Read 2 Peter 3:1-13.

Introduction⤒🔗

Suppose that one day on the street you encounter one of those opinion polls. The subject of this particular poll is The Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The surveyor asks you to respond to the following questions: Do you personally believe that Jesus Christ will return to the earth? Do you think that His return will be a visible, spectacular event? What do you think will happen at His return? When you think about Christ’s return, what is your reaction? How often do you think about Christ’s return? Do you believe that Christ will return during your lifetime?

When the Lord Jesus Christ ascended into heaven, the promise was made of His return:

They were looking intently up into the heavens as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. ¹¹Men of Galilee, they said, why do you stand here looking into the heavens? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven. Acts 1:10-11

But as the years passed, some Christians began to wonder about God’s commitment to His promise, and some scoffers began to openly ridicule the belief in that promise.

This is Peter’s message: Because the Lord’s word is reliable, we must maintain and, if necessary, renew, our confidence in it, despite the accusations of scoffers or the apparent “negligence” of God.

Let us now consider, “Two Things to Remember about our Lord’s Promised Return.”

Remember that God Once Judged the World, and He will Do So Again←⤒🔗

At the time of Peter’s epistle, perhaps some 30-35 years may have elapsed since our Lord’s ascension into heaven and the promise of His return in glory (note Acts 1:10-11). Now mockers, or, scoffers, begin to make their presence felt within the church. They are described as scoffers who are openly “expressing their scoffing.” As the years have passed, they have become emboldened to express their disbelief in the promise of God. They are now vocally raising the question, “Where is the fulfillment of the promise of His coming?”

They are further described as “living for their own [evil] desires.” The alleged “delay” in Christ’s return has emboldened them to live for their lusts; they have become confident that there will not come a day of just retribution. They put no confidence in the counsel of Scripture:

Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.Psl. 27:14

Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who put their hope in me shall not be disappointed.Isa. 49:23b

Peter provides us with an outline of their argument: Thirty to thirty-five years have passed since His ascension, and nothing has happened; if He were coming back He would have done so by now! Here is impatience with God’s divine timetable; here is the attempt to hold God to a humanly conceived timetable. Compare their attitude with the attitude of the unbelieving Jews as recorded in Matthew 27:41-43,

In the same way, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. ⁴²He saved others, they said, but he cannot save himself! He is the King of Israel! Let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. ⁴³He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now, if he wants him, for he said, I am the Son of God.Matt. 27:41-43

Let us bear in mind Jesus’ teaching in the parable of the talents with regard to the time of His return: “After a long time, the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them” (Matt. 25:19).

The scoffers’ argument continues: Indeed, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things have continued as they were! (vs. 4) These scoffers maintain that since the time of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, nothing of great spiritual significance has happened. But they are disregarding the mighty acts of God, which He performed in the days of Moses and Joshua, namely, the Exodus from Egypt and the entrance into the Promised Land of Canaan.

Their argument points back beyond the time of the patriarchs: Indeed, all things have continued as they were from the beginning of the creation! (vs. 4b) They are maintaining that since the time God created the world, there has been a consistent and unbroken uniformity: the world has continued the same and undergone no change since the beginning of time. That is their argument.

At this point, Peter refutes their argument by asserting that there is something they willfully, intentionally, forget: the cataclysmic flood that occurred in the days of Noah.

Peter asserts that the flood was of such tremendous cataclysmic proportions that it can be described as bringing to an end “the world of that time” (vs. 6). Peter begins by reminding us, “long ago there were heavens and an earth formed out of the water and in the midst of the water by the word of God” (vs. 5). He is referring to the creation account as recorded in Genesis 1:1-2,6-10,

¹In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. ²And the earth was formless and empty; and darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God moved upon the surface of the waters... ⁶And God said, Let there be an expanse between the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. ⁷So God made the expanse, and divided the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse; and it was so. ⁸And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day. ⁹And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear; and it was so. ¹⁰And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathered waters he called Seas; and God saw that it was good.

Peter goes on to write, “By those [same waters] the world of that time was destroyed, being deluged with water” (vs. 6). Now he is referring to the cataclysmic flood that came as a judgment upon the world of mankind in the days of Noah:

In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, on the seventeenth day of the second month, on that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. ¹²And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights. Gen. 7:11-12

Then Peter asserts, “the present heavens and earth are being preserved for fire” (vs. 7).

