believe doctrinal
lies, and enticing them into debauched lifestyles. The word enticing (deleazo)
literally means ‘to catch with bait,’ and the apostle’s word picture is
unmistakable. The false teachers, like
fishermen using a lure, tricked their victims to believe their deceptions. Under the guise of authentic ministry, the
targeted the unsuspecting (cf. 2 Tim. 3:6-8)—the spiritually immature,
undiscerning, or unbelieving.” “6 For
of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women
laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the
knowledge of the truth. 8 Now as Jannes
and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt
minds, reprobate concerning the faith.”
“Peter knew that the only sure defense against their tactics was a
strong foundation in God’s Word (1 Peter 2:1-3; cf. Eph. 4:14; 1 John
2:13).
“1 But
there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false
teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying
the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. 2 And many shall follow their pernicious ways;
by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. 3 And through
covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose
judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.”
“14 That we henceforth be no more children,
tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the
sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to
deceive;”
“13 I write unto you, fathers, because ye have
known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men,
because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children,
because ye have known the Father.”
“Beyond sexual favors, the false
teachers of Peter’s day were also interested in accumulating wealth. The phrase having a heart trained in greed
indicates that their immorality was always accompanied by avarice” (greed).
“Trained (gumnazo), from which the English word gymnasium is
derived, is an athletic term meaning ‘exercise,’ or ‘discipline.’ As a verb, it presents a disturbing
description of the false teachers.
William Barclay explains:
“The
picture is a terrible one. The word
which is used for trained is the word which is used for an athlete, exercising
and training himself for the games.
These people have actually trained and equipped and taught their minds
and hearts to concentrate on nothing but the forbidden desire. They have deliberately fought with conscience
until they have destroyed it; they have deliberately wrestled with God until
they have thrown God out of life; the have deliberately struggled with their
finer feelings until they have strangled them; they have deliberately trained
themselves to concentrate on the forbidden things. Their lives have been a dreadful battle to
destroy virtue and to train themselves in the techniques of sin. (The Letters of James and Peter, rev.
ed. [Philadelphia; Westminster, 1976],
392-93; italics in the original)
“Without
question, Peter understood that their actions were not accidental. Their offenses were crimes of premeditation,
not momentary lapses of judgment. As
masterminds of sin, the false teachers had planned their attacks and purposed
their hearts toward sensual and materialistic ends.
“With understandable disgust, the
apostle responds with a blunt but appropriate appellation, accursed
children. As liars and hypocrites,
the false teachers epitomized those whom God has cursed to hell. Peter’s phrase is a Hebraism expressing the idea
that people are ‘Children’ of whatever influences most dominate their lives
(cf. Gal. 3:10, 13; Eph. 2:1-3; 1 Peter 1:14).
As servants of Satan and slaves to sin, they were rightly denounced as
children of hell’s curse.”
Now I will quote those Scripture
references in the order they were given:
“10 For as many as are of the works of the law are
under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth
not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.”
“1 And
you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to
the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the
spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in
times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and
of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.”
“14 As obedient children, not fashioning
yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:”
Lord willing I will begin to look at
the next section “Their Premium” in tomorrow evenings SD.
12/16/2025
5:40 PM
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