2 Peter

Saturday, 22 February 2020

But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 2 Peter 3:8

The words here take us back to verse 3:4 where the scoffers ask, “Where is the promise of His coming?” Peter gave an answer to the question in the next two verses. He now gives a second reply, directly from Scripture, where he cites the substance of Psalm 90:4. This is a Psalm written by Moses, and thus it is the oldest psalm in the Bible –

“For a thousand years in Your sight

Are like yesterday when it is past,
And like a watch in the night.”

Following this general thought, Peter writes, “But, beloved, do not forget this one thing.” Peter is asking his audience to not “willfully forget” as the scoffers were said to do. Rather, he asks them to actively remember what he will say.

Whereas the scoffers willfully forgot the acts of creation that Peter spoke of; they then willfully forgot that if there is a creation, there is a Creator. If there is a Creator, He is before His creation. If this is so – and if time, space, and matter are all a part of the creation – then God is outside of time.

Therefore, time has no bearing on God’s plan, except as He has set that plan into motion within the stream of time. But to Him the amount of time something takes to occur is irrelevant.

The scoffers, like all people, are bound by time, and thus the reference to time is important. Everything that we do is set within a definite boundary – a span – which we cannot exceed. And further, that boundary is unknown to us. We live our lives not knowing what will occur, or when will it occur. This is especially true in regard to death.

As death is the final boundary of our reference to the world, and as we have an understanding that there is a generally set maximum span for each human to live, we naturally expect that a promise which has been made will be fulfilled in our lifetime.

For example, since the Bible was written (even within the Bible), people have expected the Lord to return. Writings throughout Christian history reveal that people expected that their generation would be the one to see Christ’s return. How much, then, would those who deny the Creator’s hand in His creation also want to deny the return of the Lord – simply because of the vast amount of time which has elapsed without it coming about.

But Peter next says, “that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” Because God created time, He is outside of time. Therefore, the difference between a second and a million years is irrelevant. God sees all of time, and all that occurs within time, as one simultaneous event.

If a train leaves New York on the way to San Francisco, God sees the beginning, all of the journey, and the arrival without any hindrance to a time reference. The entire journey – and indeed the ages of ages – are laid out before Him.

Because of this, a promised return of Christ could happen at any time – be it one generation or a thousand – and it will be considered a promise kept. We cannot limit God, and what He is doing in the stream of history, to our own limited span of time and expect to find fault in Him. But this is what the scoffers are doing. They imply that because the Lord hasn’t yet returned, He is not trustworthy to return. It is small-minded, shallow thinking.

Life application: The biblical pattern is that God’s plan for man is laid out on a 7000-year timeframe. Jesus came right around the 4000^th year, directly in the middle of the timeline. Based on this, and based on a literal 1000-year millennial reign of Christ (as is clearly indicated in the book of Revelation), we can estimate a return of Christ sometime around 2000 years from His ascension. Before the millennial reign, the book of Revelation first tells us of a 7-year period known at the Great Tribulation which focuses on the Jewish people.

Knowing this, we can look to the book of Hosea for a pattern based on Peter’s words –

“After two days He will revive us;
On the third day He will raise us up,
That we may live in His sight.” Hosea 6:2

If a thousand years is like a day to the Lord, then we could expect that Israel would be revived after 2000 years of dispersion – exactly what has happened.

Likewise, we can expect that at the dawning of the “third day,” the Jewish nation – with Christ as its Head – will be raised up to rule the nations, just as is promised in the Old Testament.

Likewise, they will “live in His sight” as He rules from a literal throne in Jerusalem. This isn’t idle speculation, but a sound analysis of what God is doing in human history. Jesus Christ really will return, and He really will rule the nations from Jerusalem. The time is coming, and may it be soon!

Lord, we long for the day of Your glorious return. There is nothing in heaven or on earth that we would rather see than the beauty of Your countenance. We look to You now in faith, but we long for that faith to be turned to sight! It is our great hope and our greatest desire. Come Lord Jesus. Amen.

Friday, 21 February 2020

But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. 2 Peter 3:7

Peter just relayed sacred history by saying that, “the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water.” Now, he speaks of the present world and what its fate will be. In this, he begins with, “But the heavens and the earth which are now.” The construction of the words is similar to the previous verse. There, the Greek said, “the then world.” Here, it says, “the now heavens and the earth.” It is the ordered structure which now exists. Of them, Peter says they are “preserved by the same word.”

