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2 Peter 2:19 - You Are A Slave To Whatever Controls You.2 Peter 2:19 (NIV) They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity - for "people are slaves to whatever has mastered them."2 Peter 2:19 (NLT) They promise freedom, but they themselves are slaves to sin and corruption. For you are a slave to whatever controls you. INTRODUCTION We become slaves to whatever controls us. Many believe that freedom means doing anything we want. But no one is ever completely free in that sense. If we refuse to follow God, we will follow our own sinful desires and become enslaved to what our bodies want. If we submit our lives to Christ, he will free us from slavery to sin. Christ frees us to serve him, a freedom that results in our ultimate good. [Life Application SB 2019] COMMENTARY PEARL Something Is Going To Lead You The key to living a godly and holy life is allowing Jesus to shepherd your heart. All of us are shepherded - whether we realize it or not - because we're all led by something. What you let into your heart, whether it's social media trends or the anthem of the world, will end up steering your life and becoming your leader. Some of you are your own shepherd. You're leading yourself. You're depending on yourself to guide you to still waters and green pastures. If you are living outside of the path Jesus is leading you on, it's likely you are in want. When you allow Jesus to be your Shepherd, He steps into this stressed-out culture and becomes your replenishing guide. He leads you, watches over you, and gives you rest. When you put your trust in Him and commit to following Him, all the pressure weighing you down is lifted. He is inviting you into a burden-free life today, a life that is godly and holy. Dear Jesus, You are my Shepherd. Protect me, provide for me, steer me toward goodness and grace. I will follow You alone because You are good and You care for me. [Grace and Glory by Louie Giglio] COMMENTARY Promiscuous Churches Billy Graham describes two of the churches that Christ rebuked in Revelation 2 as "victims of runaway physical passion." They had compromised with their culture's beliefs and winked at sexual promiscuity. The churches at Pergamum and Thyatira hadn't completely caved in spiritually. In fact, Jesus had some positive things to say to them: 1.To Pergamum: "I know that you live in the city where Satan has his throne, yet you have remained loyal to me." (Revelation 2:13, NLT) 2.To Thyatira: "I know all the things you do. I have seen your love, your faith, your service, and your patient endurance. And I can see your constant improvement in all these things." (Revelation 2:19, NLT) Yet Jesus came down hard on the pagan beliefs and sexual sin in which both churches were entangled. He demanded repentance. In our own day and age, we face many of the same challenges as these ancient churches did. Everywhere we look, libidinous images vie for our attention and sexual obsessions disrupt and destroy people's lives. Centuries before Jesus came, Isaiah, in the presence of God's holiness, cried out that he lived among people of unclean lips. The early Christians could have said the same, and in our century, hostile belief systems and promiscuity infiltrate our minds from every angle. Spiritual battles remain the same, in Bible times and ours, but here is what Jesus said: "Repent of your sin .... Anyone who has ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches. To everyone who is victorious I will give some of the manna that has been hidden away in heaven" (Revelation 2:16-17, NLT). Lord, you know that to be alive in our culture is to be constantly confronted with all sorts of sexual temptations. Empower me, I pray, to see life through your eyes and to avoid impurity. Help me to listen to your Spirit and follow his guidance. With an appeal to twisted sexual desires, they lure back into sin those who have barely escaped from a lifestyle of deception. They promise freedom, but they themselves are slaves of sin and corruption. For you are a slave to whatever controls you. 2 Peter 2:18-19, NLT [The One Year Book of Encouragement by Harold Myra] CLOSING THOUGHT Totally Free "When I grow up," says many a child, "I'll do whatever I please. "When they grow up, some actually try. Freedom to do anything they want looks heavenly. Peter knows that appearances can be deceiving. In this second epistle, Peter warns his readers about the trade-off of "totally free" living. This concern that Peter addresses comes from heretics who advocate a do-what-you-like philosophy. But Peter says their teachings are really more binding than freeing. With guidance as perfect for our century as for the first, Peter provides insight into the slave-master relationship. Who is your master? Peter's second letter dealt with a heresy that urged Christians to sin. The heretics argued that we may as well do whatever we like because God will forgive us. They called this freedom. But Peter pointed out that freedom to do whatever we like is actually slavery to our sinful desires (1 Peter 2:19). He also wrote that God frees us from sin so that we can obey him rather than our sinful desires. God does not free us from the restraint to do good but from the rule of our appetites and desires. Some people say that they want to be totally free. By this they usually mean that they do not want moral convictions or laws restraining them from doing whatever they like. In reality their desire to be totally free requires them to obey their appetites. Thus they are not totally free. Whether they realize it or not, they obey a master, too. What or whom will you call your master? Will you follow your fleshly desires and be a slave to sin? Or will you obey God's commands and be free from sin? It is your choice. Choose wisely. [The One Year Through the Bible Devotional by Dave Veerman] LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY Proverbs 23:7 - What You Think - - You Are! https://www.abible.com/devotions/2023/20230930-0941.html Proverbs 4:23 - GUARD YOUR HEART!!! https://www.abible.com/devotions/2024/20240629-0829.html Matthew 6:24 - You Cannot Compromise With God; It's All Or None. https://www.abible.com/devotions/2005/20051228-1202.html Matthew 7:21-23 - Having A Relationship With Jesus Is A Must! https://www.abible.com/devotions/2020/20200606-0850.html LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT https://abible.com/links/ |