2 Peter 2:10b–20; Philippians 3:17–21

Bible Studies for Life
Assistant Professor of Religion, Department of Religion, Samford University

Personal Rights
2 Peter 2:10b–20; Philippians 3:17–21
English may be the only modern language to have two words to describe the opposite of slavery (see David Hackett Fisher’s “Liberty and Freedom: A Visual History of America’s Founding Ideas”). The first, “liberty,” derives from Latin and describes release from bondage. Liberty has been used to talk about the American colonies’ emancipation from English rule, which was often understood as slavery. The idea behind liberty is to be unlike a slave through being “unbounded, unrestricted and released from restraint”; it shows up in our Pledge of Allegiance. The second, “freedom,” comes from an old Anglo-Saxon root meaning “beloved,” the same root from which we get “friend.” The idea behind freedom is to be unlike a slave by truly belonging, by being granted full participation in a family or clan (today we say in a government). The metaphor is of connection rather than separation. You can understand why freedom continues to be such a controlling idea in America’s civil rights movement.

Greek did not have two words for these ideas, but the New Testament’s authors knew about both release from bondage (liberty) and full belonging (freedom). Just as we do today, they had to deal with corruptions of these ideas in the Roman Empire, because just like Christians today, first-century Christians were not immune to the problem of self-indulgence.

Self-indulgence Described (2 Pet. 2:10b–14)
It is sometimes difficult to bring passages like this to bear on our own lives because of the extreme language the author used. Readers might say, “I have never slandered angels; I’m not an irrational animal; I am not an adulterer; my heart is not trained in greed.” It is important to note that the author painted such people as unaware of their vices, as even “unafraid” to engage in these behaviors. What we must do, therefore, is adjust the list so that it pertains to us. We must ask, “Where are my blind spots? In what ways do I slander God’s ‘glories’ (what the Greek actually says), act irrationally, revel in sexual immorality (in a novel, movie, song) or feed my own greed?” If we are serious about introspection and ask God to help, then I’ll bet we can come up with some answers.

Self-indulgence Rebuked (2 Pet. 2:15–20)
In these passages, the author got to the crux of the matter. The people he was talking about thought they were living as free people. The author talked about escaping “the defilements of the world.” Perhaps these followers of Jesus Christ thought defilement could be separated from the defiling act. Apparently they were of the opinion that because Jesus removed the effects of sin, they were free to do as they desired, without fear of further repercussions. They were living with a corrupted understanding of true liberty: They thought they were living unconstrained, but they had merely enslaved themselves to the “licentious desires of the flesh.”

We should spend just a moment here, because we are almost always tempted to understand this language as referring to sexual promiscuity. But remember, for many New Testament authors, “flesh” referred to not only the human body but also the entire current existence — the world as we know it before God’s Kingdom comes fully. Now it becomes clear that if it takes God’s place in our lives, then anything of this world (security, peace of mind, happiness, recognition) can become a licentious desire that enslaves us.

Self-indulgence Rejected (Phil. 3:17–21)
Paul expressed many of these same ideas in his quintessentially Pauline way. Those who “live as enemies of the cross of Christ” are not nonbelievers but believers who have turned away from the true God to idols of their own making. “Belly,” “shame” and “earthly things” again should not be restricted to appetites for food, sex and money but anything that is not of God or can even appear to be godly on its face. Remember, nothing at all, even a seemingly good thing, ought to take God’s place.