Compare these passages in verses 5 & 7 –

“by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth…”
“But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word.”

All things were created by the word of God, and the word sustains all things. It is God’s word that keeps all things as He determines. In the case of the heavens and earth which are now, Peter says that they “are reserved for fire.”

There was first a destruction of the world by flood. God promised to never again destroy the earth by a flood (Genesis 9:11). However, He did not promise the earth would not be destroyed again. Rather, it is assuredly going to happen. But next time it will be by fire.

The reason for the destruction is obvious. In Genesis 6:5, it says, “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Peter’s words, and indeed the words of Scripture elsewhere, point to the same condition being found among humanity in the future. There is a time coming when the world will be so wicked that the only remedy will be an almost complete annihilation of man once again. The world as it is now is being prepared for that day, preserved, as Peter states, “until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.”

This is the period known as “the tribulation” which is spoken of in both testaments of Scripture. Judgment is coming upon the world because of the wickedness of man. Isaiah, quoting the Lord, says of that time that, “I will make a mortal more rare than fine gold, A man more than the golden wedge of Ophir” (Isaiah 13:12).

Again, Jesus speaks of this time as well –

“For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. ²² And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.” Matthew 24:21, 22

Very few humans will survive through the fiery trial which is coming. For those who do, there will still be a judgment upon them after Christ’s return. The world will be purified and prepared for the millennial reign of Christ. What is interesting is that fire is to be the instrument of destruction, and it is the modern store of weapons, both conventional and nuclear, which appear to be the very things that will cause this prophecy to come about. This is something that was not possible in previous generations of humanity.

Life application: After the Flood of Noah, God made a promise that He would never again destroy the earth by a flood. This doesn’t mean there won’t be large floods on the earth, but rather not a flood to completely destroy the earth. However, God didn’t promise that He wouldn’t again destroy the earth in a different way – and this is the subject of the next few verses.

The same God who spoke the universe into existence and who continues to hold all things together by the power of His word, has reserved the earth for a different type of judgment. Such judgment comes because we as humans continuously fail to learn lessons from the past.

God created Adam and Adam rebelled. Despite knowing this, his son – the first person ever born – killed his own brother. When wickedness abounded to such an extent that there was no remedy for man, God destroyed the world by flood. Later, man’s continued rebellion led to the dispersion of the peoples of the world, dividing them into various groups and languages.

After that came the redemption of the people of Israel and their own stubborn rebellion. Twice they were exiled for disobedience. The church has continuously fallen away from the truth of the Bible, one denomination after another apostatizing. Eventually, man will stray so far from God’s purposes that the world will face the tribulation minutely detailed in the book of Revelation.

These things happen because we simply don’t acknowledge and properly respect the Creator. Individually, we are responsible for our actions, and we will receive judgment based on them. Likewise, mankind will also be collectively judged with fire on the Day of Judgment. Call now on Jesus and be saved from the wrath to come.

Heavenly Father, You have been more than patient with us as we continuously stray from Your intent and purposes for us. In wrath, remember mercy and look tenderly upon those who have called on Your offer of peace which comes through Jesus our Lord. Amen.

Thursday, 20 February 2020

…by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water. 2 Peter 3:6

Here, the Greek presents a difficulty. The words “by which” are di hon, or literally “through which things.” The pronoun is plural. This then must cause the reader to ask, “Which things?” Peter has mentioned creation, the word of God, the heavens, the earth, and the waters. Therefore, it could be any or all combined.

It was the word of God which spoke these things into existence, and it is – as Peter will say in the next verse – “the same word” which preserves the heavens and the earth. But Peter has just spoken twice of the waters as well, showing that the earth stood out of them. It is also the waters which are the focus of the flood narrative (see Genesis 7:24). Further, the focus here is on destruction by water, whereas the next destructive cataclysm will be by fire – as Peter will next note. However, it is the earth that was broken up and let forth the waters, and the windows of the heavens which were opened (see Genesis 7:11). A case could be made for any of these.

In the end, nothing happens apart from God. It is His word which spoke all things into existence, and it is His word which holds all things together. He is the principle cause of all things, and through His word comes the instrumental cause of all lesser things – such as the heavens and the earth, or the waters, bringing about destruction.

