2 Peter 1:12-15

Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have.  I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me.  And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things.

We all desire to have an impact that goes beyond our own lives.  Peter gives us a very sound methodology of how he went about making sure that his readers would continue to stand firm in the faith long after he was gone.  If we want those we disciple to stand strong in their faith, this is a helpful example to follow.

METHOD: PREACH GOD’S WORD: Peter had made sure to teach his disciples the Word of God.  The Scriptures are the truth, and we must make sure that we are not teaching from our own experience or according to our own cultures and traditions.  The Word of God is what we must teach to all people it is the only reliable content of our preaching and teaching.  It is not enough to simply teach the truth.  We must seek to establish people in the truth.  That means to make sure that they understand the truth and know how the truth applies in their lives.  Too often people will hear and interpretation of Scripture that is true, but they are not established in that truth until they apply it to their lives.  Unfortunately, we are a very forgetful people.  We quickly forget the things that we should never forget.  Spiritual truth has a way of being forgotten if we are not constantly reminding ourselves of these truths.  That is one of the reasons that we need to go to church and participate in a community of believers

 

COMMITMENT: PESEVERE IN PROBLEMS: Peter spoke about sufferings in her first letter.  He was not stranger to suffering and there may have been many times where he was tempted to just quit and do something less dangerous and more comfortable.  He made it his ambition to finish well.  As long as he was alive, he was committed to proclaiming the Word of God to others.  Peter refers to his body as a tent.  Our bodies on the earth are limited and they will wear out.  But these bodies are only tents.  They are temporary dwelling places.  Our eternal bodies that will never wear out are still to come.  Peter knows that his days were numbered and that he would die.  Jesus had revealed to Peter that he would die so he is one of the only apostles that did not expect to be raptured.  No matter how long we live on earth our days are numbered and they are fleeting.

 

GOAL: PREPARE PEOPLE: Peter wanted to make sure that even after he was dead, the believers would have a reminder of his teachings.  That is way he wrote things down.  That is why God inspired the Bible so it would be a permanent record of His revelation to men.  As believers we need to be faithful to write down the things that God is teaching us and the things that future generations need to know.  Our greatest legacy is the people that we disciple.  Peter invested his life in men who would not only remember what he taught but would be faithful to teach the following generations that Peter never met.  Our ministries are only as permanent as the people we leave behind to carry on the work of Christ after we are gone.

 

APPLICATION: Make sure that we are teaching the Word of God to others in a way that will be applied to their lives and be remembered.  Commit to faithfully ministering no matter how difficult the circumstances we face might be and how much persecution we face.  Write down the lessons God teaches us and invest our lives in the lives of others with the goal of preparing the next generation of leaders.