[:en]FALSE TEACHERS AND THEIR DESTRUCTION (VS. 1-22)
False prophets contradicted the true prophets in the Old Testatment times telling people only what they wanted to hear. They were twisting Christ’s teachings and the words of His apostles. Some denied that Jesus is Lord. Some claimed that he could not be a real man. They followed their shameful ways of immorality and brought the way of truth into dispute.
False teachers were more interested in making money than in teaching the truth. In their greed, they wanted to promote their own interest. So, be careful to evaluate a preacher carefully before sending money to them.
God dird not spare angels or people in the past, so he would not also spare false teachers in the present. God will judge sin and the unrepentant sinners cannot escape.
Just as God rescued Lot from Sodom, so He is able to rescue us from the temptations and trials we face in this wicked world.
False teachers slandered the spirtual realities taking Satan’s power lightly and claimed to have the ability to judge evil. Today, there are also many who mock the supernatual. They deny the reality of the spiritual world and claim that only what can be seen and felt are real. Like the false teachers of Peter’s day, they are fools who will be proven wrong in the end. Do not take Satan and his supernatural powers of evil lightly because he is at work now trying to render Christians complacent and ineffective.
False teachers attended a sacred fast designed to promote love and unity among believers but at the same time, they gossipped and slandered those who disagreed with their opinions. These men were guilty of leading people away from God.
Balaam was a prophet hired by a pagan king to curse Israel. But he was rebuked a donkey and his madness was restrained.
Freedom does not mean doing anything we want. But no one is ever completely free. If we refuse to follow God, we will follow our own sinful desires and become enslaved to what our body wants. If we submit our life to Christ, He will free us from the slavery of sin. The freedom that Christ gives will result in our ultimate good.
People who have known the way of righteousness but later reject the truth and return to their sinful ways are worse off than before. They were like dogs returning to its vomit and as sow that is washed and goes back to his wallowing in the mud (vs. 22-23)[:]