With this in mind, he says, “the world.” This is speaking of the state of the world before the flood. It speaks of its inhabitants – man, animal, and plant life. It speaks of the state of the world as well – long life, a canopy above, and etc. The word is kosmos, and it speaks of the order or arrangement of the system which existed at that time. That world existed, and then it “perished.”

The Greek word signifies violently and completely perishing. There was a world that existed, and then it was wiped out. Because of this, what the scoffers say is obviously untrue. In verse 4, they had said, “…all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” But that very thought is proven false. There was creation and from it was an ordered system which existed. But then there was a complete end to that ordered system. And so, their logic in denying the coming of Christ is based on a faulty premise.

Peter then says that “the then world” (as the Greek reads) was utterly destroyed, “being flooded with water.” Here, Peter uses a word found only this one time in Scripture, katakluzó. It is a verb which forms the root of our modern “cataclysm.” There was an overwhelming inundation which wiped out the entire planet.

From these words, a few points can be determined. First, Peter speaks of the flood as an absolutely true narrative. To deny a literal reading of the Genesis account of the flood is to then deny the inspiration of Scripture, the words of Peter (which cite the word of God – the heavens, the earth, the water, and the destruction – both in occurrence and scope), and to then deny the accuracy of all of Scripture – because Peter will, in this very chapter, refer to Paul’s letters. Paul is referred to by Luke in Acts, and Luke is referred to by Paul in Colossians. Mark is spoken of by Paul and Peter. Luke’s account refers to the other apostles, including Matthew and John. And all of them cite and refer to the Old Testament Scriptures, and all of them speak of Jesus. And Jesus likewise speaks of a real Noah, a real flood, and the actual consequences of that flood.

On and on, each point brings in another point, unifying the entire body of Scripture as one inspired work of God. Thus, to deny the account of the Flood of Noah leads to an implicit denial of all of Scripture. The word, then, becomes a pick and choose body of words and sentences without any true cohesion, and certainly lacking any divine inspiration.

Secondly, regardless as to the flood narrative – for those who deny the truth of Scripture – there is still the truth that the world has obviously been destroyed before. Whether by a flood, or by an asteroid, the evidence of a previous world that once existed, and which no longer exists, is testified to by all. And so, the failed logic of those who say that everything continues on as it has since creation is completely false. In the end, only the Bible adequately and accurately explains what happened, when it happened, why it came about, what the results of it were, and what it means for the future of man.

Life application: Peter’s point in what is written is that, just as obvious as it is that the world was created, men have no excuse when they deny the truth of God’s written word, even when it says Jesus will return. God spoke the world into existence with a word, and God’s promises in the Bible are just as sound as the very act of creation.

The ancient pre-flood world was destroyed because of its wickedness. Certainly, a lack of faith in the Creator embodies this wickedness. Were they to have had faith in His sovereignty, they would have acknowledged Him and honored Him. Instead, they turned to ever-increasing moral depravity until there was no remedy. Thus, God destroyed the world with water.

The very waters from which the earth stood out became the tool of destruction of the earth. Just as the ancient world was destroyed for its unbelief, so false prophets and scoffers who deny the authority, miraculous working, and promised return of Jesus will likewise be destroyed.

God isn’t a cosmic pushover who can be flagrantly denied and held in contempt. Rather, He is the sovereign Creator who holds in His grasp the fate of all men. If you hear conflicting accounts about the surety of the flood narrative, the lordship of Jesus, the truth of the Gospel, or the promised return of Christ, you would fare well to trust God’s word rather than the naysayers. God. He who assures us of these things cannot lie. So, stand firm in His word and have faith!

Creator God, you gave us breath so that we could and should praise You. Your name is great and matchless, and so may our lives be as a continual offering of praise to You. Also, may our lives shout out to You, and may our mouths sing forth to You – in the greatness of Your marvelous majesty. You are God, and we offer ourselves to You in humble and awestruck adoration. Amen.

Wednesday, 19 February 2020

For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water, 2 Peter 3:5

Peter, still referring to the “scoffers” of verse 3, and who dismiss the coming of the Lord as noted in verse 4, now says of them, “For this they willfully forget.” The idea here is that these people know something to be true, because it has been revealed to them, and yet they purposefully push that truth out of their minds. Instead, they forge ahead with what they know to be false rather than acknowledge the evidence which lies before them (such as evolution does concerning creation).

