King James Daily Bible Study Devotional
Message Title: They That Are Christ's
Date: Monday December 19, 2011
Chapters: The Book of II Peter
All Scripture quoted comes from the King James Version, words in red are quoted by Jesus.

Hello My Friend,

“This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God...And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” -Galatians 5:16-21,24.

If you haven't noticed by now the works of the flesh are immoral, degrading to the body, and just plain wicked, they go against the very principles that not only disrespect the person themselves, but their Creator. Think about it, even if a person had no knowledge of God and was living a wicked lifestyle wouldn't they be disrespecting their parents. When Jesus Christ was crucified and died on the cross, He put an end to the curse that would send a person straight to hell for walking in the flesh, whether it was something they have done in the past or present. And while Christ died for all, He will not save all from the curse, He will only save those who are His.

The Book of II Peter is the twenty-second book of the New Testament, the sixty-first book of the Bible, and contains three chapters. The author of this epistle (letter) is Peter and it was written to the Christian exiles about 66AD. The purpose of the letter was to warn them of the dangers from within the Church, their apostasy and false teaching. What we are to learn from the book is the same thing, the greatest dangers of a Christian come from within the Church, which are apostasy (total rejection of the Gospel) and false teaching of the Gospel. “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.” - II Peter 2:1

As Christian's we are prone to think that all Christian's have the same beliefs, sadly we do not. I do not know how many people tell me that all religion or paths lead to God, this is false. How would God allow a church that does not even believe in His Son the same privilege of eternal life as those who believe. Now, I am not talking about different culture, I am talking about their view on Jesus Christ and who He truly is? People are being deceived all over the world by men and women and their false teaching, claiming that they got their instructions from God. In this letter, the Apostle Peter addresses this situation and the people who have been deceiving them. First, Peter encourages those who have escaped the lies and now know the truth,

“According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” - II Peter 1:3-8.

God has made full provision for every Christian to live a victorious Christian life. The Holy Spirit enables us to endure temptation, suffering, failure, sin, and even success or pride as we stay in the Bible and learn more through obedience to His Word. “He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it.” - Isaiah 25:8.

When people take advantage of God's good graces and want to twist His rules and Word to suit their flesh that is when He gets angry. Peter has a warning to the ones who have been teaching false doctrine in His name. “For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;). The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:..For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.” - II Peter 2:4-9,20,21.

It is better to have never known the way of righteousness, than to turn back from it to fleshly lusts, and those who do so face far more torment than before they were saved. If God will not spare the angles that have sinned and will cast them into hell He certainly will not hesitate to cast false prophets and teachers down there with them. They have a far worse fate then just being cast into hell, “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” - Revelation 20:10.

These false prophets and teachers within the Church somehow had the people questioning whether or not Christ was even coming. However, Peter assures them that there are many more to be saved yet before He returns. “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up...Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” - II Peter 3:8-10,13.

God is a patient God, so patient that He is willing to wait years for a person to receive His Son. The word longsuffering means long and patient endurance of injury, trouble, or provocation, that is why He sees a thousand years as one, it is our injury, trouble, or provoking that He waits patiently for. He does not want to cast anyone into hell, but He will if they continue to reject Him and deceive others. If you are saved, you have been redeemed, forgiven from the works of your flesh. “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” -I Corinthians 6:9-11.

Everyone will face Christ one day, He knows who are His, they are those who admitted that they are sinners, meaning they have done something wrong in their lifetime, believe that He died, was buried, and arose three days later to save them from their sins, and have personally asked Him to save them. Jesus said, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” -John 14:1-3.

Today's Prayer:
Dear God,

Lord, thank You that when we came to faith through the precious blood of Your Son, Jesus, we an inheritance into Your family, Your kingdom. It is only through Christ that we can present to You a body, a temple, that is holy. We no longer live for the world, but we walk with Your Spirit, who indwells and enables us to be transformed into the image of Your Son each day we allow Him to live in and through us. Let us not be tempted or pulled away from the many devices trying to pull us away from living a moral, uncorrupted life. In Jesus' name. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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