Reading: II Peter
Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up (II Pet. 3:3-10).
At the time of the writing of II Peter, Jesus had been physically gone from the earth for a little over thirty years, and there was a growing body of so-called believers who were starting to question the validity of what they had been taught. They viewed the world around them through jaded eyes. Nothing had changed. Nothing was changing. They openly scoffed at the idea of Christ returning after so long, and they argued that the message of a second coming heralding the ultimate, final judgment of God was detrimental to the well-being of the church as a whole. Where is the promise of His coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. They preached of the natural order of God’s creation and urged others to live their lives after their own lusts (in the manner they felt right) without fear of supernatural spiritual reprisal.
Now, over two millennia after the time of Christ, that false message has been spread far and wide. Variations on the theme include: God created the world, established the natural order, and is now leaving us alone to do with it as we will; God’s mercy and grace mean nothing is required of us, and no judgment is forthcoming—stating we are His means that we are, and we can do so on our own terms without fear of reprisal; and the Biblical story of the resurrection and the description of the second coming are metaphors for our renewed relationship with the Lord.
All of the above ‘beliefs’ are patently false and spiritually lethal. We cannot pick and choose what of God’s Word to believe; either all of it is true or none of it is. In today’s reading, Peter stresses that living in His grace means looking toward the future while simultaneously learning from the past. God is the only one who sees the whole picture and knows the exact timeline; every promise He has made to us will come to pass. We must guard our hearts and minds against those who twist portions of His Word to fit their message (3:16) and instead trust in the whole truth as revealed to us through the entirety of His Word and the indwelling Holy Spirit.
Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness(II Pet. 3:17).
Thought for Today: Faith is not about patiently waiting for Jesus’s return; it is about living and acting with certainty that it will happen.
Cross Reference:For II Pet. 2:15: See Num. 22:5,7. II Pet. 2:22: See Prov. 26:11.
Word Studies:2:7 vexed = distressed; filthy conversation = immoral conduct; 3:16 wrest = distort.
Pray for Staff:Gilbert Palafox • Government Officials: Rep. Adrian Smith (NE), Rep.Pat Fallon (TX) • Country: Macedonia (2,091,719) Southeastern Europe • Major Languages: Macedonian, Albanian • Strongly Orthodox Country • 64.7% Macedonian Orthodox; 33.3% Muslim; 0.37% Other; 1.63% Unspecified • Prayer Suggestion: Call unto the Lord, and He will give you strength to overcome (Jer. 33:3).