Let us remember that God judged the world once, and He will do so again. Through the Old Testament prophet Isaiah, the LORD warned,

See, the LORD will come with fire, and his chariots will be like the whirlwind, [he will come] to render his anger with fury and his rebuke with flames of fire. ¹⁶With fire and with sword the LORD will execute judgment upon all mankind, and those slain by the LORD will be many.Isa. 66:15-16

Remember that God is Not Negligent, He Will Surely Keep His Promise←⤒🔗

We must remember that God is the sovereign Lord of time. Alluding to Psalm 90:4, Peter declares “Do not forget this one thing, beloved, [namely], that with the LORD one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like one day” (vs. 8). We are controlled by time. On the one hand, time flies away from us: the hours, the days, the years, speed away like a runaway horse with man in desperate but futile pursuit. On the other hand, time holds us captive: the young child impatiently, helplessly, waits for Christmas day; the prisoner likewise waits for the day of his release. All of our life is inescapably controlled and conditioned by time: “For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven: ²a time to be born, and a time to die” (Eccl. 3:1-2a).

But this is not the case with the LORD our God. He is above and beyond time: He is the God who inhabits eternity, as He identifies Himself in Isaiah 57:15a, “This is what the high and lofty One, who inhabits eternity, whose name is holy, says.” He is the everlasting God: “Before the mountains were born or you formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God” (Psl. 90:2). The LORD is the Creator of time. As Douglas Kelly writes, “The very first words of the Bible, ‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth,’ teach the absolute beginning of all things (space, time, energy, matter)...at a particular point in eternity, the immortal God brought everything into existence out of nothing.”¹ Based on Einstein’s theory of relativity, which is now extremely well proven, Steven Hawking and Roger Penrose developed the space-time theorem of general relativity. This theorem establishes that not only were matter, energy, and space created, but time was created as well.²

Indeed, the LORD our God is the Lord of time. Referring to the fulfillment of His promises, the LORD declares, “At the appointed time, I, the LORD, will cause it to happen suddenly” (Isa. 60:22b). God has appointed a set time for the fulfillment of His promises, (both the promise of redemption and the promise of judgment). He is speeding history on to that appointed time, but He shall not allow those promises to be fulfilled pre-maturely before the divinely-appointed time. But when that appointed day has come, the LORD will act swiftly, (He “will cause it to happen suddenly”), without any delay, to bring to fulfillment the promises He has made to His people.

Furthermore, we must remember that the LORD is not negligent (vs. 9). Sinful man is so prone to misinterpret the LORD’s long-suffering, or patience, as negligence. Addressing sinful, unrepentant man, the LORD declares, “These things you have done and I kept silent; you thought that I was altogether like you. But I will rebuke you and accuse you to your face” (Psl. 50:21). Because the LORD does not immediately address the sins of man and bring judgment upon him, we must not wrongfully conclude that He is negligent; that is the foolish reasoning of the wicked, which the LORD rebukes and corrects in Psalm 50. The LORD’s very character precludes any negligence on His part: “God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” (Num. 23:19)

Peter has already spoken about “a salvation that is ready to be revealed” (1 Pet. 1:5). But because that salvation is inevitably accompanied by the final judgment, it will only be revealed “at the last time.” By way of illustration: During the democratic uprising at Tiananmen Square (in Beijing, China) in the spring of 1989, truckloads of Communist soldiers, fully prepared, were rapidly deployed to the outskirts of the city. Although they were in place and ready to strike, they were restrained from taking action until the appointed hour when the command was given by the governing authorities.

Finally, we must remember that the day of the LORD will come “like a thief” (vs. 10). The Day of Judgment has been divinely-appointed and, therefore, it is inevitable, as the Apostle Paul warns the Athenians: “[God] has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising that man from the dead” (Acts 17:31). Paul informs us that Christ’s own resurrection is the testimony that God is committed to justice: God would not allow “his Holy One to see corruption,” Acts 2:27b; i.e. God would not allow Christ to remain in a state of condemnation. Consequently, Christ’s resurrection from the grave is the proof that God will finally, in His appointed time, carry out His justice.

That Final Judgment will come just as surely as the forewarned judgment came upon Old Testament Israel, when in their apostasy, they had spurned the LORD’s persistent call for their repentance. Referring to the judgment of God carried out upon the Old Testament covenant nation by the Babylonians, Jeremiah declares, “The LORD has done what he planned; he has fulfilled his word, which he decreed long ago” (Lam. 2:17a).

But when that day comes it will come “like a thief;” it will come unexpectedly upon a world that refused to take heed and refused to repent. Our Lord Jesus informs us of man’s sinful negligence: “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. ²⁷They were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all” (Lk. 17:26-27).

Let us remember that the Lord is not negligent, He will surely fulfill all that He has promised: both with regard to the Christian’s salvation and the judgment of the apostate world.

Conclusion←⤒🔗

As the years have passed by, you may at times wonder about the Lord’s commitment concerning His promised return. If so, take to heart this particular passage of Scripture and heed Peter’s exhortations to remember these two things: 1) God judged the world once before, and He will do so again; and, 2) God is not negligent, He will surely fulfill all that He has promised.

