How does a person get to heaven? We are born on this planet; we walk its crust—make it better in some ways, worse in others. But on earth we never feel fully at home. "Surely there is a better place," we muse in moments of longing, "a place at home with God."

Heaven.

But how do we get there?

Is it by proper knowledge of Christian doctrines? Or by godly living? Is it by faith in Christ’s gift of salvation? Or by working according to Christ’s goals and principles? Is it by God’s call to us to be his own? Or by our own endurance with God until the day we die?

Weighty issues. And with them, Peter opens his second letter.

1. What characteristics would you expect to see in a person whose life and beliefs are "godly"?

2. Read 2 Peter 1:1-11. From verses 1-2 what do you know of the writer and readers of this letter—and the relationship between them?

3. In verses 1-2 we are told that we will receive the gifts of faith, grace and peace through Christ’s righteousness and knowledge of God. How does your own spiritual well-being depend in part on Christ’s righteousness and in part on your knowledge of God?

4. Verse 3 is sometimes called the key to Peter’s second letter. What all would you expect to find in a book with this verse as an introduction?

5. Verse 3 speaks of both knowledge and holy living as a part of the Christian life. Think of the balance between knowledge of Jesus and holy living that you have seen in Christians. What happens if one area or the other is weak?

6. What do Christ’s power and promises give to those who accept him (vv. 1-4)?

7. Peter writes in verse 4 that because of God’s promises, Christians "may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption of the world." What does he then expect believers to do to nurture their own holy living (vv. 5-7)?

8. How are knowledge of Jesus and godly living related to each other (vv. 8-9)?

9. Select one of the Christian qualities mentioned in verses 5-7 that you would like to become more prominent in your own life. If you were to practice this quality more faithfully, how would it help you escape the pollution of evil influences around you?

How would it compliment your knowledge of Jesus Christ?

10. What do you think it means for a person to be called and elected by God (vv. 10-11)?

11. What is the normal effect of this call and election on a person’s life—and future?

12. Verse 3 says that the divine power of Jesus has given us everything we need for godliness here and also for eternal life. If you were to draw more fully on this power that Jesus makes available to you, what changes would you ho

January 12, 2003

Lesson 2

In 1976, Robert lay on a gurney outside an operating room at Mayo Clinic’s  Hospital. He was scheduled for a minor operation. He’d probably be shuffling through the hospital hallway in a couple of days. But what if he weren’t? What if he just didn’t wake up?

Joe’s musings on that possibility left readers with a small thought-provoking book titled, appropriately, Heaven. In it he speaks of his faith in Jesus Christ and his hope here—and hereafter. It has influenced children and adults, believers and non-believers, to follow Christ.

Ten years later, Joe again lay on a gurney outside the operating room. The operation was a little more serious this time—his heart. But still, at Mayo, it was routine. But in 1999, when Joe woke up, it was hereafter.

1. As you think back over why you believe what you believe, who or what were the major influences in your life?

2. Read 2 Peter 1:12-21. What responsibilities did Peter seem to feel he had for his readers (vv. 12-15)?

3. What phrases here create a picture of Peter’s view of death?

Based on these phrases, how would you describe Peter’s attitude about death?

4. What do you hope will be your own feelings when you approach death?

5. What could you be doing during your lifetime to build toward a "good death"?

6. In verses 16-18 Peter refers to Christ’s transfiguration. Read Matthew 17:1-8. In what different ways did this event show Christ’s majesty?

7. What difference would it make to those who knew Peter that his teachings about Jesus came from an "eyewitness of his majesty"?

8. What difference does it make to you that God said of Jesus, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!" (Mt 17:5).

9. What does 2 Peter 1:19-21 show about the origin and purpose of Scripture?

10. What are some ways that you can show an appropriate respect for Scripture?

11. Peter did not want his readers to be so dependent on him that their faith would fall apart after his death. (Perhaps he knew that some new believers depend too much on other Christians.) So here Peter pointed to the only basis for real faith: Jesus Christ as he is revealed in Scripture. Who would you like to influence with your faith in your lifetime and how can you best go about it?

January 19, 2003

Lesson 3

"I hugged her, and it was like hugging a statue. I looked into her eyes, and I felt that ‘the lights were on, but no one was home.’ She had been a friend when I was in Elementary School.

For months I puzzled over this strange reunion with a long lost friend and only later the puzzle pieces fell into place. A cult.

Sort of Christian—but not quite.

"Someone got to her," I said later. "That person had to be very persuasive, and very tricky. My friend knew the Bible, and she wasn’t dumb. I wish I knew what happened."

1. What do you find threatening about religions that are not quite Christian?

2. Read 2 Peter 2:1-22. This chapter is like a danger signal along a treacherous road. What warnings do you find here? (Look back at 1:20-21 as well.)

3. Why are false teachers dangerous (1:20—2:3)?

4. Study verses 4-9. What did Peter want his readers to learn from these Old Testament events?

5. How can knowledge of these Old Testament events help you endure environments around you that oppose true teachings about God?

6. What characteristics should alert us that we are encountering a false teacher (vv. 10-19)?

7. Why might some people be attracted to teachers with these characteristics?

8. Verse 19 says that false teachers may promise freedom. What kinds of freedom might a new or weak Christian find enticing?

9. How might these "freedoms" become another form of slavery?

10. Compare Christ’s work in 2 Peter 1:1-4 with the freedom and slavery of verse 19. How is the gift Christ offers different from the offering of a false teacher?

11. Why might it be better if a false teacher had never known the truth (vv. 20-22)?

12. How can you protect yourself from the influence of false teachers?

13. What cautions can you institute to keep from becoming a false teacher yourself?

January 26,2003

Lesson 4

As a teen and young adult, when someone mentioned the end of the world, I shuddered and hoped, "Not yet." I wanted to graduate, fall in love, get married,  work at a career—not necessarily in that order. At the very least I wanted to see how the weekend’s date turned out. My sunsets looked like sunrise. And God’s promised end of the world seemed a cruel interruption.

1. When are you likely to wish the world would end? Explain.

If you were to paint a painting (or compose a piece of music) titled "The End of the World," what would you put in it?

2. Read 2 Peter 3. What reasons did Peter give his readers to pay attention to this writing? (Look especially at verses 1-3 and 15-18.)

3. Verse 4 says that scoffers will ask, "Where is this ‘coming’ he promised?" Read two of those promises in John 14:1-3 and Acts 1:6-11. If you were living thirty or forty years after Christ’s death and resurrection, what questions would you be asking about his return?

What questions do you ask now?

4. What mistakes will the last-day scoffers make (vv. 4-7)?

5. What reasons does Peter offer for a delay in Christ’s return?

6. What words and phrases throughout this passage help describe the day of the Lord?

7. Compare and contrast the use of fire and water in this passage. What is the significance of each?

8. Notice the question of verse 11, "What kind of people ought you to be?" What answers can you find throughout the remainder of the chapter?

9. Why might living this way prepare you for the kind of day described here?

10. Over and over in this passage, we see words of destruction. In view of this, why do you think that Peter says three times that we are to "look forward to" this day and even speed its coming?

11. If the day of the Lord were to come in your lifetime, what would you like to accomplish first?

In what condition would you like God to find your work?

your relationships?

your status with him?