II Peter 1:16-21 “False Teachers”

In the first chapter of his second letter, Peter established that there was nothing more important or more powerful than our knowledge, our correct, true, intimate knowledge of Jesus. Peter said that he knew Jesus by experience, but then wrote that even more sure than his experience with Jesus is the witness of the Word of God. Peter, who saw Jesus transfigured and heard the Father speak from heaven said that the prophetic Word of God was “more sure” than that which he had seen and heard. The Word of God leads to a personal experience, but then every personal experience must be subject to the Word of God. Tonight, we turn to chapter 2, where Peter begins a contrast and a warning. Where there were prophets there were false prophets, where there are teachers there will be false teachers. What is a false teacher? Is it simply someone who gets it wrong or is there something more sinister, more sensual to use a word from the text, going on?