Don’t forget to ask these 4 questions when reading the text:
Who is God?
What has He done?
Who are we?
What are we to do?
Feel free to pick any of the following questions to lead your discovery and discussion. Don’t feel like you have to get through them all, allow the Holy Spirit to lead you during your time together.
Remember, as we open our hearts, our Bibles, and our lives, let’s be sure that our discovery and discussions lead us to the Bible, personal honesty and actual action in the ways we live as we are led and lead one another to Jesus.
Observation:
Everything God creates, Satan counterfeits.
God creates teachers, Satan counterfeits with false teachers.
God creates truth, Satan counterfeits with lies.
God creates freedom from sin, Satan counterfeits with slavery to sin.
Romans 12:9 says that Christian discernment is required to, “Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.” Peter spends this entire chapter illustrating this very point in incredibly passionate and clear terms to warn us about deception that is often powerful, pleasurable, and profitable but ultimately demonic, deceptive, and damnable.
Interpretation:
1. Read through the section of Scripture and underline everything that explains the truth of God.
2. Read through the section of Scripture and circle everything that explains the lie of the counterfeit.
3. What are some reasons that Peter gives to explain why false teachings and demonic counterfeits are so popular and
enticing?
4. What examples does Peter give from the Old Testament of God
judging false teachers and their demonic counterfeit?
5. What is the significance of Balaam in this passage (Numbers
25)?
Observation:
1. Are you more prone to be a trusting person who has a hard time believing that the world is filled with false-teachers, or more prone to be a suspicious person who can too quickly rush to judge a Bible teacher for an error?
2. What are the reasons Peter gives that explain why false teachers are so powerful, popular, and persuasive?
3. What issues have you had to stand against in your walk with Jesus because they were not secondary issues Christians disagree on, but primary issues which are dividing lines between Christians and non-Christians?
4. What is the difference between an imperfect Christian leader (like Peter) and a counterfeit Christian leader (like Judas)?
Application
1. What good Bible teachers and Bible study resources do you need to make a priority in your life to help you be godly and wise?
2. What information sources (e.g. preachers, politicians, media, teachers, social media, etc.) are not beneficial or helpful and therefore need to be reduced or removed from your life?
3. Pray to God asking Him to reveal any area in your life where you accommodate false teaching to excuse some sin that you enjoy (e.g. sexual sin or other pleasure that displeases God)?
Prayer
1. Is there any false teaching or counterfeit that a group member is struggling to distance themselves from that you can pray for and lovingly and gently support?
2. Do you have any family or friends who have fallen prey to what is clearly false teaching that we can be praying come into right relationship with Jesus and escape the trap the Enemy has set
for them?
3. What attributes on the list of false teachers are temptations for
you to possibly fall into (e.g. arrogance, defiance of authority, excusing personal sin, unhealthy sexual lust, greed, etc.)?