Discussion Questions←⤒🔗

1. What does the Apostle Peter say is his purpose in writing his epistles to these Christian people? See 2 Pet. 3:1-2. What similar exhortation does the writer of Hebrews give in his epistle? See Heb. 2:1. Why do we as Christians need a frequent, even constant, reminder of the doctrines and commandments of Scripture; a reminder of all God’s attributes; a reminder of the person and work of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? If we neglect the teaching of Scripture, what will fill the vacuum?

This is now, beloved, the second letter that I am writing to you. By means of them I am awakening your sincere mind by reminding you ²to remember the words previously spoken by the holy prophets and the commandment of our Lord and Savior by your apostles. 2 Pet. 3:1-2

Therefore, we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. Heb. 2:1

2. According to Peter, of what can we be sure and against what must we be on guard? See 2 Pet. 3:3. What emboldens scoffers to openly express their scoffing thoughts? Note vs. 4. Does God’s “delay” in fulfilling His promises, or in answering your prayers, tempt you to question His faithfulness? What lifestyle do scoffers adopt? See vs. 3b; cp. Eccl. 8:11. Do you misinterpret the LORD’s patience as a reason to become careless with regard to your moral conduct and comfortable with your sins?

You may be sure that in the last days scoffers will come, [expressing their] scoffing, and living for their own [evil] desires. ⁴They will say, 'Where is [the fulfillment of] the promise that he will come? From [the time] the fathers fell asleep [in death] everything goes on as it has since the beginning of the creation.' 2 Pet. 3:3-4

Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore, the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. Eccl. 8:11

3. What does Peter tell us these men “intentionally forget”? See 2 Pet. 3:5-6. To what is Peter referring? Do you have a selective memory when it comes to the Word of God: dwelling on passages that speak of God’s love; ignoring, or suppressing, passages that speak of His holiness and our moral accountability to Him? Because of your focus on only the pleasant attributes of God, have you created a caricature of God, which cause you to become appalled by His acts of righteous judgment? Do you judge such acts as being “unworthy” of God?

[But] this they intentionally forget, that long ago there were heavens and an earth formed out of the water and in the midst of the water by the word of God. ⁶By those [same waters] the world of that time was destroyed, being deluged with water. 2 Pet. 3:5-6

4. Of what does Peter now forewarn us? See 2 Pet. 3:7. What historical event is the guarantee that God will, indeed, “judge the world in righteousness”? See Acts 17:31. How does the resurrection of Jesus Christ bear witness to God’s righteousness: that He is a rewarder of the righteous and, conversely, a holy God that punishes unrepentant sinners? See Acts 2:24, 27. Do you recognize the fact that the resurrection of Jesus Christ confirms God’s commitment to justice? Do you rest in that event when you see the present lack of justice in the world?

And by that same word, the present heavens and earth are being preserved for fire, reserved for the day of the judgment and destruction of ungodly mankind. 2 Pet. 3:7

[God] commands all men everywhere to repent, because he has appointed a day on which he will judge the world with righteousness by the man whom he has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising him from the dead. Acts 17:31

Speaking of Jesus, the Apostle Peter declares at Pentecost,

²⁴...whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it... ²⁷[because it had been foretold in the Psalms:] You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will You allow your Holy One to see corruption. Acts 2:24, 27

5. What does the Apostle Peter exhort us not to forget? See 2 Pet. 3:8-10a. Are you aware that, according to God’s divine timetable, we are living in “the last days”? Cp. vs. 3; also, Heb. 1:1-2. Are you aware that the LORD’s long-suffering is not to be misinterpreted as negligence? Note Rom. 2:4. Are you aware that, as Christians, we are to live our earthly lives in the light of and in anticipation of, that coming day? Are you aware that every man’s death brings him into a personal experience of that final day? See Heb. 9:27; note, too, 2 Cor. 5:9-10,

⁸Do not forget this one thing, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like one day. ⁹The Lord is not negligent with regard to the promise, as some consider negligence; on the contrary, he is exhibiting great patience toward you. He does not desire anyone to perish, but all to come to repentance. ¹⁰But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. On that day, the heavens will disappear with a loud noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat, and the earth together with the works that are in it will be burned up. 2 Pet. 3:8­-10

You may be sure that in the last days scoffers will come, [expressing their] scoffing, and living for their own [evil] desires. 2 Pet. 3:3

God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, ²has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things... Heb. 1:1-2

The LORD divines history into two epochs: That which preceded the coming of Jesus the Messiah, and that which follows, the period commencing with His incarnation and the accomplishment of His work of redemption and concluding with His return in glory.

...do you despise the riches of his goodness, forbearance, and long-suffering, not realizing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? Rom. 2:4

...it is appointed for men to die once, and after this the judgment... Heb. 9:27

...we make it our aim...to be well pleasing unto him; ¹⁰for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive the things [done] in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. 2 Cor. 5:9-10