With this understood, Peter next continues with the thought from verse 3:4. There, he cited the scoffers. They said, “all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” The act of creation is the subject. To expand on that, he cites the Genesis creation account with the words, “that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water.”

The translation here lacks the intent of the Greek. Four articles, not in the original, have been added. Rather, it says –

“that heavens existed long ago, and earth, formed out of water and through water – by the word of God.”

The water is the focus of the words. The earth obtained its consistency, or material substance, from the water. And it was by means of the water that it came about. With this understanding, the words can be more properly evaluated. Peter says that these things occurred “by the word of God.”

In the Genesis account, it says, “Then God said.” There is the spoken word, and it is followed by an action in the creation itself. This is also repeated in Psalm 33 –

“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.
⁷ He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;
He lays up the deep in storehouses.
⁸ Let all the earth fear the Lord;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
⁹ For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.” Psalm 33:6-9

The Psalmist read the word of God, accepted it at face value, and repeated what God (the Lord) had done. However, these scoffers willingly and purposefully forget what the word says, denying the evidences around them as they speak of the creation. They deny the truth, and because of this, God’s judgment is ready to destroy them. This will be seen as Peter continues.

Life application: Those who scoff at the second coming of Christ fail to reason out the truthfulness and power of God. It is so much easier to bury one’s head in the sand than to acknowledge that there really is a God, that He really did create, and that all creation therefore is within His purview. If this is so, then the same God who did these things will fulfill His promises, including the return of Christ.

Peter’s return to the first chapter of Genesis is to remind us that God created the heavens and the earth. There was a time when these things didn’t exist in any form; there was nothing. God spoke these things into existence and then actively worked to form them into the universe and world we know.

One only needs to look at a tree to think the process through. “There is a tree; the tree didn’t create itself; the tree is connected to the ground; the ground is part of the earth; the earth didn’t create itself; the earth is in the universe; the universe didn’t create itself; all of this order came from somewhere; the universe didn’t always exist, but now it does; there must be a God; this God must be intelligent because the tree (along with all the universe) has order and beauty; I can perceive the tree and contemplate it; I must have reason and intellect; my reason and intellect must have come from somewhere; order cannot come from chaos; therefore God must be actively involved in the entire process – from the tree to me.”

As we continue to think on these lines, we can make reasonable deductions about God. These deductions will inevitably lead to understanding His nature. He must, by the very nature of who He is, be truthful. If He has said Jesus will come again, then this must be true. Naturally, a multitude of deductions which lead us to this point have been skipped, but the end result is that we are without excuse when we fail to acknowledge both the sovereignty and also the truthfulness of God. Think it through and have faith that God will fulfill every promise, just as His word states.

O God, surely You are in control. The splendor of a mere bumblebee tells us that You are wise and loving. How much more should we be able to trust You when we look to the rest of creation and see Your majesty displayed in it. May we never doubt that You are competent to fulfill every promise You have made…including the promised return of Jesus our Lord. Amen.

Tuesday, 18 February 2020

… 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 creation.” 2 Peter 3:4

Peter is referring to the “scoffers” of the previous verse. These are people who walk “according to their own lusts.” Of them, he notes that they are the type who are saying, “Where is the promise of His coming.” This question implies a non-believer in the truest sense. The words speak of the return of Jesus Christ as is promised. However, instead of saying, “the Lord,” He is referred to in a general sense, as if a denial of His Lordship.

Secondly, it is a denial of His promised return. It doesn’t matter if it is 2 months or 2000 years. The Lord has promised He would return and, therefore, they are making a mockery of His return. Depending on the context of the question, it could even include a denial of the resurrection of Christ. This is because all of Christian theology is centered on the truth of a literal, bodily resurrection. Only in the resurrection are the creeds and rites of the faith of any merit. To say that “Jesus is Lord” is to say that Jesus resurrected, because nobody would follow a dead Lord.

Further, in taking the Lord’s Supper, the very purpose of the rite is described by Paul in his words, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26).

Proclaiming the Lord’s death is an acknowledgment that He died for sin, but the proclamation is tied up in His resurrection which proves that He overcame death. One cannot “come” unless He is alive to do so. Therefore, to mock the return of Christ is to implicitly mock everything that encompasses the Person and work of Christ. As God cannot lie, and as Jesus has promised to return, then if He isn’t coming again, then He must not be God.

