Clouds Without Rain

Before you start todays devotional, ask the Lord to use it to grow you up in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

We learn in 2 John 2 how the centrifugal force of the light of Jesus Christ draws people away from the world and toward God. But there’s also the centripetal force—the gravitational force that pulls the world away from the Word of God.

In the Old Testament, false prophets pulled people away from God, but today, false teachers put us in danger. A false teacher knows the truth but deliberately lies for some other purpose, perhaps for money, a selfish reason, or to please people. Many teachers today teach error deliberately, usually denying Jesus Christ’s work of redemption. They claim to be Christians and even act as church members, but they’re hypocrites.

Some teachers teach error ignorantly. They believe what they are teaching, even when it’s false. Some false teachers teach some true doctrine. Cults usually have some truth in them, making them 10,000 times more dangerous than if they were 100 percent in error. These wolves in sheep’s clothing will absolutely destroy the flock and scatter them (see Matthew 7:15 and Acts 20:29).

Sadly, some false followers go after false teachers. They look for someone to preach their beliefs, so they’re willingly deceived.

God will also take care of these false teachers someday. It may appear that He’s not doing much today, but He’s aware and won’t let this go unaddressed.

In the past, there have been apostates. First, some angels sinned (2:4), a clear example of how the devil works. The second example is the people of Noah’s day, an example of the world system against God. And the third example is the turning of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, which is the example of the flesh.

God brought the flood upon an ungodly world. These people were religious; they simply left the living and true God out of their religion. They lived as if God didn’t exist at all. They were lawless and violent, and God moved in. In His judgment, God had in mind the future that was coming, and His judgment reveals His care and respect for the human life He had created.

Peter then recounts how God judged Sodom and Gomorrah, whose citizens were given over to sodomy, homosexuality which perverts sex for a purpose contrary to what God created and intended it for (see Genesis 1:28 and 2:24). Our old nature expresses itself in wicked behavior. Making it lawful somehow doesn’t add dignity to it. Sexual perversion is its own inevitable penalty (see Romans 1:18-32).

Let’s learn from this evil example. Instead of falling into this same spirit today, let’s keep a spirit of humility in front of us since it’s pride that causes people to act as they do. We can turn over this evil to God.

Those corrupted by the world will perish in their own corruption. On the outside, he may be religious, but his heart is still not right with God. Other than turning to Jesus Christ by faith, he can do nothing whatsoever about that. When a person thinks wrong, they will act wrong.

These false teachers are like “wells without water” and beautiful clouds without rain. Watching them perform on stage might be thrilling, but there is no water in the well and no rain in the clouds. People are thirsting today for God's Word yet are denied life-saving water.

Peter deals very specifically with the false teachers creeping in and teaching false doctrine contrary to God’s Word. They pervert God’s truth for their own advantage. They exalt themselves rather than lifting up Jesus Christ. They tack on the Word of God to their own message and only use it for a few little proof texts. One day God will expose them in judgment. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than, having known it, to then turn from the gospel.

Don’t even try to fight these false teachers but expose them as you walk in truth.

1. If some false teachers teach true doctrine, what warnings would we have that they are false?

2. One of the characteristics of false teachers is they are shaped by things other than the Word of God. What can we do in our lives to ensure the primary thing shaping us is God’s Word?

3. What does it tell us about ourselves that the flesh is just as much an enemy to us as the devil and the world?

Additional Resources

Listen to Dr. J. Vernon McGee's complete teachings on 2 Peter 2:1-3, 2 Peter 2:3-6, 2 Peter 2:5-9, 2 Peter 2:9-20 and 2 Peter 2:21, 22.