By the third night of dreaming about all the details of Charlie Kirk’s murder and his murderer, I finally realized that I needed a social media break. Nearly every post on my social media feed and every news article in my news apps centered on this tragic event. While I grieve the state our country is in right now, knowing every detail is not bringing me grace or peace.
Peter bookends his final letter to the churches with the reminder that grace and peace are found through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord. Like Peter learned that day on the stormy Galilean Sea, the moment he took his eyes off Jesus was the moment he sank into the overwhelming waves. (Matthew 14:28-32). Surely that memory stayed close to him as he awaited his impending execution. Five times in eight verses, Peter reminded believers to know Jesus. Clearly, Peter had learned the lesson and wanted others to learn it too.
H.A. Ironside wrote of this chapter, “It is as we become better acquainted with God revealed in Christ that we grow in grace and become more like Him with whom our souls are occupied.” In other words, there is no replacement for God’s Word in our lives. If we do not consume ourselves with learning of Him, our time will be filled with everything that does not matter for eternity.
The rest of 2 Peter looks ahead to the final days before Jesus returns, warning believers of false teachers, heresies, and the fiery judgment that will fall upon all those who stray from the truth. Those who get distracted by the world’s philosophies are in danger of “being led away with the error of the wicked.” Knowing and becoming more like Jesus not only brings great reward in His Kingdom, but it is also our only protection from Satan’s deceptions. Now, more than ever before, believers must lay aside every distraction that keeps them from the Word of God. Keeping our eyes on Jesus is the only answer to the overwhelming waves of this world’s storms. I hope you will join me as I dive into 2 Peter. The downloadable printable is available below for 2 Peter 1.
His Song in the Night 