In this then will come a denial of the very thing that man attempts to get away from – judgment. If the resurrection of Jesus isn’t true, then the return of Jesus isn’t true. If these things are untrue, then Jesus isn’t God. And if Jesus isn’t God, then Jesus is not going to judge the world as the Bible proclaims. If this is so, then the words of the Bible concerning judgment are not true. And if those things are not true, then man is free to act in any unholy and perverse manner he wishes. One thing leads to the next, and in the end, it is all brought forth as a perverse way of man being able to do what he wants without the fear of being held accountable for his actions looming over him.

Peter then continues citing the words of such mockers by saying, “For since the fathers fell asleep.” The meaning of the words, “the fathers,” is debated. Some say it refers to the patriarchs of Israel, some say those who were of faith even from the earliest humans who anticipated a Messiah, others say it refers to early Christians, and so on.

As Peter is speaking, and because his words deal with the Christian faith, this is then certainly dealing with the return of Christ (His coming, which implies He has left and promised to return). Because of this, “the fathers” are speaking of something long in the future from Peter’s time, and it is a note that Christ’s return – even if delayed by an extremely long period – will come about. But as that time continues to get longer, the scoffers will use the extended gap as a tool to claim that the words concerning Jesus are untrue. Thus, “the fathers” are those at the beginning of the faith, meaning the apostles and early believers.

The words, “fell asleep” are then used in a mocking sense. The very word “cemetery” comes from the Greek koiman which means “put to sleep.” Thus, the word koimeterion means “sleeping place.” To sleep implies that one will wake up. It is the hope of those who trust in Christ. As He arose, so will believers. But in their scoffing, they are mocking this. “The fathers ‘fell asleep,’ and they ain’t waking up again!”

This is why Peter then continues citing them with, “all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” This is a general statement which probably covers many thoughts in one.

* People die and stay dead.
* The sun rises, and it sets. Time goes from day to day without change. The words of the prophets speak of cataclysms and end-times judgments, and yet the world continues on.
* Jesus supposedly rose and said He will return, but Jesus keeps on not returning.
* Judgment is supposedly to fall on the wicked, but people who do wicked things are the only ones who really prosper and get ahead in life.
* Etc.

All of this has gone on since “the beginning of creation,” and yet nothing of the message of God in Messiah comes about as was spoken of by men who died and returned to the dust of the earth thousands of years ago.

But the very words spoken by these lugheads shows a fault in their thinking. If there is a “creation,” there must logically be a “Creator.” Peter will speak about this next as he continues.

Life application: Peter’s words speak of one of the most common sentiments among those who would undermine the teaching of a literal return of Christ… “Where is the promise of His coming?” This isn’t reserved only for atheists or adherents to other religions, but it is, rather, a common method of dismissing the truth of the Bible among supposed “Christian” theologians as well.

The book of Revelation says several times, “Behold, I am coming quickly…” The argument is that this was written 2000 years ago and yet Jesus still hasn’t come. The “fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning…” However, the term “quickly” (also translated “soon” in some Bibles) is not speaking of when Jesus is coming, but rather the speed at which He comes. In other words, “rapidly.”

When Jesus returns, it will be in a moment; in a flash. The heavens will open, and the victorious Lord will return in full view of the peoples of the world. Likewise, before this awesome day there will be a secret return, specifically for those who have trusted in His promises. This moment is known as the rapture and will be sudden and final. As it says in the book of 1 Thessalonians –

“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus, we shall always be with the Lord.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17

It is no less reasonable to believe in the rapture of the church than it is to believe that God truly united with human flesh in the Person of Jesus, that He died on a cross, and that He was resurrected to eternal life. If such things are true, then the doctrine of the rapture is no less difficult to believe and accept. The promise of Jesus’ return will be fulfilled literally. This is as sure as the ground under your feet. Don’t become disheartened by those who would attempt to undermine the truth of this event!

Glorious Lord Jesus! Nothing will ever sway our faith and hope in the promise of Your return. We look for, and wait upon, that Day with great anticipation. Our hope is in that glorious moment when we will be taken to Your presence… there to rejoice in Your glory forever. May it be soon! Amen.